The Stogie Guys

Abe Flores reinvented his company prior to last summer’s industry trade show. There, he introduced his re-blended standard lines, dropped his cigars’ prices by 10%, and debuted a new creation: the 1878 Cubano Especial Capa Maduro.

That cigar got off to a fast start. In August, when we reported live from the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) annual convention in New Orleans, Flores told us that he had sold 8,000 boxes of the Capa Maduro in two months. Priced around $5 each, his strategy was to lure more enthusiasts to Pinar del Rio and entice them to try his other lines.

Now Flores has a new line that he’s eager for us to try. Called the 1878 Cubano Especial Capa Natural, it features the same interior tobacco as its Maduro predecessor—a Dominican criollo ’98 binder and a two-country filler blend from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic—wrapped around a four-year-old Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper.

The Capa Natural Robusto (5 x 52) is an attractive, golden-colored smoke with an intricate pigtail cap and a pre-light aroma of sweet hay. The wrapper is clean and oily with minimal veins. In all, this cigar makes an aesthetic impression befitting a stogie twice its price.

Notes of leather, grass, dry oak, and vanilla characterize the introductory profile. While the flavor is more salty than it is creamy, there’s an underlying nuttiness present that adds a balance to the overall taste. Floral notes will also be found by attentive enthusiasts.

After the first inch, it becomes clear that the Capa Natural Robusto is built with care and precision. The white ash builds off the foot sturdily, the smoke pulls through with ease, and the burn is straight and true. These combustion qualities are consistent from light to nub and across all three samples I smoked for this review.

All three also developed flavors of cedar and black pepper at the midway point—welcome additions to the medium-bodied profile. Here, I conclude that the 1878 Cubano Especial Capa Natural Robusto is a homerun as far as I’m concerned. Between its MSRP of $4.55 and its complexity, this promises to be a welcome addition to my humidor for some time. I look forward to sampling the seven other vitolas in the Capa Natural line, and I have no reservations about awarding the Robusto four and a half stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Eighteen months ago, my colleague reviewed the pre-release version of the Tatuaje L’esprit de La Verite. According to the wine-inspired model of the Vintage line, the Churchill-sized La Verite is tops in the blend, while that L’esprit de La Verite he smoked is the “second.”

That isn’t the only thing about the Tatuaje Vintage line that takes a cue from the wine world. Unlike almost every other cigar on the market, the Tatuaje Vintage line consists of tobacco entirely from one farm. In this case it’s Don Pepin Garcia’s La Estrella farm in Estelí, where the Nicaraguan habano tobacco was grown.

Also like wine, Tatuaje creator Pete Johnson planned to use a futures system to sell the cigars before they were available to be consumed. That ambitious plan fell through for the 2008 vintage—not necessarily all that surprising given that it took decades of consistent wine making for top Bordeaux wines to develop a robust futures market—but I suspect in a few years he won’t have much trouble pre-selling much of the Vintage production, particularly if buyers get a nice discount for their faith.

The cigar has a classic look, with a matte, nearly vein-free medium brown wrapper framed in a classic gold band that displays the 2008 vintage. The gold trim differentiates the Churchill (7 x 47) from the robusto-sized L’esprit de La Verite, which has a silver band.

When you finally get around to smoking the $20 cigar, the first thing you’ll notice is its immaculate balance. La Verite features a combination of subtle cedar, coffee bean, paper, and cream. There’s also a bit of peppery spice when you retro-hale.

As it develops, the profile moves from medium-bodied to more full-bodied and cedar emerges as the dominant flavor. If most top cigars are like Bordeaux, with rich, well-defined flavors, this is more like fine Burgundy: balanced, subtle, and noble.

I’m interested to see how aging affects this smoke. Johnson says the Churchill is blended to age longer, with slightly more ligero tobacco. That potential for greatness may be enhanced by the fact that the cigar was rolled immediately after fermentation, so it could age entirely as a completed cigar.

Ultimately, this is a very good cigar with the potential to be even better in the future. Still, I’m looking forward to the Vintage 2009, which will use a combination of habano, criollo, and pele de oro tobacco; I expect this to better demonstrate the blending talents of Johnson and Pepin. But just because I’m more excited for the next edition of the Tatuaje Vintage doesn’t mean that the balanced strength of the 2008 is at all disappointing. With the potential to get even better, the Tatuaje La Verite 2008 earns a rating of four stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

La Aurora has grabbed its share of headlines lately, launching highly anticipated (and well-marketed) blends like Guillermo León and 107. But let’s not forget that the Dominican’s oldest cigar maker offers plenty of other wise investments for smart enthusiasts.

Among them is the Preferidos series, a collection of smokes that debuted in 1998 to honor Eduardo León Jimenes, the man who founded La Aurora in 1903. Initially, all Preferidos cigars were perfectos. About five years ago, though, La Aurora began to offer Preferidos in standard parejo shapes.

Today you can find five-packs of Preferidos in the Robusto size, each pack with one cigar from the line’s five blends: Connecticut, Ecuador, Cameroon, Corojo, and Maduro. These blends are also sold individually or by the box.

The Cameroon Robusto (5 x 50) features an oily, water-spotted wrapper with Dominican binder and filler tobaccos. All of these components were aged up to three years before spending additional time in rum barrels. This strategy is intended to speed up the fermentation process, not infuse the tobacco with a rum taste.

So it isn’t surprising that this cedar-smelling cigar’s profile doesn’t include molasses or any other flavors that I associate with rum. Instead, it starts with a dry woody taste, hints of black pepper, and a sugary finish that’s commonly found in African Cameroon tobacco. The overall effect is straightforward yet well-balanced.

At the midway point and beyond, the Robusto develops strength—making it decidedly medium-bodied—and some creamy tones. These additions play nicely off the sweet and salty flavors that remain in the foreground. All the while the construction is near perfect. Expect a firm ash, a straight burn line, and a smooth draw.

I enjoyed all three Cameroon Robustos I sampled for this review. Still, at $8-11 apiece, this cigar’s value doesn’t compare favorably against some of the other Cameroons on the market, like the Cuban Crafters Cameroon or the H. Upmann Vintage Cameroon, just to name a couple. But for its harmonious flavor, aromatic resting smoke, and outstanding combustion qualities, the La Aurora Preferidos Cameroon Robusto shouldn’t be ignored. It earns three and a half stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

As popular as the Dominican-made La Gloria Cubana line has been for General Cigar, the Cuban incarnation is less visible than most of its Havana brethren. Case in point: Habanos SA, Cuba’s state-owned tobacco monopoly, relegates La Gloria to “local brand” status.

That’s a step below “niche brand” (i.e., Trinidad and San Cristobal), two steps below “multi-local” (i.e., Bolivar and Punch), and a far cry from “global” (i.e., Cohiba and Montecristo). I’m not sure these classifications mean much in the grand scheme of things. Do they indicate production volumes? Quality?

At any rate, La Gloria isn’t as prominent or widespread as the likes of Romeo y Julieta or Hoyo de Monterrey. But this brand is no newcomer. Cigars started being produced under the La Gloria Cubana name 125 years ago. Since then, the brand has weathered three ownership changes and one Cuban revolution. Today, it boasts seven commercially available vitolas, each made at the Partagas Factory using tobaccos from the Vuelta Abajo region.

The Médaille d’Or No. 2 (6.75 x 43) is one of four cigars in La Gloria’s slender Médaille d’Or series. It is a lonsdale-shaped smoke that fetches around $15 apiece. Caramel in color and relatively firm to the touch, it has a lumpy, rough-looking wrapper with a few prominent veins and noticeable seams. Not much to look at.

Once lit, the cigar’s pre-light fragrance of hay and honey transitions to a medium-bodied profile of graham cracker spice, roasted nuts, and sweet cedar. There’s also an aftertaste present that I can only describe as a tang—a unique sensation that can also be found in other smokes like the Romeo y Julieta Short Churchill.

At the midway point and thereafter, it becomes clear that the Médaille d’Or No. 2 isn’t going to transition much. I can see some enthusiasts being dismayed by this, especially in a long, slow-burning cigar that requires a significant time commitment. But the flavor’s balance easily keeps me satisfied throughout the smoke despite its consistency.

Do the construction characteristics leave something to be desired? Yes. Like many Cubans these days, the Médaille d’Or No. 2 requires touch-ups to maintain an even burn. And the draw varied somewhat between the three cigars I examined for this review. Notwithstanding its physical faults, however, this La Gloria Cubana is a fine selection if you’re looking for a Cuban that’s outside the mainstream. It earns four stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Robert Levin founded Ashton Cigars in 1985 when he left Holt’s Cigar Company, a Philadelphia retailer his parents founded in the late ’50s. He has since grown Ashton into one of the world’s most respected cigar manufacturers.

Today, in partnership with the Fuente Family, the company’s portfolio extends well beyond the Ashton brand, including San Cristobal, La Aroma de Cuba, and Sosa. The latter rarely shares the limelight with the other two, and it definitely doesn’t command the attention of such Ashton notables as Cabinet Selection, Virgin Sun Grown, and Estate Sun Grown.

But Sosa, made by the Fuentes in the Dominican Republic, is a fine selection if you’re looking for Ashton quality but don’t want to pay Ashton prices.

That’s what you get with the Wavell Natural (5 x 50). It can be found for less than $5, especially if you’re buying by the box. It features an oily, sepia-colored Ecuador Sumatra wrapper, Dominican binder and filler tobaccos, and soft pre-light aromas of honey and cinnamon.

The cinnamon note carries over to the first puff, where it is accompanied by flavors of dry cedar, cashew, and earth. This is a satisfying, albeit familiar, combination that’s toasty and medium in body.

Sweetness, ginger, and graham cracker spice help expand the Wavell’s profile past the first third. Here, the robusto-sized smoke displays a balance that’s lacking from many cigars twice its price. As an added bonus, the resting smoke is fragrant enough to keep my mouth watering between puffs.

Complementing the taste are top-notch physical properties. The band removes easily, the burn progresses evenly without touch-ups, the draw remains consistent and smooth, and the white ash builds solidly off the foot.

Despite short flickers of bitter notes in the final third, the Sosa Wavell Natural is a wonderful value and a strong candidate for a box purchase. I look forward to sampling Ashton’s two other Sosa varieties: the Ecuador Sumatra-wrapped Exclusive Series and the Mexican maduro-wrapped Super Selection. Meanwhile, this affordably priced creation earns four stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Xikar entered the cigar-making business in 2009 when it partnered with Jesus Fuego to launch the HC Series. Before then, the Kansas City-based company was solely a purveyor of cigar accessories like cutters, lighters, and cases.

So far the HC Series has been met with positive reviews. Named for Xikar’s Havana Collection, the line boasts three blends: Connecticut Shade, Criollo, and Habano Colorado. Each is handmade at one of Nestor Plasencia’s factories.

The six-vitola Habano Colorado line features a filler blend of tobaccos from Honduras, Jalapa, and Costa Rica along with a binder leaf from Estelí and a dark, Jalapa-grown wrapper. The Robusto (5 x 50) is a rustic, sweet-smelling cigar with a firm feel and a clear pre-light draw. It sells for $8.50.

Touching fire to the foot, the Robusto’s fragrance of chocolate and peanut butter turns into espresso. The flavor is even heartier than the resting smoke smells. It tastes of spicy pepper, damp earth, and black licorice. Each puff is voluminous, making the smoke oily and dense.

Molasses comes to the forefront as the cigar progresses. Here, around the midway point, the spice recedes significantly and a creamy sweetness develops. All this is a nice setup for the final third, which features hints of graham cracker and nuts.

The Habano Colorado Robusto also displays terrific combustion qualities. Look for a straight burn, a smooth draw, and an ash that holds well for at least one inch—characteristics that are consistent with my previous two experiences with the HC Series.

True, I’m not surprised by how much I enjoy this cigar. And I’m certainly not surprised that the partnership between Fuego and Plasencia has resulted is such a fine specimen. While not the most exciting cigar on the market, this one has an interesting interplay between spice and sweetness that renders it worthy of four stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Behind it’s larger corporate brother Davidoff, Avo can get lost in the mix. Purchased in 1995 by Davidoff for an estimated $10 million, Avo Uvezian’s Dominican smokes are often a way to get the quality of Davidoff at a (slightly) more approachable price.

Avo Uvezian, the charismatic piano-playing creator of Avo, created the Compañero to celebrate his 83rd birthday. The thick Toro (6 x 54) has a velvety Ecuadorian wrapper with Dominican binder and filler tobaccos.

The cigar is well constructed, which you’d expect given that it costs around $12 each, and is notably firm to the touch and from start to finish. The gray ash is  solid, the burn even, and the draw is flawless. The flavor profile includes a mix of cedar, pepper, cream, and honeycomb. Like many Avo/Davidoff creations, damp mushroom notes are also present.

The Compañero features impressive balance despite its medium- to full-bodied profile, even as it becomes bolder as it progresses. Towards the end, there are earthy notes and more cedar spice.

At the time it came out, the Compañero was quite a change of pace for the Avo line, which almost exclusively consisted of mild and medium blends. Had it not been such a success, today we might not have the full-bodied Avo LE 2010 and the Heritage line.

But even without leading Avo into a more full-bodied era, that Compañero stands well on its own as a full-flavored, complex, well-constructed smoke. It’s enough to earn the Avo Limited Edition 2009 Compañero a rating of four stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys