The Stogie Guys

Smoke-filled rooms are a thing of the past. With advanced air-filtration systems, comfortable elbowroom, and high definition televisions on every wall, today’s cigar bars have become havens for aficionados to come together and enjoy their pastime in a friendly, upscale environment. A good cigar bar resembles the world’s greatest playroom: free WiFi, Nintendo Wii, pool tables, live music, quality food and drink, a friendly and knowledgeable staff, a full calendar of events, and, of course, a walk-in humidor with a bountiful selection.

It’s a world of great company. A specialized club with unspoken rules. A place where one can sit in peace with a cigar to watch the local sports game, enjoy a good read, or catch up with a friend. For some folks, cigar bars have become a regular hangout. Here are some of the best in the country:

Velvet Cigar Lounge, New York City

You can bring your own beverage to this classic club in Manhattan’s East Side Village. Its brick walls and warm environment provide city slickers with a perfect place to relax. And there’s more. This lounge sells their own private boutique brand of cigars in their store, and those cigars get pretty good reviews. (80 E. Seventh St.; 212-533-5582; velvetcigars.com)

Burn by Rocky Patel, Naples

This exotic Asian/Mediterranean/Caribbean influenced lounge is owned by Rocky Patel and features his complete line plus a selection of pre-embargo Cuban cigars. A vintage H. Upmann goes for $200 per stick or the big spenders can pick up a box of old Montecristos for $12,500. (9110 Strada Pl; 239 653-9013; burnbyrockypatel.com)

Grand Havana Room, Beverly Hills

It’s members only at this private club, a home to many of Hollywood’s elite. The centerpiece is a glassed-in humidor with 350 private lockers, each fixed with a brass nameplate etched with their owner’s name. With a private elevator and a calendar filled with special events, this secret cigar lair is one of the nation’s most high-end cigar clubs. (301 N. Canon Dr.; 310-385-7700; grandhavana.com)

Shelly’s Back Room, Washington, D.C.

You might run into one of our beloved leaders at the most popular cigar spot in the nation’s capital. Shelly’s has a full bar and a menu with everything from wings to bacon-wrapped shrimp. This casual yet elegant cigar lounge features eight large screen televisions and a special selection of rare cigars, including 10 of Cigar Aficionado’s Top 25. (1331 F St. NW; 202-737-3003; shellysbackroom.com)

–Mark M

photo credit: Various

Tomorrow, Californians will vote on Prop. 29, a measure that would increase already-high cigar taxes in the Golden State by a whopping 73%. In the short term, the consequences of the outcome will be confined to the state, and those who own cigar shops will be hardest hit. In the long term, the implications could be national.

Those of us who follow cigar rights issues won’t be surprised to learn that anti-tobacco politicians, groups, and other zealots are aiming to curtail the sale and enjoyment of cigars through radically high taxes—particularly in California. While few will come right out to admit it (at least for now), the goal of many of these extremists is to completely wipe tobacco from the face of the planet.

But that ambitious plan is on hold for a while. Now, the battle is over a massive tax hike that would drive cigar purchases out of state and devastate small tobacconists.

What’s surprising about this proposed tax hike, however, is that the nearly $800 million in revenue it is projected to raise will not be used to stuff state coffers. There is no requirement the collected money be spent in California, and as much as 40% of the funds can go to overhead, as opposed to actual research. That’s particularly interesting because California’s finances are in complete shambles. “California has a $16 billion budget deficit, a $200 billion long term debt, and an 11% unemployment rate, one of the highest in the country,” said Keith Park, founder of Prometheus, a Los Angeles-based purveyor of fine cigars and accessories. “In this dire financial situation, the American Cancer Society, bicycle celebrity Lance Armstrong, and billionaire New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg are sponsoring a people’s referendum…which will make California smokers pay $735 million in new taxes for cancer research for the whole nation.”

You read that right. California can’t keep its own house in order, but Prop. 29 proponents are suggesting the revenue from Californian tobacco taxes should flow out of the state. “The larger problem with Proposition 29 is its pigeonholing of the money for cancer research rather than for immediate needs here in California that are absolutely dire,” writes Michael Hiltzik of the Los Angeles Times. “It’s all well and good to say that cancer research benefits everyone, but the real question is whether it should be the absolute top priority for a state that can’t afford to keep its children fed or offer them medical care in the here and now.”

Of course, since we’re talking about California, these matters won’t be vetted though a normal legislative process. Instead, they’ll be put to a popularity contest at the polls tomorrow. “The California premium cigar retailers, distributors, and manufacturers have formed California Citizens Against Wasteful Taxes to defeat Prop. 29,” says Park. “The election is so close that no one can anticipate the final outcome. The voter turnout among cigar smokers will make a huge difference.”

Of National Concern

The typical cigar enthusiast who lives outside California might be tempted to think that this is a non-issue for him. If Californians want to pay outrageous taxes to support medical research notwithstanding their own budget problems, then who am I to complain?

This dismissal would be a huge mistake. States like California and New York, sadly, have paved the way for anti-tobacco measures that are now commonplace nationwide. For instance, California was the first state to ban smoking in most workplaces at a time when such a move was considered radical. Government-imposed smoking bans in restaurants, bars, and most indoor locations across the country are now the rule instead of the exception. So if Prop. 29 passes, don’t be surprised to see a similar bill proposed in a state legislature near you in the coming years.

Given the combination of federal, state, and local taxes levied on tobacco, cigar enthusiasts already pay more than their fair share. So let’s do everything we can to prevent California from setting another terrible trend. If you live in California, please be sure to get out to the polls to vote no on Prop. 29. And if you don’t, I would also urge you to contact your friends and family members in California to urge them to vote a resounding “no” as well.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Defeat Prop. 29

Yes, I admit it. I’m a little obsessed over HR 1639, the bill to bar the Food & Drug Administration from regulating premium, hand-rolled cigars. Frankly, though, I cannot understand why every cigar smoker isn’t.

I believe enactment of this legislation would offer extraordinary protection for cigars smokers and the cigar industry. By recognizing a specific category for premium cigars, it would make it easy to exclude them from future tobacco taxes and restrictions.

The good news is the bill is tantalizingly close to the support it needs for passage in the House of Representatives. But now is not the time to let up. Soon, the solons will be off for the summer and for campaigning. Little will transpire on Capitol Hill.

The bill has just over 180 supporters, but, alas, Guam’s representative has no vote, and David Wu resigned after signing on. I’ve recently spent time analyzing the list of cosponsors and discovered some interesting data. What’s most interesting is I think it can help push the bill to enactment. And maybe it’ll inspire more readers to get in touch with their representatives and urge them to get on board.

• As you’d expect, Florida has the most supporters. Still, only 18 of its 25 representatives are signed up. Next up, Pennsylvania, undoubtedly second only to Florida for cigar shops and retail sales, and Texas, are tied with 13. Again, that leaves quite a few who aren’t on board in both states.

• Surprisingly, the state most identified with tobacco, Virginia, has under 50% signed up, with 5 of its 11 representatives sponsoring the bill. Granted, most of the state’s tobacco connection involves cigarettes, but General Cigar Co.’s headquarters are in Richmond. And Connecticut, home of the eponymous high-quality wrapper, has but 2 of 5 representatives as cosponsors.

• Five states, admittedly all small, have seen all their representatives endorse HR1639: Arkansas (4), West Virginia (3), Kansas (4), Hawaii (2), and New Hampshire (2).

• Three times that many states have no representatives on the list. They’re generally concentrated in New England and the West: Massachusetts (10), Rhode Island (2), Vermont (1), Maine (2), New Mexico (3), Montana (1), Idaho (2), Utah (3), Oregon (5), Washington (9), Wyoming (1), Alaska (1), North Dakota (1), South Dakota (1), and Delaware (1).

• While Republicans outnumber Democrats among supporters by about 3 to 1, the bill has strong bipartisan support. Just consider those states that are fully signed up: Arkansas has 3 Republicans and 1 Democrat; West Virginia, a Democrat and 2 Republicans; Kansas, 4 Republicans; Hawaii, 2 Democrats; and New Hampshire, 2 Republicans. And it isn’t just the parties. Supporters include every point along the ideological spectrum, something well worth pointing out to anyone who isn’t a supporter.

So, how can all this help? First, I hope you’re inspired by how close to passage this legislation is. Then, you can see how just a little more pressure applied at the proper points could push HR1639 across the finish line.

If you’re a cigar smoker who hasn’t taken action, be sure to write, email, or telephone your representative if he or she isn’t a supporter.

If you own a smoke shop and there are representatives in your area who haven’t signed on (I counted more than two dozen Massachusetts shops that are IPCPR members and 15 in Oregon, for example) invite them to your shop for an event where they can meet constituents, enjoy a cigar, and learn firsthand why this bill is so vital.

You can find all the information you need about the bill’s cosponsors here and how to make contact here. Let’s get this bill passed. Then I can go back to obsessing over other important things, like humidity levels in the humidor.

–George E

photo credit: Stogie Guys

What is it about cigars and music? Or, to be more precise, what is it about cigar makers and making music?

Foremost among the musicians in the cigar world undoubtedly is Avo Uvezian. The pianist, performer, and composer has an eponymous line of top-flight cigars created with master blender Hendrik Kelner and Davidoff. Avo also has created a unique aura with his wide-brimmed hats, white suits, and association with “Strangers In the Night.” Lucky is the smoker who’s able to attend an event where it’s possible to light up an Avo and hear the octogenarian entertain at the keyboard.

Next up is an ex-musician who has been turning out top cigars for years, Ernesto Perez-Carrillo. A one-time jazz drummer, he gave up the stage to join his cigar making father in Miami and launched his La Gloria Cubana line that became synonymous with the boom of the ’90s. The former jazz man is still involved with family, as he and his children create cigars that make smokers whistle a happy tune.

Then there’s Pete Johnson. Not only does he share names with an immortal boogie woogie pianist, the younger Pete was a bass player on the Los Angeles music scene before teaming with Don Pepin Garcia to set cigardom on its ear with Tatuaje. Just think how much different today’s cigar world would be if he had kept picking instead of blending.

Charlie Toraño played guitar as a kid and still gets a gleam in his eye when he talks about the pleasure he takes from the instrument. At a recent Toraño event, Charlie spent his down time chatting with the guitarist who was performing at the shop. He seemed to enjoy it as much as talking about his cigars, though no amount of coaxing could get Charlie up on stage.

Rocky Patel, on the other hand, can usually be lured on stage with a simple request, whether it’s to sit in on drums with the Doobie Brothers or tap the bongos at Burn, his club in Naples, Florida. The peripatetic cigar maestro has played percussion since he was a youngster and still loves doing it.

Not all the musical cigar connections involve big names, either. A blender I’ve never met, Alberto J. Medina, writes on the site for his Pio Cigar Co. about selling his bass guitar to get the money to start rolling in Miami’s Little Havana.

And these are just the ones of which that come to mind. There are undoubtedly many others. After all, creativity flows through the cigar industry just as it does through the worlds of music, painting, and other imaginative pursuits. Creating a cigar from many disparate parts and melding a complex operation into a harmonious whole doesn’t seem so much different from conducting a symphony.

So, the next time you light up, listen for—as well as taste—the harmony of the leaf.

–George E

photo credit: Flickr

Like many pursuits these days, the cigar world is often driven by the phrase, “What’s new?”

I am as guilty as most, if not more so, of seeking the new, the different, and the as-yet-to-be-smoked. Writing for StogieGuys.com, I consider it my duty to report on cigars that our readers might not have tried. Since I rarely light up more than six or seven sticks per week, that increases the pressure to search the humidor for untried cigars whenever I visit a B&M.

All this came to mind the other day when I pulled an Oliva Serie V Churchill Extra from my humidor. The cigar was a gift, and I couldn’t remember how long it had been since I smoked one. But I did remember how much I had enjoyed them when Oliva introduced the Serie V as a full strength addition to its lineup nearly five years ago. I smoked them often.

The smooth, spicy, complex cigar was every bit as satisfying as it was back then. Why, I wondered, had I stopped smoking them? Of course, I knew the answer. They’d just been pushed aside by newer cigars. Not better cigars, necessarily. Just newer.

So I vowed I would change my ways. On my next smoke shop visit, I looked specifically for cigars I had not smoked for awhile. I settled on the San Cristobal Elegancia Imperial, a Pepin-blended creation from Ashton that captivated my taste buds when the line extension came out about a year ago. Back then, I ran through a box of the relatively mild, beautiful robustos. But I had not had one since.

The Imperial was great. A joy to smoke. It made me think how strange is our obsession with new cigars when those that are very old are the most highly prized. But that’s another story.

For now, I’m content to learn my lesson. New cigars can be great. But so are many of those that have been around awhile.

–George E

photo credit: Flickr

[Editor’s Note: “Cigar Face-Off” is a new feature where we compare and contrast cigars that share at least one important attribute. Please let us know what you think about the new feature in the comments below, and feel free to suggest two cigars for a future Face-Off.]

When most cigar enthusiasts think of Padrón, the lines that come to mind first are the Anniversary Series (both 1926 and 1964) and Family Reserve. Not to be overlooked is the original Padrón line, which includes over a dozen vitolas that are available in either Natural or Maduro formats. Each is comprised of Cuban-seed Nicaraguan tobacco.

The Executive is a double corona that measures 7.5 inches long with a ring gauge of 50. To see how the two varieties stack up in this format, I bought one Maduro and one Natural at a tobacconist in downtown Chicago. The cost was $7 each.

Padrón Executive Maduro

Unlike its counterpart, the Executive Maduro has a dark, noticeably oily wrapper that imparts a sensation of decadence and exudes pre-light notes of chocolate and earth. Based on first impressions, one might expect the taste to be akin to moist chocolate cake. The profile, however, is less sweet than expected with thick flavors of coffee, leather, and pepper.

The fine aroma of the resting smoke and the cigar’s balance help maintain my attention during the two-hour experience even though the actual profile of the smoke doesn’t change much from light to nub. All the while the physical properties are good, including a solid white ash and a straight burn.

Padrón Executive Natural

The Executive Natural doesn’t make as good of a first impression as the Maduro. It has a dry, mottled wrapper, several lumps, and even a few soft spots. I would have a hard time paying $7 for a cigar that looks like this unless the band was stamped with the venerable Padrón name. Or unless I had read/heard good things.

After establishing an even light, the cigar’s musty—somewhat minty—pre-smoke smell transitions to a taste of coarse pepper and cayenne spice. With plenty of heat on the lips, some sweetness or cream would go a long way towards balance. Just as I find myself thinking that, notes of dry cocoa join in, accompanied by coffee. This is how the cigar remains until the end. Good construction is exhibited throughout.

Conclusion

Given the amount of time and tobacco you get for $7, either of these smokes is a good buy. But I would have to give the slight edge to the Padrón Executive Natural. Its classic taste has a bit more complexity and balance, notwithstanding the deficiencies in appearance.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Recently, Empire Cigars in Raleigh, North Carolina, held an auction for some rare, old, non-Cuban cigars. Billed as “the Holy Grail” of cigar auctions, it got me thinking about what smokes were my “Holy Grail cigars.”

Frankly, many of the cigars available in Empire’s auction were cigars that I don’t think necessarily benefit from more age. (High-end Fuente-made smokes like the Opus X, Añejo, and Ashton VSG often lose flavor after a few years, in my opinion, because the tobacco is already extensively aged.) But that doesn’t mean there aren’t old, hard-to-find cigars that I wouldn’t snap up in a second.

I’ve had the privilege of smoking hundreds (probably thousands) of different blends, from cheap bundles to pre-embargo Cubans over half a century old. Still, there are plenty of cigars I’d still like to try.

A quick list of my “Holy Grail” cigars would have to include these four cigars, two of which I’ve smoked before and two of which I haven’t ever come across (at least not at a price I could justify purchasing them at):

Cuban Davidoffs – Until they pulled out of Cuba in 1991 because of sub-standard tobacco (which Zino Davidoff symbolically burned to show that it wasn’t up to his standards), Davidoff Cubans were the perfect combination of capitalist production standards and the ideal climate of Cuban tobacco. Ironically, my father, who isn’t much of a cigar smoker, tells me he used to come across, and occasionally enjoy, a Cuban Davidoff cigar regularly in the 80s and early 90s while in Europe. I always wished he had picked up a few extra cigars for me (though I was quite a few years from cigar smoking at that point) since early and mid-80s Cuban Davidoffs were considered some of the finest cigars ever made.

Pepin-made Padilla 1932 – The current version of the Padilla 1932 is a good cigar, but the original 1932 was one that made me appreciate just how complex, balanced, and exquisite a cigar really could be. In 2008 Pepin stopped making cigars for Padilla, but for a while I could still find Pepin-made Padillas, which had a different band from the post-Pepin variety. I still regret not having scooped up more than I did.

Tatuaje Black Corona Gordo “Ceramic Jar” – Here’s another cigar I wish I had scooped up when I had the chance. Only 1,000 jars of 19 were made. From the dozen or so I have smoked, no other Tatuaje quite compares (high praise when you look at all the high ratings Tatuaje has received). I’ve smoked nearly all of the Tatuaje Blacks, including those exclusive to the Saints & Sinners package, and while all are excellent, none have the perfect balance, sweetness, and smooth flavor of the Ceramic Jar.

Pre-Sandinista Joya de Nicaragua – After the Cuban embargo, Joya de Nicaragua was widely considered to be one of the finest cigars legally available in the U.S. Then, in the late 1970s, all that was destroyed when the Sandinista regime took over. Today, Joya de Nicaragua makes some tasty cigars, but none that compare to what I’ve heard about the original Joya de Nicaraguas, which were the inspiration for Illusione.

So those are my “Holy Grail” cigars. Let us know yours in the comments.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade