The Stogie Guys

Some brands inspire cigar enthusiasts to go to great lengths just to have a chance to buy their highly sought blends. El Mejor Emerald isn’t one of those brands. In fact, I’ve found that it’s quite the opposite—often serving as a filler stick in samplers with more attractive stogies.

But there are, apparently, many fans of this value brand around the online cigar community. I found several flattering reviews on blogs and forums that laud El Mejor Emerald for its simple, straightforward taste and low price tag. I wish I would have enjoyed this creation as much as they did. In the end, this value cigar left me neither delighted nor dismayed.

One of four cedar-wrapped vitolas, the Torpedo (6.5 x 54) includes Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos and a Honduran-grown corojo wrapper. It isn’t much to look at, despite of (or because of, I can’t decide which) the shaggy foot—a feature that is supposed to honor the “true old world fashion” of cigar making.

After removing the cellophane and the cedar strip, the dry, pale wrapper displays few veins and a musty pre-light aroma of damp earth. Then, after toasting the foot and establishing an even light, I encountered a taste much creamier and milder than expected.

That flavor is best described as light and airy with notes of cedar, peanuts, and some low-key spice. Nice yet uncomplicated and undemanding of much attention. And in contrast to what I read from some other reviewers, I found El Mejor Emerald to be fairly consistent in taste from start to finish.

The physical properties could have been a lot worse, especially for a cigar that sells for $3-4 apiece (and even less in samplers or on auction sites). While the burn tends to weave in and out, it doesn’t require serious maintenance. The draw is clear and open and the ash, though far too flaky for my liking, seems to hold pretty well.

All told, this is one of those decent cigars that works best on the golf course or as a complement to some other activity. It just doesn’t have the depth to deserve your undivided attention.

So, while I won’t go out of my way to buy more El Mejor Emeralds, I won’t go out of my way to avoid them in otherwise exciting samplers, either. That’s ultimately why the Torpedo earns three stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Released in 2007, this Nicaraguan puro is made for Ashton by Don Pepin Garcia in his Tabacalera Cubana factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. It features a beautiful, oily, dark brown wrapper that shows a slight tooth.

The torpedo-shaped Fabuloso (6.125 x 52) is fairly smooth with one large vein that runs most of the length of the cigar.

I need to point out that one of the two cigars I smoked for this review included a loose wrapper that separated from the binder about a third of the way up from the foot. More on that later.

The pre-light aroma is nutty with a slight hint of chocolate. After an easy cut, I found a perfect pre-light draw with just the right amount of resistance.

The foot lights effortlessly and the burn is perfect at the start. Smooth and creamy, the initial flavor is predominantly earthy with a little spice and just a hint of bitter chocolate.

On the second Fabuloso I smoked (the one with the loose wrapper) I was forced to touch up some burn issues after the first third was complete—problems that likely arose due to the loose wrapper.

At this point, on either sample, the flavors begin to transition with the earthy taste fading just a little bit, and dark chocolate and coffee notes coming to the forefront.

The burn continues to be a little ragged but does not require any more touch ups. The dark chocolate and coffee flavors remain until about the last inch and then fade away after being replaced by some spicy and grassy notes.

While this is a very pleasant $9-10 cigar with good complexity, the lack of consistency in construction detracts from the experience and ultimately prevents the San Cristobal Fabuloso from receiving a mark higher than four stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick M

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief take on a single cigar.

With a splotchy wrapper and bumpy appearance, this Double Corona (7.6 x 49) wasn’t appealing to look at, but you can’t judge a cigar on looks alone. Once lit, I found a woody core of cedar spice with some graham cracker sweetness. While the burn needed a touch up or two, it had a draw with just the right amount of resistance and a sturdy ash. Well-balanced and medium- to full-bodied, it’s a fine example of why Hoyo de Monterrey is one of my favorite Cuban brands from top to bottom.

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 take on a single cigar.

While I enjoyed this belicoso-shaped stick (6.25 x 52) when I reviewed it in September 2007, I could have done without the traces of sour, stale notes that popped up from time to time. Today, after approximately 20 months in my humidor, those unfortunate flavors were gone, leaving behind a not-too-creamy, not-too-spicy profile of sweet hay, graham, earth, and tea. The already impressive physical properties were also improved. The moral of the story? Pick up this Sumatra-seed Ecuadorian sungrown-wrapped cigar, be patient, and you will be rewarded handsomely.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

In our ongoing effort to make StogieGuys.com as entertaining and informative as possible, each Friday we’ll post a mixed bag of quick cigar news and other items of interest. We call ‘em Friday Samplers. Enjoy.

1) In the useless contest to see who can make the world’s longest cigar, Cuba’s José Castelar is second to none. He recently doubled his previous record by rolling a 149-foot cigar during the annual International Tourism Fair in Havana. In his sixties, Castelar says he only smokes one cigar a day. But when your cigars are measures in yards and not inches, that’s still a lot of tobacco. He plans one day to roll a 10-kilometer cigar.

2) If you smoke inside, here’s some advice on what to use—and what to avoid—to clean the air. An environmental health professor told the New York Times this week that using incense and candles is “just combustion, and the smoke has the same health effects as cigarette smoke.” Another indoor-air expert suggested a HEPA filter for your air conditioner so it can function as an air cleaner on occasion. Less carpet also means fewer molecules trapped and re-released.

3) Inside the Industry:  General Cigar Co. is sending retailers wine, beer, and spirit pairing suggestions on Punch and Hoyo de Monterrey cigars (the manufacturer suggests, for example, pairing a Hoyo de Tradición with a single barrel bourbon, an English nut brown ale, or a Cabernet Sauvignon). Famous Smoke Shop continues it’s exclusive releases in celebration of it’s 70th anniversary with a cigar by La Aurora featuring a Connecticut wrapper around a blend of Dominican, Brazilian, and Nicaraguan tobaccos. In a push for more members, Cigar Rights of America has announced that it will select one member each month to go on an a trip to visit a well-known cigar maker in either Nicaragua, Honduras, or the Dominican Republic.

4) Around the Blogs: Cohiba Club smokes a Fuente Hemingway Classic Maduro. Stogie Review checks out the Esencia. Keepers of the Flame reviews the Casa Magna. Matt lights up a Gran Habano 3 Siglos.

5) Deal of the Week: We haven’t tried the newest release from Cuban Crafters yet but, if it’s anything like their other creations, you’re in for a treat. And, since it’s on sale, now is a great time to try the Cubano Claro. Get yours here.

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Caribbean Net News

The Diplomáticos No. 2 is a classic Cuban cigar with classic proportions. In fact, the smoke has the same proportions (6.125 x 52) as the iconic Montecristo No. 2. (All five Diplomáticos currently in production have the same proportions as the Montecristo of the same name.)

Diplomáticos was the first new line of Cuban cigars to be publicly launched after the beginning of the Castro regime but, ironically, given its name, it wasn’t the Diplomáticos but the Cohiba line (which was not for sale to the general public at the time) that was given exclusively to visiting dignitaries and diplomats. Instead, Diplomáticos ended up mainly as a brand to be exported to France, where its milder profile was  preferred.

In 1966, Diplomáticos was originally created as a less expensive and milder version of the Montecristo, and that reputation remains today. All of which makes it a prime candidate for a “value” Cuban cigar, particularly in the  popular and often expensive Pyramide shape.

While not necessarily a value by non-Cuban standards, the Diplomáticos No. 2 sells for around $11 individually and around $9 per cigar by the box. That’s nearly $5 less than the Montecristo No. 2. (I payed around 10 Euros each, including 3 Euros each in French taxes for the two sticks I sampled for this review. Both were purchased  at a shop in Paris’  Odeon area that was recommended to me by Denis of the Cigar Inspector website.)

The Diplomáticos No. 2 features an attractive wrapper with small veins, and my samples even had the beginnings of some plume, showing that the cigars had some age. While it had a sweet, creamy aroma pre-light, it was noticeably soft to the touch, often a precursor to draw and ash problems.

Once lit, I found a combination of creamy peanut butter and grass. There was some significant bitterness that went in and out, and the pyramide had a long grassy finish.

The construction was similarly a mixed bag. While the burn was relatively even, the draw was at times extremely difficult. The ash held for at least a half an inch, after which it would sometimes unexpectedly fall off.

For a similar Cuban smoke at a true value price ($3 or less per stick) I’d prefer the Por Larrañaga Panatella. It has a similar flavor, costs less, than a third of the price, and sports better construction. On the other hand, for significantly better construction and more complexity in the pyramide size, I’d say you’re better off spending a few dollars more and smoking the Montecristo No. 2.

This is a mild- to medium-bodied cigar with lots of potential  and some pleasant flavors, but it ultimately disappoints due to the bitterness and construction issues. Because there are better options at both higher and lower prices, the Diplomáticos No. 2 earns a rating of two and a half stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

My colleague recently wrote about Buffalo Trace bourbon, made at the Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort, Kentucky. Before it was renamed in 1999, it was called the George T. Stagg Distillery, which is now the name of a limited production bourbon that Buffalo Trace releases annually.

Stagg is a beast of a bourbon, bottled at full cask strength and unfiltered from barrel to bottle. While the exact strength varies with each annual release, the bourbon is noted for its high proof, with some people even referring to it as “Hazmat” because it is illegal to transport on airplanes due to its high alcohol content (and thus flammability).

In order to create Stagg, Buffalo Trace ages the bourbon in traditional charred oak  barrels for 15 to 16 years. Then, without filtering, they mix all the barrels from each vintage (89, according to one account) and sell bottles for around $60 each.

The bottle I sampled was from the 2008 release, which was bottled at  141.8 proof (70.9% ABV). As you might imagine, the high proof is a defining characteristic. Think of it this way: Since this bourbon isn’t cut with water like most, it’s twice as much bourbon flavor as nearly the same amount of more traditional 80 proof Kentucky bourbon.

That strength gives off a seriously strong spicy oak aroma with caramel notes. The color is a deep brown mahogany with a slightly cloudy hue due to its unfiltered nature.

The dominant taste corresponds with the nose, with an intense cedar spice. Underneath you’ll find a syrupy combination of blackcurrant, unsweetened chocolate, and a hint of apple. The finish is spicy, long, and wheaty.

I’d suggest preparing the Stagg neat, then adding water (use spring or distilled water as opposed to low-grade tap water) to dilute it to taste. I’ve found that just a few drops of water opens up this bourbon perfectly without diluting its powerful nature.

With that intensity, you’ll need a full-bodied cigar. Chocolaty and cedary cigars particularly come to mind with some examples being the Alonso Menendez, Fuente Sun Grown, Bolivar Royal Corona, Tatuaje Black, and Davidoff Maduro R. But really any favorite full-flavored cigar will go well.

Ultimately, not everyone will enjoy the unadulterated intensity of George T. Stagg, especially those who like their bourbon sweet and smooth. Still, this is a special bourbon that every true bourbon lover should try at least once.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys