The Stogie Guys

As we have since July 2006, each Friday we’ll post a mixed bag of quick cigar news and other items of interest. We call ‘em Friday Samplers. Enjoy.

1) Starting tomorrow, StogieGuys.com will be reporting on location from the 77th annual International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers (IPCPR) Trade Show in New Orleans. Be sure to check back frequently for live updates from the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center (pictured at right). You can also follow our twitter feed for more coverage. In the meantime, click here for pre-IPCPR information about many of the new cigars that are set to debut in the coming days. And feel free to leave a comment below if you have a burning question you’d like us to ask any of the cigar makers who will be in attendance.

2) With anti-tobacco laws sweeping the nation, it’s worthwhile to look at the tactics anti-smoking zealots use to push smoking bans.  This  document (pdf), created by a coalition of anti-tobacco groups, details their strategy. It includes fighting against exemptions for private clubs and cigar shops, not agreeing to so-called hardship exemptions (for businesses that suffer from bans), and avoiding ballot initiatives where citizens get a vote (in favor of less transparent legislative strategies).

3) Inside the Industry: According to a Cigar Insider poll, this year Tatuaje eclipsed Padrón and Opus X as the most requested cigar brand in America.

4) Around the Blogs: Keepers of the Flame tests an aged Cubao. Stogie Review lights up a Graycliff. A Cigar Smoker checks out the Corona Cigar Company 10th Anniversary. Cigar Choice reviews the Benchmade. Perfect Draw smokes the Fuente Opus X.

5) Deal of the Week: The robusto is the most popular cigar size, and this “World Famous Robusto Sampler” has some fine examples of the vitola. Included are  robustos by Cohiba, Rocky Patel, CAO, Gran Habano, Padilla Hybrid, Toraño, and Fonseca. In all, you get ten robustos and free shipping for $45. Get yours here.

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Morial Convention Center

Starting Sunday, the 77th annual International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers (IPCPR) Trade Show will take place in New Orleans. StogieGuys.com will be on location to provide you with live updates as we sample cigars, get the details on new releases, and speak with dozens of cigar makers.

While many of details will be released at the show, here are some of new cigars set to debut this week:

Padrón is set to launch a new line called the “Reserva de Familia.” Featuring well-aged Nicaraguan tobacco, they will be releasing one blend annually in one size every September thereafter.

Don Pepin Garcia is expanding its My Father line and debuting the Tobacco Baez SF, which consists of 70% long-filler and 30% short-filler to provide consumers with a lower price point of $3 per cigar.

CAO recently announced it would debut a new brand called La Traviata, a full-bodied blend complete with an Ecuadorian habano wrapper, a Cameroon binder, and two different ligero filler tobaccos.

Rocky Patel has announced three new cigars. One blend, called “Patel Brothers,” is a collaboration with Rocky’s brother, Nimesh. It will feature a Nicaraguan-grown binder and filler and an unusual Pennsylvania broadleaf wrapper. The other is the “Rocky Patel 1961″—named for the year Rocky Patel was born—which uses a blend of Nicaraguan filler, Honduran binder, and an Ecuadorian-grown wrapper. Also to debut is the Rocky Patel Corojo Especial which, like the Cameroon Especial that debuted last year, will be a bundled smoke.  We also heard rumors that a 12th Anniversary cigar may be on its way.

Oliva is introducing the new White Label Connecticut Reserve and launching Cain, an all-ligero cigar blended by Nub creator Sam Leccia.

Toraño will be announcing the contents of their 50th Anniversary cigar as they roll out the line in a series of normal sizes. The Solomon size, which is featured in the Exodus sampler, won’t be part of the regular line.

Tatuaje will debut the new La Verite cigar lines. La Verite, which means “the truth,” will be a Churchill and available in April 2010. It will be offered in cabinets of 100, broken down into smaller boxes of 10, 25, or 50, and retailing for approximately $25 per stick. The other, L’esprit de La Verite, which means “the spirit of the truth,” will be a robusto and available in December 2009 at a retail price of around $13 apiece. We reviewed a pre-release of the L’esprit de La Verite here.

Camacho recently announced that it has teamed up with LA jeweler Matt Booth to create “Room 101 Cigars,” a Honduran-Dominican blend that will debut at the show.

Padilla is set to release two new cigars in August. Padilla Dominus, made with 2006 corojo tobacco, will be a new premium blend ($8-15). Meanwhile, the Padilla Cazadores, made with an Ecuadorian habano wrapper and Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos, will be a value-oriented smoke that will cost around $5 each.

Illusione is teaming up with Drew Estate to make a new release called “Nosotros.” It will sell for $8-12 apiece and feature a Nicaraguan corojo ’99 wrapper, a Nicaraguan filler, and a Connecticut habano binder.

Alec Bradley is set to release four new cigars (though some appear to have already begun landing in cigar shops): the SCR, Family Blend, Vice Press, and Mudial.

Nestor Miranda is expanding on the newly re-blended Nestor Miranda Collection including a lancero and a rosado version of the Ruky perfecto. The company will also be releasing reblended versions of its Don lino 1989 blend in three sizes: a torpedo, a robusto, and a Churchill.

EO Brands, makers of the 601 line and Cubao, will be launching new releases. The Cubao Maduro will feature a similar blend to the original Cubao line, this time with an Ecuadorian broadleaf maduro wrapper. The Murcielago contains a blend of Nicaraguan and Mexican tobaccos.

Perdomo Cigars has announced two new smokes.  They will be releasing a tubo version of the 10th Anniversary Champagne smoke and also a new Grand Cru Connecticut.

G.A.R. Cigars is releasing the G.A.R. Vanguard, a Nicaraguan puro with plenty of ligero tobacco. They will also debut a new limited size (6 x 66) of the Gran Habano Corojo No. 5 blend called the “Czar,” and a Gran Habano No. 5 Double Maduro featuring a San Andreas wrapper that is due out in November.

Arganese Cigars will be releasing a CL/ML double-wrap cigar, based on the CL3 and ML3 lines. We’ve also heard rumors they are set to launch a “double cigar” that will be two cigars with one wrapper twisted and connected at the head.  The idea is to help enthusiasts avoid SCHIP and other cigar taxes by selling two cigars in one.

Casa Magna debuted at last year’s trade show and became a big hit when Cigar Aficionado named it the “Cigar of the Year.” This year, the company is adding the Casa Magna Oscuro and a new large vitola to its regular Casa Magna line called the Extraordinario, which measures seven inches with a 58 ring guage.

Some of the biggest names in cigars, including industry giants Altadis and General Cigar, haven’t announced their new releases yet. Be sure to check back with StogieGuys.com for updates.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

If you’re like most of the cigar smokers who check websites and peruse walk-in humidors for new brands, this is a stressful time. Just five initials (IPCPR) cause sweaty palms and a burning sensation in the pocket where you carry your wallet.

Yes, it’s almost time for the 77th annual International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers Association Trade Show. That means new cigars, new line extensions, new lighters, new ashtrays, and new gimmicks. I especially look forward to all the new knick-knacks that no one needs and, more likely than not, few will buy.

Like Sirens, the latest and greatest cigar creations lure us—and our dollars. We’re hopeless to resist. In fact, the only saving grace is that after you’ve read about all the new cigars (StogieGuys.com will have live updates from the Trade Show floor starting this weekend), you actually can’t find them anywhere.

Months later, when they finally appear in quantities greater than a salesman’s samples, we’ve forgotten all about them.

Maybe that’s why so many of the new cigars don’t seem to last. Or maybe we’re just overloaded and the industry is overextended.

I sat with my eyes closed the other night, enjoying a cigar, and ticked off a seemingly endless list of names of different cigars available right now. Heck, it’s hard to maintain enough butane in the lighter to ignite them all.

And how many times can you say, “Man, what a pepper pot!” or “There’s definitely some leather in there.” or “I like it. I’m not sure what I’m tasting, but I like it.”

This year, though, I’m ready. I have created a special amulet to ward off the spell of new cigars: a little pendant made from the Swisher Sweets shield. That should work, don’t you think?

–George E

photo credit: RTDA.org

A rarity among today’s manufacturers, PG Cigars maintains a singular, unwavering mission: to blend and age classic-tasting cigars to meet the most discriminating of palates. That’s what they’ve been doing since the company launched in 1990.

But their dedication to traditionalism and disdain for slick marketing and gimmickry—documented in our Cigar Insider with Paul and Kevork Garmirian—hasn’t prevented this McLean, Virginia-based boutique from launching new lines from time to time. Such was the case when, in 2005, they celebrated their debut with a 15th Anniversary Belicoso Extra. At first they only made 15,000 available to the top 50 authorized PG retailers.

According to their website, however, “the response…was so great that the 15th Anniversary blend is now available in a new PG line composed of ten sizes.” These full-bodied cigars include Nicaraguan wrappers, Dominican binders, and filler leaves from the Dominican farms that grew tobacco for the inaugural PGs.

Back in February, I bought two Robustos (5 x 52) for $14.55 apiece at PG’s headquarters. They have been a sight to behold in my humidor since. The Colorado wrappers are toothy and oily, the feel is very firm from head to toe, and the pre-light aromas include notes of hay, earth, and cocoa.

When lit, according to PG, this blend “represents a kaleidoscopic range of tastes” that are “reminiscent of old style Cuban puros from the mid-1950s.” I may not be lucky enough to know the latter but I can certainly appreciate the former. And the Gourmet 15th Anniversary Robusto certainly features a balanced myriad of flavors.

While some of the tastes are common among cigars—including cedar, pepper, and dark chocolate—this base is augmented by more unusual flavors. Everything comes together in such harmony that it can be difficult to identify these rarer notes. But I was able to put my finger on a few of them, including cherry, melon, cinnamon, and pine.

This tremendous profile is complemented by good construction, which is especially welcome in a complex cigar like this because it enables the smoker to focus on the taste. I only wish the burn required fewer touch-ups.

That aside, this fantastic smoke is built to impress longtime cigar enthusiasts—and it comes through. While its cost is high, so too is the level of enjoyment it delivers. That’s why the Gourmet 15th Anniversary Robusto earns four and a half stogies out of five.

[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here.]

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

These days everyone is looking for a value, and one way to find more affordable cigars is to look for ones with mixed filler.  The theory is, because they use the otherwise unusable clippings of premium cigars, you get the top level tobacco in a value price.

If ever there were a cigar to test that theory it would be the Tatuaje Series P, which combines one of the top names in premium, boutique smokes with mixed filler theory. According to reports, the Series P uses the same filler as Tatuaje’s medium-bodied Havana VI line (we’ve reviewed the Verocu No. 1 and No. 2 vitolas) , but at less than half the price—around $3.75 each.

Like all Seris Ps, the Robusto (5 x 50) is a Nicaraguan puro. While the wrapper is similar to the Havana VI line, it is a little more rustic with some water spots and more veins.

Not surprisingly, because it’s a mixed filler smoke (60% medium-filler and 40% long-filler, to be exact) this cigar is softer and more spongy than what you’re use to from Tatuaje.  That manifests itself later with an overly easy, airy draw and an unstable ash.

While the construction is a predictable step down from the Havana VI line, the drop-off was far less pronounced when it came to taste.  Medium-bodied earth and nut flavors combine to produce an enjoyable, if not all that complex, blend.

Everyone will have to make their own decision when it comes to trading the lower price point for lesser construction and complexity, but it isn’t hard to see why this is a popular smoke. After all, how else can you get a box of 31 Tatuajes for under $4 per stick?

Ultimately, everyone needs to try the Series P versus the regular Havana VI line for themselves. However, when judged on it’s own merits, the Tatuaje Series P2 Robusto earns a respectable rating of three and a half stogies out of five.

[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here.]

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief take on a single cigar.

This Churchill-sized smoke (7 x 49) remains my favorite vitola in the Centro Fino Sungrown blend. With notes of wood, earth, nuts, and milk chocolate, it is well-suited for a weekend afternoon at home or on the golf course. And its excellent combustion qualities—including a sturdy white ash—only enhance the experience. At $6-8 a pop, I’m always happy to keep a few of these on hand.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief take on a single cigar.

This brand from United Tobacco is a bit of an enigma. The website says that each Mi Barrio release will be the same unique size and shape with a different blend. The insert that came in my box of El Aceres (6 x 50) says the same thing. This second release in the line, however, is clearly a different vitola than the first, called El Puro (7.5 x 52). I’ve smoked both, and the difference in flavor is subtle enough to make me believe that the blend stayed the same and the size is the only thing changing from release to release. At any rate, the construction of the El Acere is excellent. It starts with lots of earthiness and a grassy sweetness that plays off of a subtle spice. About halfway through, a strong vanilla flavor emerges with a hint of roasted almonds. The El Acere is medium-bodied but full-flavored with a crisp finish. Even at $9-$11 apiece, this complex cigar is definitely worth a try.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick M

photo credit: Stogie Guys