The Stogie Guys

Late yesterday reports broke that U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb would be resigning his position next month. The move comes less than two years after Gottlieb was confirmed to the position in May 2017.

According to a Washington Post report, Gottlieb’s resignation didn’t come at the request of the the White House. President Trump tweeted praise of Gottlieb’s job at the FDA. “Scott has helped us to lower drug prices, get a record number of generic drugs approved and onto the market, and so many other things.”

Gottlieb, who had been commuting from Connecticut weekly, told the Post it was a difficult decision. “This is the best job I will ever have. I’m leaving because I need to spend time with my family. I get home late Friday, work on weekends, and come back to Washington on Sunday.”

Gottlieb’s confirmation was supported by cigar industry groups based on his prior writings questioning the logic of FDA tobacco cigar regulations. But his time at the FDA was a mixed bag for cigars. Gottlieb came into the job known for a “harm reduction” approach to tobacco regulations.

One of Gottlieb’s first acts was to delay upcoming deadlines for implementing the FDA’s Deeming Rule, which included new cigars. He later initiated another round of rule-making on whether the FDA should adopt an exemption for premium cigars. Later, Gottlieb pushed for a ban on flavored tobacco products.

Next Commissioner Faces Big Decisions on Cigar Regulations

Gottlieb’s departure leaves the next head of the FDA to make major decisions regarding the FDA’s oversight of premium cigars. A permanent replacement for Gottlieb would need to go through a Senate confirmation process, which would take months given the backlog of other nominees awaiting confirmation votes. An acting commissioner could be named more quickly, but no decisions have been made about who would fill the post.

The FDA could issue a final rule on the premium cigar exemption any day now and, unless it comes in the next month, it may be one of the first big decisions made by the next commissioner. If a final rule isn’t issued before late spring 2020, the rule can be overturned using the Congressional Review Act by a new Congress and president after the 2020 elections.

The next commissioner would also be primed to make final rulings on flavored tobacco products and on an FDA initiative for reduced nicotine tobacco products. Cigar industry groups would do well to lobby the White House for a nominee who is likely to issue premium cigars a long sought-after exemption from FDA rules.

–Patrick S

photo credits: Stogie Guys

When StogieGuys.com first reviewed this line (both the Churchill and Robusto) almost a decade ago, Master Blends 3 was the latest iteration of a limited edition that greatly enhanced Oliva’s standing among cigar enthusiasts.

Now, while Oliva still refers to Master Blends 3 as the third in “a series of limited artisanal blends,” you can find them almost anywhere.

The lightly pressed Torpedo (6 x 52)—one of a trio of available Master Blends 3 vitolas—has a list price over $14, but I’ve seen them as low as $4.25 per stick online when bought 20 at a time.

Master Blends 3 remains a fine smoke, worthy of the strong ratings it garnered in both previous reviews. It kicks off with a burst of cedar that recedes after about a half an inch. Soon, other flavors advance. Along the way I enjoyed tastes of nuts, leather, and sweetness that moved between syrup and cinnamon. The Nicaraguan ligero filler provides a kick and some pepper, especially in the final third.

My only complaints include a fairly flaky ash and several touch-ups being required on each of those I smoked. Not that that was surprising, given the thick, oily nature of the dark sun-grown Broadleaf wrapper that encompasses the Nicaraguan Habano binder.

Each line in the Master Blends series sports a different wrapper. I never smoked the first, but I fondly recall Master Blends 2 as a terrific smoke. There’s been an occasional rumor that Master Blends 4 is on the way. So far, however, rumor is all that’s come out.

And with the sale of Oliva a few years ago (in 2016, Oliva was acquired by the Belgium-based J. Cortès Cigars N.V., a family-owned business focused primarily on machine-made cigars) and former CEO José Oliva stepping down this year to devote more time to politics, it’s even less clear whether anything will happen.

Hopefully, at some point there will be a Master Blends 4 release. I’d like to smoke one. Until that time, though, we can enjoy the Master Blends 3.

For me, the Torpedo is equal to its siblings and also rates four stogies out of five.

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

–George E

photo credit: Stogie Guys

A couple times each week we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

An extension of one of Caldwell’s first lines, “Eastern Standard,” this cigar tweaks that blend with a lighter Connecticut Shade wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and filler from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. The Rothschild (4.75 x 52) features above-average construction with a pigtail cap. The profile includes light roast coffee, cream, and hay with a clean, short finish. It’s a pleasant, if not particularly complex, mild cigar.

Verdict = Hold.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

A couple times each week 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 at the TABSA (Tobaccos Valle de Jalapa) factory in Nicaragua using Aganorsa tobacco, El Güegüense—also known as “The Wise Man”—is the first blend from Foundation Cigar Co., which was launched in 2015 by former Drew Estate employee Nicholas Melillo. The Nicaraguan puro has a beautiful Corojo ’99 wrapper from Jalapa that’s described as “rosado rosado café.” My favorite El Güegüense vitola is the Corona Gorda (5.6 x 46). It boasts a medium-bodied profile with well-balanced flavors of cedar, honey, melon, and subtle sweetness. With excellent combustion properties, ample complexity, and a sub-$10 price tag, I’d revisit this cigar if you haven’t had it in awhile.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

My home state of Virginia recently became the latest to up the age at which adults are allowed to purchase tobacco from 18 to 21. It joins California, Hawaii, New Jersey, Maine, Massachusetts, and Oregon (along with the District of Columbia) in a trend that appears to be spreading.

A Slippery Slope

You may be old enough to vote or join the military (possibly even drafted into it), but that doesn’t mean you can choose to buy tobacco. If this seems odd to you, it should. Eighteen has always been the demarcation between children and adults; with adults getting to decide whether or not to use a legal product like tobacco, while we accept that children must be protected from having the same choices.

The justification appears to be that government is failing to effectively enforce the law that stops those under 18 from using tobacco, and it will be easier to stop minors from smoking if we also make it illegal for non-minors aged 18-20 from obtaining. That’s probably true, just as lowering the speed limit from 65 to 45 would make people less likely to drive over 65. But there is no limit to this justification.

What’s to stop the age from being raised again when the government cannot completely enforce the new 21-year-old age limit, and some 20-year-olds still manage to get their hands on cigarettes? The answer is nothing.

That’s a scary thought when you consider that many of the groups pushing this new restriction have as their ultimate goal a complete prohibition on tobacco products for everyone. After all, people older than 21 make bad decisions sometimes. Just ask Virginia Governor Ralph Northam who signed the bill into law and exercised some very bad judgement in his mid-twenties.

Being Anti-Tobacco Isn’t a Partisan Issue

One of the things that the Virginia bill demonstrates is that both Democrats and Republicans are willing to vote against cigar rights. Indeed, the bill couldn’t have become law without bi-partisan support.

In the Virginia state house, where Republicans hold a 51-49 majority, 46 Democrats and 21 Republicans voted in favor of the bill. Meanwhile, in the state senate, where Republicans also hold a two-member majority (21-19), all but eight Republicans voted for the bill. Then finally Democrat Governor Northam signed the bill into law.

Bootleggers and Baptists

You’d expect the anti-tobacco lobby to support raising the age for purchasing tobacco products, but it’s also worth noting another supporter of this legislation: the giant cigarette company Altria (maker of Marlboro). If this surprises you, it shouldn’t.

Altria also supported giving the FDA the authority to regulate tobacco products including cigars, reportedly in part because the company thought that regulating the industry would help it fend off competition and maintain its large market share. It’s another example of an economic concept known as bootleggers and baptists, both of whom had their own reasons for supporting prohibition.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Wikipedia

I have to admit, I hadn’t heard of Patina before wandering into Casa de Puros, a retail tobacconist and lounge near my home in Forest Park, Illinois. Despite the shop’s well-appointed selection, the Patina Habano caught my eye almost immediately. Something about the beautiful, uniform, milk chocolate-colored wrapper—and the way that wrapper is contrasted by the classic, understated band of white, bronze, and mint—helped differentiate this cigar from its competition.

I used a double-guillotine to neatly clip the head off one of the Patina Habano Bronze specimens I bought for $12.95 apiece and settled into one of the chairs in the lounge. Notwithstanding the cigar’s firmness, the cold draw was fortunately smooth. I took note of the pre-light aroma of green raisin before setting a wooden match to the fragrant foot.

Once fully lit, the combination of the Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, Nicaraguan binder, and filler tobaccos from Nicaragua and Pennsylvania yield a spice-forward, full-bodied profile of leather, macadamia, and black pepper.

There’s a gentle sweetness—especially on the aftertaste—that I’m tempted to call cherry-like, but that’s not quite it. Maybe it’s more like cream soda? It’s a tough flavor to put my finger on. I enjoy it nonetheless. The taste adds balance and complexity to what might otherwise be a somewhat monotone cigar.

As I work my way towards the midway point, I read up on the brand. Mo Maali, currently national sales manager at Mombacho Cigars, partnered with Mombacho to launch Patina back when he was the store manager of Casa de Puros. Patina is handmade at Mombacho’s Casa Favilli factory in Granada, Nicaragua. (The staircase on the band is at Casa Favilli.)

Patina’s two lines, Connecticut and Habano, debuted in May 2017. Both are offered in four sizes. In the case of the Habano line, those formats include Rustic (5 x 52), Copper (6 x 46), Oxidation (6 x 56), and the toro-sized Bronze (6 x 52) I’m smoking for this review.

Around the midway point, the sweetness recedes as earth, hay, and a bready texture emerge. While the smoke production, solid white ash, and draw are all excellent, the burn leaves something to be desired. I had to touch-up and re-light a few times to keep things even.

The Bronze is a slow-burning cigar. It took me two hours and twenty minutes, to be exact. And that marathon comes despite puffing with a greater frequency than usual to ward off the need for more re-lights—a practice that renders the smoke a bit hotter than I would normally like. That probably contributes to the intensification down the home stretch. In the final third, the flavors don’t change much, save for the introduction of cayenne heat and peanut, but they do become spicier.

I don’t regret purchasing a few Patina Habano Bronzes. That said, I can’t see myself going out of the way to buy more in the near future. I will give the Connecticut line a try, though. If you’d like to experience this (or any other) Patina, you don’t have to travel to the Chicago area; a full list of retailers is available here.

In my book, the Patina Habano Bronze earns a rating of three stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

A couple times each week we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

With its dark, thick, sun-grown Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, this cigar trumpets its maduro nature. The flavors went along as well, presenting mocha, coffee, and chocolate, especially in the second half. I didn’t experience the pepper referenced in other reviews, which was somewhat surprising given the Nicaraguan binder and filler. Strength was on the upper end of medium. The Robusto (5 x 50) is box-pressed and solid; so solid, in fact, that I was immediately concerned about the draw. That turned out to be unnecessary. The draw was fine, as was the overall experience.

Verdict = Buy.

–George E

photo credit: Stogie Guys