The Stogie Guys

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

The behemoth Animal Cracker (6 x 60) features an Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro wrapper around Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos. It sells for $9.50. The cigar is billed this way: “Animal Cracker defines the large ring gauge as a successful wild hunt for big flavor and strength.” I’m largely inclined to agree. The perfectly constructed cigar features plenty of pepper, black coffee, and woody flavors. I was prepared to dismiss this cigar because I’m generally not a fan of thick smokes, but I must say I was impressed. Based on the one I smoked, it’s easily my second favorite from the Surrogates line.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

I’m working my through a few more rye whiskeys before putting together a Guide to Rye, along the lines of our A-Z Guide to Bourbon (part 1 & part 2). Rye whiskey is increasingly popular these days and we want to help you sort out the over-hyped from the real gems.

High West distills whiskey and other spirits at its distillery and saloon in Park City, Utah, which bills itself as the world’s only ski-in distillery. However, the contents of Double Rye! (like most of High West’s aged whiskeys) weren’t distilled at the slope-side distillery.

Not that they hide that fact. As the back label explains, this is a combination of two straight rye whiskeys sourced by High West. One is a young two-year rye with a high rye mashbill (95% rye), probably from Lawrenceburg Distillers Indiana. The other is an old 16-year rye with a more traditional mashbill (53% rye). (My bottle was from batch “13F11” and it was bottle number 599.)

The “blend of straight rye whiskies” sells for around $35 per bottle. And the handsome bottle is notable for it’s old west style with bubbles in the glass that give the handmade appearance. The rye is a pure gold color. The nose is a very unique combination of pine and iodine, but with bits of maple candy sweetness and mint.

The palate is all about the dueling layers. The young whiskey has a raw quality to it, but there’s just enough of the smoothness and sweetness from the older rye to prevent it from being overly acrid or harsh. It’s a fresh combination of pear, honey, cinnamon, and raw wood. The finish is a bit harsh and short.

This is a tough whiskey to judge because it’s so unique. The rough nature of the 2-year-old rye that (I suspect) makes up the majority of this blend is dominant and, at times, harsh and unpleasant. But there are quite a few redeeming characteristics: sweetness, complexity, and unexpected depth.

Cigar-wise, you’ll want a spicy cigar to pair with the Double Rye! (yes the “!” is part of the appeal, and it’s descriptive of this brash whiskey). While there are more than a few better rye whiskeys, for more or less money, High West Double Rye! still has it’s charms as a bold, unique rye.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

I thought I was out of this limited and hard-to-find Lancero edition of the Liga Privada Único Serie until I found this cigar in a box in the bottom of my humidor. The L40 (7 x 40) features a Connecticut stalk-cut Habano wrapper, Brazilian Mata Fina binder, and Nicaraguan filler. It’s a classic combination of cocoa, espresso, wood, and earth. It’s medium- to full-bodied, very smooth, and balanced. While not as powerful as other Liga Privada smokes, this is a must try for Lancero fans.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

In terms of new lines of American whiskey in recent years, E.H. Taylor has to be one of the more interesting. Produced by Buffalo Trace (makers of Blanton’s, George T. Stagg, Elmer T. Lee, W.L. Weller, Eagle Rare, Buffalo Trace, and a little bourbon called Pappy Van Winkle) the six-whiskey line honors Colonel Edmund Haynes Taylor, Jr.

Taylor is one of the founding fathers of the bourbon industry and one-time owner of what is now called Buffalo Trace Distillery. He’s largely known as a proponent of the Bottled-in-Bond Act of 1897, which ensured quality standards for “bottled-in-bond” bourbon (back then many bourbons were mixed with things like tobacco, turpentine, or other horrible additives to appear more aged than they were). But rest assured the Feds weren’t just worried about the quality of our bourbon. The law also ensured that the federal government could more easily collect taxes.

The E.H. Taylor line consists of four bourbons (Small Batch, Single Barrel, Barrel Proof, and Warehouse C Tornado Surviving), an Old Fashioned Sour Mash (which technically might be bourbon), and this E.H. Taylor Rye. With the exception of the Barrel Proof, all are bottled at 100-proof, the minimum for a bottled-in-bond American whiskey.

What sets this rye apart is a different mashbill than previous Buffalo Trace ryes (both the Sazerac/Handy recipe, and anything made at the Buffalo Trace-owned Barton Distillery). Neither uses nearly as much rye as the the E.H. Taylor mashbill, which uses no corn (only rye and malted barley), probably in a 95/5 ratio. The age of the rye isn’t disclosed, though the straight rye designation (without any age statement) means it’s at least four years old.

The result is a lively spirit with an intense nose of honey, nutmeg, and varnish. On the palate it really shows its range. Traditional flavors include vanilla, pepper, and oils with subtle, though more dramatic, hints of mint, dried fruit, tamarind, and cinnamon. The finish is long with fruit and woody spice.

I paid $68 for this rye. And while it’s a good rye, it can’t compete with Sazerac ($30) or Rittenhouse 100 ($25) for value, nor is it as good as Sazerac 18, which has a suggested retail of around $80 (though good luck finding it, let alone at that price). And yet, E.H. Taylor is still an impressive rye, one that I not only bought one bottle of, but another right after.

Spicy, full-flavored rye calls for a full-bodied spicy cigar. The Opus X, La Aroma de Cuba Edición Especial, and the Boutique Brands Swag all fit the bill. Ultimately, it’s what I call a stage-two whiskey: not one of the first five ryes I’d recommend to someone just feeling their way through the world of American whiskey, but not something I’d deter a more seasoned rye drinker from trying.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

 

Made by the Aganorsa kings from Casa Fernandez Nicaraguan, this Miami-made Nicaraguan puro features a Medio Tiempo Ligero wrapper. The Robusto (5.25 x 52) is well-made with admirable combustion qualities. The flavors are gritty, with plenty of wood spice, though the profile is a bit unbalanced. It’s not a bad smoke, but hardly the best from Casa Fernandez.

Verdict = Hold.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Last week CVS (NYSE: CVS) made big news when it announced they would no longer be selling tobacco products in their drug stores. The decision itself doesn’t have direct implications on premium handmade cigars, but it does raise some issues that should be of interest to all smokers.

First off, let’s recognize that this is a very significant decision for a corporation to make. The company sells $1.5 billion worth of tobacco every year (presumably with a healthy profit margin), which probably is why the stock dropped the day of the announcement. Any time a company eliminates over 1% of their total revenue (more when you look at total estimated revenue losses) with nothing to replace it, it’s a big deal.

This isn’t the first time a business has made a decision to go anti-tobacco, but I can’t think of another decision that cuts into the bottom line so obviously. Local bars and restaurants go smoke-free all the time before laws dictate they have to, so have national hotel chains and Starbucks, which now forbids smoking even in outdoor areas.

But none of those decisions so obviously impact the bottom line. Sure, I go to Caribou Coffee now instead of Starbucks when I want to sit outside and smoke a cigar with some coffee, but it’s not nearly as apparent to shareholders that my revenue is lost in the way that cigarette sales at CVS are now gone because, as the CVS CEO puts it, “We came to the decision that cigarettes and providing health care just don’t go together in the same setting.”

First off, let’s recognize that businesses are free to make their own decisions, though a public company does have to answer to shareholders. There’s nothing inherently wrong about CVS deciding not to provide cigarettes in the same way that a government prohibition in allowing smoking smoking does infringe on the rights of a business owner to choose to provide a customer something he or she wants (in this case a place to smoke).

But let’s not glance over the hypocrisy either. CVS still sells plenty of products that contribute to the overall bad health of our society (even before you dig into the overuse of over-the-counter and prescription drugs). Potato chips, candy bars, and soda, not to mention beer and wine, all will presumably keep being sold at CVS.

Take a look at the obesity, diabetes, etc. that this country faces, and it’s clear that CVS has singled out one product among many unhealthy things. People are already noticing this hypocrisy, even if they don’t realize that it’s likely because anti-smoker discrimination is far more acceptable than other types of judgmental discrimination.

Still, perversely, if CVS’s move catches on, it could end up helping the independent cigar shops that often carry, though hardly emphasize, cigarettes. Until CVS’s competitors like other drug stores, grocery stores, and 7-11-style convenience stores take the same approach, it will just hurt CVS’s bottom line to the benefit of those who don’t go along. If it ever does catch on more widely, specialty tobacconists will be there to sell cigarettes to smokers, along with the premium tobacco products they currently focus on selling.

And that’s the beauty of the free market. Paternalistic types can bully businesses around, but as long as some businesses are free to cater to adults who choose to enjoy tobacco products, they only open up more opportunities for those who celebrate, or at least don’t moralize about, the freedom to choose to smoke.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Flickr

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

La Aroma de Cuba Edición Especial was the first La Aroma made by the Pepins, who currently make all four La Aroma blends at the My Father factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. (The previous version featured a Plasencia wrapper and was made in Honduras, although later production of that was also switched to Pepin’s factory and reblended.) The blend features an Ecuadorian sun-grown wrapper surrounding Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos. The No. 55 size is the newest addition to the line and the largest ring gauge (55), with a length of 5.75 inches. It’s a classic, if simplistic, version of Pepin’s signature flavor profile: pepper, wood, and warm tobacco. It’s a pleasant cigar, but far from Pepin’s or La Aroma de Cuba’s best.

Verdict = Hold.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys