The 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.

I have no idea where I got this cigar or how long it’s been sitting in my humidor. But I’m pretty sure I won’t be smoking another. Not because it was bad, but because it seems that Maraya Cigars is out of business. Its New York shop closed earlier this year, the phone is out of service, and a website on the reverse of the band calls up an error page. And that’s a shame because it was an interesting smoke. The Ecuadorian Connecticut shade wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and Dominican and Nicaraguan Corojo and Criollo ’98 filler combined for a spicy, milder cigar with some sweetness and a light hay in the background. If you see one, give it a try.

Verdict = Buy.

–George E

photo credit: N/A

With Tatuaje giving a boost this year to Verocú, introduced originally in 2007 as a stronger addition to the Havana VI line, it seemed like a good time to get reacquainted. After all, three of the earlier Verocú incarnations garnered top ratings in Stogie Guys reviews.

The “new” regular production Verocú comes in six sizes. The No. 1 is 6.25 inches long with a 52 ring gauge, the same size as the earlier limited West Coast edition. It carries a $10 MSRP.

The wrapper is an Ecuadorian Habano and the filler and binder are from Nicaragua. Typical of Tatuaje, these cigars are rolled at the My Father Cigars factory in Nicaragua.

Some cigars make a lasting impression, and I fondly remember the zoned edition (East and West) Verocú cigars I smoked in 2008. What stands out particularly in my memory is how smooth and balanced they were.

I was a little wary lighting up my first of these new ones. After all, a lot of great cigars have come along in the intervening years. It’s only natural to wonder whether these new sticks can still compete. And win.

The short answer is, yes, they can.

Of course, I can’t possibly remember those older smokes exactly and compare them to these. In my mind, the older ones had more initial pepper than the new sticks. But that could simply be the effect of years of smoking so many other cigars bursting with pepper since then.

What is unquestionably still a hallmark of Verocú is smoothness and balance, as the flavors move and shift throughout the smoke. A bit of sweetness to set off the pepper, floral notes overtaken by leather. The finish lingers nicely. Construction, burn, and draw are excellent, and the cigar produces lots of thick smoke.

Bringing Verocú fully back as a regular production line is, I think, the kind of customer-friendly move that has helped brand owner Pete Johnson achieve an extraordinary reputation and a tremendous following in the cigar world.

I recommend these highly and, once again, give the Tatuaje Havana VI Verocú five stogies out of five.

[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here. A list of other five-stogie rated cigars can be found here.]

–George E

photo credit: Stogie Guys

This special limited edition from Miami Cigar & Co.—one of three released this year—is unmistakably maduro. From the deep rich coffee and chocolate aroma of its Broadleaf wrapper to the sweetness in the smoke, this large cigar stands out.

At 7 inches in length and a 56 ring gauge, the Danno cigars are not spur-of-the-moment smokes. I clocked about two hours with each of the two I sampled.

What you get in that time is a medium-strength cigar with balanced flavors and a light finish. Problems sometimes encountered with large cigars—especially with the burn and the draw—were non-existent. My only complaint was smoke production: I’d have liked a little more.

With the first one, I began with a V-cut at the foot, which sports a small pigtail. After a half-inch or so, I used a guillotine to open it up in hopes of getting more smoke. And that helped some, as it did for the second cigar, when I simply started with the straight cut.

The cigar begins with notes of spice, which give way fairly soon to some of the typical dark maduro flavors like coffee and cocoa. They remain throughout, with the second half becoming sweet, with a taste sometimes reminiscent of burned sugar.

The maduro edition of the 2015 Danno line, named to commemorate Nestor Miranda’s late son, has Nicaraguan, Dominican, and Peruvian filler tobaccos with the Nicaraguan Criollo ’98 binder common to all three. The MSRP is $12, more than reasonable considering the size.

Miami Cigar, which supplied my samples, produced only 1,000 20-count boxes of each of the three at the My Father Cigars factory in Nicaragua.

I don’t smoke a lot of maduro cigars. Too often, I’ve found a sameness in many of them that can lead to a fairly boring smoke.

That wasn’t the case with the Danno Maduro. It has distinct flavors and remains interesting, though, honestly, I probably would have liked it better in a somewhat smaller vitola.

Overall, I preferred the Habano, which I reviewed in June. The Connecticut review is coming up.

The Nestor Miranda Danno Collection One Life Edition Maduro is a fine smoke. I rate it four stogies out of five.

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

–George E

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.

Released a couple of years ago, this line from Jesus Fuego was an early adopter in identifying its use of Mexican San Andrés tobacco (binder). The other components are an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper and filler that’s half Nicaraguan Corojo and half Honduran Corojo. And, as you’d expect from the name, the 5-inch smoke is fat, with a 60-ring gauge. Unfortunately, I didn’t get much flavor or smoke, and the draw was too tight. I couldn’t help but wonder if one of the smaller vitolas would produce better performance and results.

Verdict = Sell.

–George E

photo credit: Stogie Guys

This cigar looks so nice, it’s hard not to wonder whether it can match that impression when you smoke it.

It can. And does.

This entry from Global Marketing & Distribution (GMD) is a class act from start to finish. Rolled at Hendrik Kelner Jr.’s Dominican factory, the Heritage 1492 Tradicionales is a medium-strength smoke with excellent construction and lots of flavor.

The first taste is a bit of grass-hay, not surprising given the Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper. It diminishes throughout the first third, almost disappearing by the second half. Other flavors rise along the way. I noticed leather, nuts, and some sweetness, though never the “fresh pastries” GMD mentions in its marketing material.

The binder is from Nicaragua and the filler is a combination of U.S., Nicaraguan, and Dominican tobaccos. Construction on the three I smoked was nearly perfect, with a great draw, burn, and level of smoke.

According to GMD—a relative newcomer to the cigar world that continued to add to its portfolio this year—the finished Heritage cigars are aged a year before going to the marketplace.

The regular line has five sizes, of which the Robusto (5 x 52) sports the largest ring gauge. There are also two big Edition Especial sizes under the Heritage 1492 Tradicionales brand: a Gigante and a Bellicoso Gigante. These, said to be spicer and more intense, have a Cubra Brazil wrapper.

The Robustos I smoked were provided by GMD. This is a cigar worth seeking out, whether you’re a beginner or a long-time smoker.

At $12 for the Robusto, it’s on the higher end. I think it’s a fair price, and certainly plan to keep an eye out for more. To me, it seems the kind of cigar that is most suited to smaller vitolas; I’d be most interested in trying the half-inch shorter Rothschild.

This cigar earns a high rating of four stogies out of five.

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

–George E

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Crafted in Miami by Figaro Cigars, this line is relatively new to the market. If it isn’t on your radar—frankly, it was completely new to me—it’s well worth checking out.

Featuring an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper and Nicaraguan filler and binder, the Robusto starts with a fiery kick. It doesn’t overwhelm, though, and tends to wind down a bit as you move into the second half of the five-inch frame.

Along the way, there’s some sweetness, which is also present in the pre-light aroma on the wrapper, and a strong leather component, especially in the second half. There’s a nice overall balance to the cigar, and I found myself enjoying each of the three sticks I smoked more than the one before.

The 50-ring gauge Robusto isn’t a complex cigar, but the flavors it delivers are good from start to finish.

It’s the kind of cigar you could smoke on a golf course or watching a game and realize when it’s over that you thoroughly enjoyed it. Or you can pay more attention as you smoke it and find yourself rewarded with an even greater level of enjoyment.

I’d put the strength level at the upper end of medium.

Construction on the samples I received from Figaro was excellent. I was concerned at first because the pre-light draw seemed very open, but that wasn’t a problem when it was lit. And that held when the cigar got a conventional guillotine cut, a V-cut, or a punch. (I tried all three.)

Smoke production was robust, and the burn extremely straight. The ash held tight as well.

The MSRP is a more-than-reasonable $6.99. There are two other regular Figaro cigars: a 6 x 60 that lists for $8.99, and a 6 x 52 for $7.99.

This cigar likely won’t blow you away, but it is also unlikely to disappoint. I think it would be a great choice for someone looking to move up from milder cigars to something with a tad more Nicaraguan pop and for anyone looking for a good, straight-forward smoke.

The Figaro 1943 Habano VX Robusto earns a rating of three and a half stogies out of five.

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

–George E

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.

I’ve long enjoyed Oliva Serie V cigars, but I hadn’t smoked this exquisite vitola until recently. Quite simply, I think the figurado is the best of the line. From the first light of the tip, when it explodes with pepper, to the leathery, sweet end, it’s a terrific cigar. Smooth, powerful, tasty, complex, typical first-rate Oliva performance. The tapered body—6 x 60 at its largest—seems to focus the flavors. At a bit over $10, it is truly worth every penny, and more.

Verdict = Buy.

–George E

photo credit: Oliva