The Stogie Guys

The Kentucky Derby is as close to a bourbon holiday as we have in America. So if you’re thinking of running to the liquor store to pick up some bourbon for the Run for the Roses, here are five best-buy bourbons, plus some honorable mentions worth consideration.

What do I mean by a best buy? I mean bourbons that over-perform their retail price and aren’t overly difficult to find. While you wouldn’t find a $200 bottle of bourbon on this list, Elmer T. Lee ($32), Pappy Van Winkle 15 ($80), or George T. Stagg ($80) would all make this list if you could easily find find them at suggested retail price. (Elmer T. Lee has been missing from most shelves for around six months at least, and Pappy and George T. Stagg have been highly allocated for years and regularly sell for many times their retail price.)

So without further ado, here are five best buy bourbons that provide good bang for the buck.

Old Grand Dad 114 – Costing barely more than $20, this is a connoisseur’s bourbon at nearly bottom-shelf prices. It features intense flavors, high proof, complex wood, and sweetness. (FYI: Old Grand Dad 114 is essentially a less diluted version of the 80-proof Basil Hayden, which sells for double). My only hesitation with putting it on this list is that sooner or later enough people will discover what a gem this OGD114 is and it will become overly difficult to find.

Weller 107 – Two or three years ago, Weller 12 ($30) would take this spot, but now people are buying every bottle they come across at retail price. This 107-proof “Weller Antique” is itself quickly becoming a little harder to find, but at $25-30 it remains a quality example of the slightly sweeter stye of wheated bourbon that makes people drool when it’s in a bottle with the words Van Winkle on it.

Buffalo Trace – It’s not a small batch or single barrel, nor does it carry an age statement guaranteeing a certain number of years in the barrel, but the eponymous bourbon of the famed Buffalo Trace Distillery delivers the goods. Vanilla, toffee, wood, and fruit make it pleasant neat, and the price ($25) makes it easy to pour into a cocktail.

Booker’s – I’ve noted before that Booker’s ($50-60) is a bit underrated, and I stand by it. Brash vanilla and wood mean it isn’t for beginners, but it is dangerously tasty and, best of all, available at almost every decent liquor store or bar with more than a handful of bourbon offerings.

Four Roses Private Barrel Selection – The entire Four Roses line is excellent (even the standard Yellow Label) but the Private Barrel Selections ($50-70) are truly world class. Because each barrel is a store pick, this is a bit tougher to find, but fortunately it isn’t impossible yet. Each of Four Roses’ ten recipes takes on its own character, but none that I’ve come across have disappointed.

Honorable Mentions: Old Forester, Very Old Barton, Jim Beam Black 8 Year, Bulleit, Eagle Rare 10 Year, Blanton’s.

For more excellent bourbons, see my lists of Five Good Bourbons Under $30 and Five Good Value Bourbons Under $20.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

A few weeks back, I was perusing the selection at a tobacconist while a sales rep for Nomad was talking to the shop owner. I was the only customer in the store at the time, so before long the rep and I got to talking. I mentioned how much I enjoyed the Connecticut Fuerte. Needless to say, I purchased a few Nomad smokes, including a three-pack of a cigar I had not yet previously tried: the Nomad Dominican Classic Line Renegade.

I missed this blend when it came out in 2012, only starting to get acquainted with Nomad in 2014, after the Dominican Classic had been joined by several other blends. But this is “the line that started it all,” according to the Nomad website, and one that’s intended to be “deep in the roots of Dominican culture.”

The blend includes an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper around Dominican binder and filler tobaccos. There are six vitolas currently in production: Fugitive II Perfecto (6 x 51), Vagabond (4.6 x 54), Rambler (5 x 50), Renegade (5.25 x 54), Navigator Torpedo (6 x 52), and Drifter (6 x 60). I paid $9 apiece for three Renegades, which actually measure 5.5 inches long (I’m not sure if the 5.25 listed on the Nomad website is a typo, if the size changed, or if the cigars I bought are somehow an anomaly).

In any event, the oily wrapper on the Dominican Renegade has an interesting marbled color that’s golden with consistent splotches of dark brown. The veins are thin, the seams tight, and the flattened cap seems to have been executed with care. The pre-light notes off the foot remind me of tea and sweet sawdust.

After setting an even light, I’m greeted with a balanced, medium-bodied profile of sweet cream, bread, woody spice, and earth. The texture is chewy and the finish is short and, at times, slightly bitter. The resting smoke—which is bountiful given the high volume of smoke production—is very sweet and, in my opinion, adds a lot to the overall enjoyment.

While the Dominican Renegade certainly isn’t lacking for flavor, smokers who consistently burn full-bodied Nicaraguan sticks may find this specimen a little too muted. From my perspective, the Renegade has much to offer in terms of subtlety, and it pairs nicely with a mid-afternoon cup of coffee. No, this isn’t the most complex smoke around, and there are very few changes from light to nub. But the flavor and aroma are enjoyable, and the construction is perfect.

In comparing the Nomad cigars I’ve had to date, I’d give a slight edge to the S-307 blend, whereas the Connecticut Fuerte is the standout. But this is a nice Dominican and worthy of three and a half stogies out of five.

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

–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.”

The HN line derives its name from its Honduran Criollo ’98 wrapper (the “H”) and the use of Dominican Navarette tobaccos (the “N”). It’s a product of Matt Booth’s Room 101 Cigars, which is affiliated with Camacho and manufactured and distributed by Davidoff. The 615 vitola (7 x 48, about $7) is my favorite format of the blend, offering excellent construction and a full-flavored, moderate-strength profile with notes of roasted nut, milk chocolate, woody spice, sweet cream, and white pepper. About a year of age in my humidor hasn’t resulted in much change, but that’s not an issue since I enjoyed the cigar considerably right after acquiring it.

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.”

Tatuaje’s Monster Series is a highly sought-after release around Halloween every year. Last year, Tatuaje released a sampler of Pudgy Monsters, which are shorter versions of the same blends, all in a relatively thick format. The JV13, the 2013 Monster release, became the pudgy monster known as Jason. The blend uses a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper around Nicaraguan binder and filler. The result is a very full-flavored cigar with classic Broadleaf flavors: earth, chocolate, grittiness with a slight sweetness. Construction is excellent. You can still pick up Tatuaje Pudgy Monsters at some retailers, and I highly recommend picking one up so you can try some of the more limited blends from Pete Johnson.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

April marks the end of scotch season for me. (I’m a seasonal drinker: Single malts and the occasional cognac in the colder months, rum and tequila/mezcal when it warms up. Bourbon and rye year-round, of course.) So lets wrap up the season with with this Glenfarclas 17-year-old single malt whisky.

Glanfarclas is an independent distillery, owned by the same family for 150 years. It’s a Speyside distillery that makes a range of single malts, with 10-year and 17-year the most readily available, at least here in the States. They also bottle a 105 cask-strength variety, of which I’m a big fan.

The Glenfarclas 17 is bottled at 86-proof and sells for around $100 a bottle. It’s a light golden color. (Note that because single malts can have caramel coloring added, color doesn’t mean as much for scotch as it does for straight bourbon or rye, and a light color may only mean coloring wasn’t used.

The nose with sweet toffee and pear serves as a preview of the subtle, classic style of this whiskey. The Glenfarclas 17 coats the palate with a rich combination of creaminess, sherried fruit, orange peel, toffee, and clove. There’s a bit of smokiness and just a wisp of peat. The finish is light with oak and brown sugar.

I’m just guessing here, but I wouldn’t be surprised if this is a combination of sherry cask and bourbon cask whisky, as the sherry is evident, but subtle. The whisky seems to grow in complexity as you drink it. It’s hard to suggest that Glenfarclas 17 is anything but delicious, subtle, and approachable.

For a cigar pairing, you’ll want a cigar that’s not so overpowering as to overwhelm the delicate aspects of this single malt. Go with a Fuente Chateau, Tatuaje Black, Illusione Epernay, or a well-aged Cuban Trinidad.

I’m not one to recommend turning a bourbon drinker into a scotch drinker, as you’ll always find better value in American whiskey, but for bourbon drinkers branching out into single malt, Glenfarclas is an excellent place to start. That said, before you buy this, try the 10-year, which is also excellent but only half the price. But if you like the 10-year and want to see the complexity that additional age can add, I very much recommend Glenfarclas 17, even if my own preference is slightly for the cask-strength 105 variety.

The Spanish word “añoranza” loosely translates to nostalgia, or a yearning for days gone. So you’d expect a cigar line called Añoranzas to have classic flavors and a traditional look.

The Miami Cigar & Co. website calls Añoranzas “a soft, box-pressed beauty” that provides “a look into the cigars of yesteryear with the profile and body that today’s discerning cigar smoker wants and expects from a premium cigar.” Añoranzas is “nostalgic in name, but modern in delivery.” To me, that sounds like Miami Cigar is promoting this line as contemporary in taste but old-school in packaging. Truthfully, though, I couldn’t much care what the marketing department wants me to think about Añoranzas; I’m interested in how the tobacco performs.

That tobacco, by the way, is all Nicaraguan, including dual binders and a dark Habano Oscuro wrapper. The blend, launched in 2012, is said to be a tweaked version of the Nestor Miranda Grand Reserve 2011, and the cigars are crafted in Estelí by My Father Cigars. Four sizes are available in what many consider to be Miami Cigar’s boldest blend: Robusto (5 x 50), Toro (6 x 52), Belicoso (6.5 x 54), and Gran Toro (6 x 60).

The list price on the Toro seems to be $7.50, but I believe some retailers are selling it for as little as $5 or less, especially when bought by the 20-pack. Its surface has almost invisible seams and only the thinnest of veins. The cap was applied with care, and the foot shows a cross-section of tightly packed tobaccos. The cold draw has only the slightest resistance.

Once lit, pre-light notes of sweet milk chocolate transition to a rich, full-bodied profile of espresso, dry wood, cocoa, and black pepper. A char-like spice is concentrated on the tip of the tongue, and that char lingers throughout the long aftertaste (this trait, by the way, is one reason I consider this blend such a solid complement to an after-dinner glass of sipping rum).

Throughout, hints of red pepper, cashew, chocolate, and earth come and go, making this an exceptionally tasty and complex cigar—and one that rewards those who take their time between puffs and smoke through the nose. From light to nub construction is also admirable, including a smooth draw, good smoke production, and a sturdy white ash. The burn line may require a touch-up or two along the way, but combustion is certainly not problematic.

So far as I can tell, Miami Cigar is essentially selling the Nestor Miranda Grand Reserve 2011—a cigar, mind you, that was a good buy north of $10—at a significant discount and under a different name. That’s a win in my book. This should definitely be on your radar as a box-worthy full-bodied cigar that’s consistent, complex, and downright delicious. The Añoranzas Toro earns four and a half stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

I’ve written a few times about how 2014 was a year of significant cigar anniversaries, and thus also plenty of anniversary cigars. E.P. Carrillo celebrated its fifth year, for example, and the Padrón’s celebrated a half century in the business.

La Flor Dominicana had an anniversary, although not a significant one for the La Flor Dominicana brand. Still, 2014 marked 20 years since Litto Gomez started his cigar venture in 1994 (the La Flor Dominicana line wasn’t founded until two years later).

To celebrate, Gomez and La Flor Dominicana introduced a blend simply called 1994. The line comes in five sizes, including a special Toro (6 x 54) that comes in a very cool-looking beer stein. (I got a look at one in person at a local shop recently.)

The beer stein was delayed until early 2015, but the other sizes (Conga (5 x 52), Aldaba (6 x 58), Rumba (6.5 x 52), and Mambo (7 x 54)) were released in 2014. I smoked four of the robusto-sized Congas (MSRP $7.50) for this review.

In addition to the beer stein packaging, all the sizes feature a sharp-looking band. It’s a nice combination of the classic LFD bands with a more ornate touch worthy of a celebratory, anniversary cigar.

The cigar uses a dark San Andrés wrapper. Binder and filler are all Dominican from La Flor’s Dominican farms.

Once lit the cigar features lots of woody spice, leather, and charred steak. It starts out very full, but quickly dials back. There’s dry cinnamon, a slight sourness, and plenty of grittiness on the palate, but it’s a slightly superficial strength. Construction is excellent from first draw to the final ash.

The one drawback I found was a persistent sour, sometimes bitter edge that settles on the back corners of the tongue. Those flavors are frequently embraced when found in beer, like you might pour in a La Flor 1994 beer stein, but it doesn’t work quite as well in a cigar. Perhaps extended aging will see those flaws fade away.

Despite that, it’s still a solid, well-constructed smoke full of interesting flavors. It’s enough to earn La Flor Dominicana 1994 Conga three and a half stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys