The Stogie Guys

The paternalistic busy-bodies who are pushing smoking bans can now claim two of their more unlikely victims:

James Bond
In an interview with Parade Magazine, Daniel Craig, the current 007 and star of Casino Royale, expressed his frustration with the movie’s producers for prohibiting Bond from smoking cigars in the film “in order not to send a bad message to young fans.” Noting the obvious hypocrisy, Craig quipped:

“But here’s the reality, I can blow off someone’s head at close range and splatter blood, but I can’t light a good Cuban.”

In the 2002 Bond flick, Die Another Day, 007 actor Pierce Brosnan smokes Cuban cigars in multiple scenes.

Previously, we’ve covered anti-smoking zealots’ successful efforts to censor the cigar out of Winston Churchill’s mouth and to remove smoking from Ben and Jerry cartoons.

The French
Meanwhile, France – unitil recently a relatively smoker-friendly country – is bracing for a paternalistic smoking ban. The AFP reports:

After five months of consultations with doctors, tobacconists and trade unions, the 30-member committee decided in favour of a blanket ban on public smoking from September 2007 at the latest — though it held open a possible delay till summer 2008 for some establishments.

Smokers could only indulge their habit in “hermetically-sealed areas, furnished with air extraction systems and subject to extremely rigorous health norms,” according to a report which was to be formally adopted later Tuesday.

The report also advised the government to resort to a decree to enact the ban, rather than a law — which it warned could prove cumbersome in the months leading up to April’s presidential election.

Moves to prohibit public smoking in France reflect the changing mood across Europe — where several countries led by Ireland have introduced similar measures — as well as the growing propsect [sic] of litigation by victims of passive smoking.

With France falling to the anti-smoking Nazis, it’s once again an opportune time to note the striking similarity between Hitler’s smoking policy and the policies advocated for by today’s health fascists.

–Patrick S

We’ve made a concerted effort here at StogieGuys.com to review a wide range of cigars since the site was founded in May. A quick glance at our archived reviews page reveals a list of most major brands – as well as a few surprises. But this work in progress is by no means complete, so I headed to one of my favorite B&Ms, Georgetown Tobacco, to fill in a gap or two.

I would not be disappointed I chose an H. Upmann Vintage Cameroon Corona. This five and ½ inches by 44 ring gauge cigar comes beautifully wrapped in a printed cedar strip with three – count ‘em, three – gold and red bands. Very regal. I slid the strip down to uncover a smooth, earthy-brown Cameroon wrapper that was dotted with plume.

(It’s worth noting here that I did not age this cigar after purchase, which suggests these babies are ready to smoke right out of the box.)

Immediately after toasting the foot with a wooden match, the cigar produced a harmonious floral flavor that was pleasing to my entire palate. The combination of Nicaraguan, Dominican, and Peruvian fillers yielded pleasing notes of jasmine.

In the second phase, the taste shifted from floral to fruity with significant hints of citrus and pear. With such pronounced flavor I expected this stick to be a bit harsher, but the taste remained smooth and creamy. Like many cigars, however, this parejo became quite spicy towards the end of the smoke.

On construction, this stogie earns high marks. It lit quickly with a few wooden matches (I was outdoors), it burned evenly, and the draw was easy with a bit of resistance – just the way I like it. My only complaint is that it went out once mid-smoke after I had failed to puff for about three minutes.

Conclusion: At approximately $4.50 apiece, this cigar is a bargain. For well-rounded flavor and great construction, I give the H. Upmann Vintage Cameroon Corona four out of five stogies.

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

–Patrick A

[After winning two free tickets to be the StogieGuys.com special correspondent to Saturday’s Cigar Artisans 2006 event, George Edmonson sent us the following report.]

TAMPA – Two and a half hours of cigar heaven.

People handing out cigars, waiters stopping with trays of beef Wellington and chicken empanada, bartenders ready to serve chilled wine and beer.

And smoking was not just permitted, it was encouraged. CAO’s Golds, for instance, were already clipped and then toasted as you picked one up. You got a card that entitled you to another stick when you returned with the butt.

Yes, the Thompson Cigar Co.’s Cigar Artisans 2006 event Saturday evening at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino was one cigar-friendly party.

Whether they were newbies like Mario Drake, who took up cigars just a couple of months ago, or veterans like Al Remp, who’s been in the business longer than many of those present have been alive, everyone seemed to be having a good time.

“It’s like trick or treat,” someone remarked as our group worked its way to the Cusano table to exchange coupons for a Corojo and one of its best-sellers, the C-18.

As the lucky representative for The Stogie Guys – as shown by my new Stogie Guys cap – I’d call it pure treat. After all, how many other times am I going to get a chance to chat with cigar royalty like Rocky Patel and Felipe Gregorio, watch a Puros Indios roller at work, or just enjoy being in a room with hundreds of other happy cigar enthusiasts – and get free cigars?

(OK, so as a guest I wasn’t allowed to enter the drawing for a Harley-Davidson or the fancy poker table. You couldn’t smoke with all that wind in your face and I’m a lousy card player, anyway.)

One surprise was meeting Greg Hoffman, who works in public relations for Thompson and was key in developing the company’s Cigar Blog 101. It turns out that Hoffman and I both worked at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in the 1990s before he returned to his hometown and got involved in the world of cigars.

I learned from several makers that those of us who worry about the dreaded cigar beetles could be worrying too much. While they all acknowledged it as a potential disaster – “the kiss of death,” said one – they also said all manufacturers take steps to prevent it.

Charlie Torano said fumigation is commonplace throughout the industry. “We also freeze cigars at minus 25 degrees,” he added, part of a process that lasts five days.

Several manufacturers also agreed that there can be value in smokers aging their cigars, but some of their comments sounded as if they believe that you can make too much of that, too.

“Definitely,” Gregorio said enthusiastically, when asked if his cigars are ready to smoke right out of the box. The benefits of aging, he explained, vary greatly among different cigars and often are not dramatic. He recommended aging boxes rather than mixing cigars.

Rex Snyder, the Ashton sales rep manning that booth, said the Fuente tobacco they use is well-aged already. But, he added, cigars can benefit from humidor time after purchase, which Snyder said he does.

Surrounded by smokers, it’s easy to feel like another boom is underway. Charlie Torano said he sees signs of it in increased competition among cigar makers for the best tobacco. Keeping the supply up with demand can be a problem.

But he doesn’t think it’ll end up like the previous boom, with lots of lousy cigars rushed to market. Most of the unworthy makers are out of the business, he said, “and I think we’ve learned our lesson.”

CAO’s Aylin Ozgener, who was kept in a nearly constant stream of conversation with smokers at the booth, said tobacco supply is a key factor when the company is deciding whether to proceed with a new blend. If the necessary tobaccos are available in limited quantities, they have to decide whether it’s worth putting out a limited edition.

That’s what happened with the new Vision. “We hesitated on that for a while,” Ozgener said. And when CAO decided to go ahead, she said, they let customers know that production will be limited.

Now, here’s a tip: Want to smoke like Rocky? Grab a 6 inches by 52 ring gauge stogie. That’s his preferred vitola for smoking, as well as for blending.

“It’s just the right size,” he said.

Who could argue with that?

–George Edmonson

In our ongoing effort to make StogieGuys.com as entertaining and reader-friendly as possible, each Friday we’ll post a sampler of quick cigar news and stogie-related snippets to tide you over for the weekend. We call ‘em Friday Samplers. Enjoy.

1) Will another major U.S. city bite the dust? Fascists in Houston certainly hope so. A smoking ban has already been in effect in the Space City for most workplaces since last year – including restaurants – but now a “public safety committee” is pushing to expand the hypocrisy to stand-alone bars. According to the Houston Chronicle, the entire Lone Star State may be patiently waiting to follow Houston’s lead with a statewide ban.

2) Here’s a cigar deal we’d be all over, if only we had enough humidor space. JR’s weekly special is 40 Maria Mancini De Gaulles in a wooden box – which, for some reason, looks like a birdhouse – for $60. Notwithstanding the box’s odd shape, the deal includes eight Maria Mancini Magic Mountains (we gave the Magic Mountain four out of five stogies back in May). You may want to hurry though; at last check the Maduros were already sold out.

3) CAO announced that Vice President Tim Ozgener will now be president of the company. Founder, former president, and Tim’s father – Cano Ozgener – will remain the company’s chairman. Of particular interest to Stogie Guys is Tim’s blog on the CAO website. Hopefully he won’t be too busy to update it as president.

4) Tomorrow is Cigar Artisans 2006 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. If you’re anything like us and can’t make the trip to Tampa this weekend, be sure to keep it here at StogieGuys.com – our special correspondent, George Edmonson, will have an exclusive report next week.

–The Stogie Guys

One week in July I was meeting friends for dinner in Georgetown and dropped into one of my favorite cigar shops, Georgetown Tobacco. I was told that I had just missed a Perdomo event, but a friendly employee (aren’t all cigar shop employees friendly?) gave me this La Tradicion Perdomo Reserve Cameroon anyway.

The unique shape is the first thing that stands out about this cigar. The small “F”-size figuardo is only four and ¾ inches long, but it goes from a 44 ring gauge at the head to 56 in the middle, before narrowing to 52 at the foot. With its large silver wrapper over its deep brown Cameroon wrapper, it is an attractive – though odd – cigar.

Pre-light, the cigar had a spicy aroma typical of a high-grade African Cameroon wrapper. The stogie lit easily and its figuardo shape funneled an easy draw of white smoke into my mouth.

Right off the bat this one had a kick. The spicy flavor of the wrapper combined with the heavy earthy flavors of the Nicaraguan Cuban seed filler to produce a complex, full-flavored smoke.

The cigar gradually mellowed a little as some of the spice faded and cream and chocolate notes came through. Slight nutty flavors were also apparent.

One disappointment was, soon after lighting up, this cigar began to burn unevenly, and eventually a match was needed to even it out again. But that’s a small negative in an otherwise solid performance, earning this cigar a rating of three and ½ out of five stogies.

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

–Patrick S

Since they are illegal, reliable estimates demonstrate about 90 percent of Cuban cigars found in the United States are counterfeit. But the problem of fake Cuban cigars also extends to countries without embargos on products manufactured under the communist regime.

The latest mass seizure of Cuban counterfeits occurred in Paris, where customs agents seized over 35,000 fake Cubans valued at approximately $464,000. The shipment originated in Panama and was due for Hong Kong.

A Custom Service statement said the counterfeits were “difficult to detect” and were included with many authentic items. For more on detecting counterfeit cigars, read our guide to spotting fake Cubans.

Reports of counterfeit Cuban cigars are not new, but according to the Customs Service, the Paris seizure is part of a new trend in France. StogieGuys.com speculates, however, that it is more likely that the smuggling of counterfeits is not a new phenomenon in France, but rather that officials have only just become aware of the problem.

Since May 2006, French customs agents have intercepted four shipments of fake Cubans in France. Prior to May 2, no counterfeit cigars had ever been seized in the country.

(Compiled with Deutsche Press Reports.)

–Patrick S

How many times have you purchased a sampling of random cigars at your local tobacconist, brought them home, and then realized – aside from the company name on each band – you have no idea what the exact names are of the assorted sticks you just bought? If you’re anything like me, this is a weekly experience.

Since each cigar manufacturer has various lines, shapes, sizes, and wrappers, and since the exact name of each individual stogie is rarely printed on its label, knowing what you’re smoking can be very difficult. For example, without its close cousin side by side for comparison, it’s hard to tell a Punch Chateau L Maduro from a Punch Chateau L Oscuro – even for a seasoned cigar veteran.

And, as far as size is concerned, who can tell a 4 and ½ inches by 48 ring gauge cigar from a 5 inches by 50 ring gauge cigar without a ruler? It’s true that one manufacturer’s Robusto and Torpedo is another’s Bully and Pyramid, but these inconsistencies make the process of discovering what you’re smoking even more trying.

That’s why I’m calling on cigar producers to start printing the exact and complete name of each cigar they manufacture on each band. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not advocating an industry-wide regulatory board. And you know I’d never ask for evil government intervention (I’ve had it up to here with their idiotic smoking bans). I’m simply asking private companies to make the decision to print cigar names on their labels so, when I find something I like (as I often do), I know exactly what box to buy.

Why care precisely which make and model you’re sucking down, you ask? For one, there are just so many cigars out there. Also, despite the fact that most manufacturers use the same types of tobaccos for the various sizes of one line, different stogie shapes produce different flavors due to the varying proportions of each leaf used. With fat ring-gauged cigars, the filler has a greater influence over taste than the wrapper, for instance.

Variety is the spice of life, and I’m the first person to appreciate free and diverse choice. As it says in my bio, I count myself lucky that cigars come in a plethora of shapes, sizes, colors, and flavors. And I love the fact that different producers keep coming out with new and creative names for their models. I just wish I could more easily identify individual sticks without Google and a ruler.

–Patrick A