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.”

It had been some time since I lit up this little $4 Cuban (5 x 37). Time in the humidor has only served to give the light brown, slightly veiny wrapper a little extra shine. The cigar is much how I remembered it: mild and smooth featuring nutty flavors and slight  notes of wood and cream. Burn, ash, and draw present no problems. It’s balanced, uncomplicated, and easy to recommend, particularly with a cup of coffee in the morning.

Verdict = Buy.

-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.”

This box-pressed robusto was recently added to the lineup of cigars that celebrate the Toraño family’s 50-year exile from Cuba. It produces cool tufts of smoke that taste of leather, cocoa, raisin, and black cherry. As with most Toraño cigars, this Brazilian arapiraca-wrapped beauty has outstanding construction. It’s a nice sub-$7 addition to one of the company’s finest blends.

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 verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

Tempus Maduro, introduced earlier this month, features that same core blend as the regular Tempus line but with a unique San Andres maduro wrapper. The wrapper fermentation process includes the use of a bethune made from tree pulp that’s applied to the leaf during the fermentation process, resulting in a leaf that achieves a dark maduro color. The shorter fermentation time allows the wrapper leaf to maintain some of the strength that would normally be lost in the time required to ferment a maduro leaf. The Imperator, a torpedo (6.1 x 52), is well-constructed with no soft spots and a good draw. The cigar starts out with in an intriguing sweetness and subtle spice. The core flavors of smoked oak, mocha, and subtle cracked black pepper create an interesting and pleasant smoking experience. This cigar is much more enjoyable for me than my previous experiences with the regular Tempus line. Even at$9.40 apiece, I can definitely recommend it.

Verdict = Buy.

-Patrick M

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.”

A.J. Fernandez has made top-selling cigars for the likes of Rocky Patel, Padilla, and others, but a few weeks ago he released his first nationally-distributed solo blend. San Lotano, an old Cuban cigar line that Fernandez has brought back to life, comes in three wrapper varieties: Habano, Connecticut, and Maduro. The former has a combination of Brazilian, Honduran, Nicaraguan, and Dominican tobaccos that combine to produce voluminous, spicy tufts of smoke. Key flavors include leather, roasted coffee beans, caramel, and creamy coffee. Construction is near perfect. The Toro (6 x 52) is a must-try at around $8 apiece.

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 verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

This new line by La Aurora features a medium brown Ecuadorian wrapper around dual binders (Cameroon and Dominican corojo) and a four-country filler blend of Peruvian, Dominican, Brazilian, and Nicaraguan tobacco. The well-constructed Gran Toro (6 x 58) immediately reveals milky chocolate notes with subtle earth, sweetness, and spice. It’s an extraordinarily balanced, well-rounded smoke. The thick—and apparently popular—super toro size is not my preferred format; I feel the Guillermo León is best in the Gran Corona and Belicoso versions of the blend. But that doesn’t mean the Gran Toro isn’t a very enjoyable  smoke.

Verdict = Buy.

-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.”

CAO’s Brazilia has long been a go-to blend for me, notwithstanding one unfortunate experience. So I was pleased to learn a new size had been released at last week’s IPCPR Trade Show. Corcovado (4.25 x 60) is a stout cigar with a fair burn line and an effortless draw. Like its predecessors, this dark, Brazilian-wrapped smoke packs a full-bodied punch with plenty of peppery spice and notes of bitter dark chocolate and roasted nut. Definitely worth a try.

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 verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

Just introduced at last week’s IPCPR Trade Show, this new extension of the La Aroma de Cuba line is made in Nicaragua by Don Pepin Garcia, like the other La Aromas. The box-pressed Magnifico (6 x 52) features a nearly flawless Ecuadorian-grown Connecticut broadleaf wapper with Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos. After an initial burst of heavy spice, it settles into a medium- to full-bodied profile with dry bittersweet chocolate, cream, and earth. It’s a tasty cigar reminds me of a slightly less complex version of the Padrón Serie 1926 Maduro—hardly a bad reminder. Construction and combustion qualities are excellent in this $8 smoke. Try it with some Zaya Gran Reserva, which will be featured as a pairing at Ashton events this fall.

Verdict = Buy.

-Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys