The Stogie Guys

In 2009, Miami Cigar & Co.created the Nestor Miranda Special Selection “20 Aniversario,” a limited release that celebrated of two decades of producing a Special Selection line named for company founder Nestor Miranda. The Rosado version of that series ended up being one of my favorite smokes of that year. I ended up smoking several boxes.

Aniversario aside, Special Selection is a regular-production brand with five sizes, each offered in either a Nicaraguan Habano Rosado wrapper or an Oscuro one. It joins Grand Reserve, Art Deco, Dominicano, 1989, and Danno in the Nestor Miranda portfolio.

A project conceived by Jason Wood at Miami Cigar and several years in the making, the Special Selection Exclusivo Regional was recently announced. The concept is to eventually have different Special Selection varieties available in different regions of the U.S. For starters, the inaugural Exclusivo Regional is a Midwest-only release. It sports a San Andres wrapper around Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos, and it comes in two formats that cost $8-9: Robusto Extra (5.5 x 54) and Toro Grande (6 x 60).

A box-pressed smoke, the Robusto Extra is a dark, gritty cigar with a wrinkled cap and zero large veins. The foot smells of sweet cocoa and pepper. Clipping the cap reveals a smooth pre-light draw and a little spice on the lips.

After lighting the cigar, the draw opens significantly, and a profile of cream, dark chocolate, and leather emerges. Given the aforementioned spice on the lips and the fact the cigar is predominantly Nicaraguan, I had expected a pepper-forward flavor. But the taste is anything but spicy. The edges are very rounded, so to speak, despite the body trending to the heavier side.

As the medium-bodied Robusto Extra progresses to the midway point and beyond, I do not find major alterations in taste. I also don’t find any of the “dirt” flavor that’s sometimes associated with Mexican tobacco. What I do notice is a smooth creaminess, a moderate nicotine kick, and sweet resting smoke. The physical properties are impeccable—solid ash, straight burn line, easy draw.

The Special Selection Exclusivo Regional is no doubt a fine, well-made cigar, and the idea of a limited regional release is an interesting one. Yet I’m a little skeptical the Robusto Extra is going to utterly captivate the Midwest—age may improve it but, right now, it isn’t terribly complex, and it doesn’t change much from light to nub. That said, it’s a good smoke at a fair price, and one that’s worthy of a  three stogies out of five rating.

[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.”

This is one of the better-looking cigars I’ve smoked in a while, with a flawless Nicaraguan Jalapa Colorado Habano wrapper. The Toro (6 x 52) also has dual Honduran and Nicaraguan (Jalapa) binders and Nicaraguan filler from Jalapa and Condega (2007 crop). The first few draws worried me with a hint of grassiness, but that soon dissipated revealing dry cedar and cinnamon along with flavors of earth, pepper, and savory notes. It’s a well-balanced, medium- to full-bodied cigar that’s both flavorful and rounded. For $9 it’s well work a try.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Could this be the best value in bourbon? At $25 per bottle for a 12-year-old bourbon it certainly has potential, especially considering that similarly aged bourbons seem to be regularly selling for double the price.

W.L. Weller is made by Buffalo Trace, which makes a bevy of my favorite bourbons, including but not limited to Blanton’s, Elmer T. Lee, George T Stagg, Eagle Rare, Pappy Van Winkle, and, of course, Buffalo Trace.

Weller uses a wheated bourbon mash bill. All bourbon uses at least a majority of corn, but a wheated bourbon uses wheat instead of rye as the secondary grain. Along with the 12-year variety, Buffalo Trace produces the Special Reserve, the 107-proof Antique, and the high-end William Larue Weller, all of which are part of the Antique Collection and bottled at barrel-strength.

The nose features lots of sweetness, with vanilla, caramel, and a bit of leather. The 90-proof (45% ABV) spirit is a reddish bronze color. On the palate it has sweetness and wood, but there are also hints of orange marmalade, allspice, and vanilla. The finish is medium and smooth with damp wood and honey.

It’s a bit thin compared to fellow 12-year-old bourbons Elijah Craig (which is similarly priced) and Van Winkle Special Reserve (which is a bit more pricey), but the it has a great combination of balance, wood, and sweetness, especially considering the price.

That combination of sweetness and balance means it will pair with a wide variety of cigars. I can just as easily recommend a mild, woody Dominican as a full-bodied, earthy Nicaraguan. Classic Cuban smokes like Cohiba and Montecristo also go great with the Weller 12.

Whether the plastic-capped W.L. Weller 12 Year is the best value in bourbon is up for debate, though it’s clearly in the conversation. But there’s no doubt it’s an excellent value that should be on any bourbon aficionado’s list, and can be enjoyed with nearly any fine cigar.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Last month I reviewed Abaddon, a forthcoming single-size blend from Blue Havana, a tobacconist in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago. Crafted at Fabrica de Tabacos Nica Sueño in Estelí by Skip Martin of RoMa Craft Tobac, I found the cigar to be unique and flavorful, and I mentioned that I looked forward to its release in September.

September is here, and so is Abaddon. On Friday, to be exact, Blue Havana hosted a Nica Sueño event to welcome Abaddon to the shop’s selection of smokes. The cigar, which takes its name from the dwelling place of the dead in the Hebrew Bible, sells for $8.15 and sports a dark, oily, slightly mottled Nicaraguan hybrid (Criollo/Corojo) wrapper from Nicaragua, a Mata Fina binder, and filler tobaccos from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. I liked the cigar enough to award it a rare rating of four and a half stogies out of five.

So I was understandably eager to try Ouroboros, the other RoMa Craft-produced Blue Havana exclusive that also made its debut on Friday. Named after an ancient symbol depicting a dragon eating its own tail, Ouroboros is also available in one size (6.25 x 52). It retails for $8.50 and has a Mata Fina wrapper from Brazil, an Indonesian binder, and filler tobaccos from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. Only 40 boxes of 12 will be produced in the first run.

Ouroboros is dark, firm to the touch, and heavy in the hand. Its wrapper is clean with few veins and plenty of tooth. I don’t find much pre-light aroma besides faint syrupy notes. Interestingly, despite the closed foot, the cold draw is smooth after clipping the cap.

Once an even light is established, a dense, leathery flavor emerges with pepper spice, coffee bean, earth, and traces of bitterness. Hints of black licorice come and go, and the aftertaste is characterized by a lingering paprika spice. The final portion of the cigar, rather than predictably building to intense bitterness or heat, is characterized by cream and cedar.

With outstanding construction—something I’ve come to expect from Fabrica de Tabacos Nica Sueño—I’m happy to report that Ouroboros, like Abaddon, is a very pleasing cigar. The balance, complexity, and fragrance make it well worth its price tag and worthy of another solid rating of four 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.”

Black Label Trading is a new company with a skull-and-bone pirate theme and six debut blends. Redemption, the blend I smoked, is a Nicaraguan puro with a Habano wrapper that comes in two sizes: Robusto (5 x 54) and Gordo (6 x 60). A first in my experience, the large band on the sample I smoked seemed to be a final production band, but it also had the phrase “pre-release sample” across the top. The cigar sported lots of deep, dark flavors, yet it keeps a medium-bodied profile with woody notes. I expected an ass-kicker, but got a balanced cigar. Without knowing the MSRP, I think this is a cigar with some real potential. I’m looking forward to trying more from Black Label Trading.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Take two of the most popular cigars on the market (Padrón Anniversary 1964 and Liga Privada No. 9), switch a couple numbers, squish them together, and what do you get? The Nat Cicco “Aniversario 1965 Liga No. 4.” At least that’s what the name seems to imply.

It wouldn’t be the first time Nat Cicco has created a brand—without violating any trademarks—that alludes to another brand. A while back, I reviewed the Nat Cicco HHB which, in name and packaging, quite clearly is designed to invoke the Cohiba Behike.

According to Zander-Greg, who now owns the Nat Cicco line, the Aniversario 1965 Liga No. 4 is a celebration of the first time (1965) the “Factory Rejects” concept was produced. Back then it was the National Cigar Company, which has since been shortened to Nat Cicco, whose “Rejects” is still the company’s best-known line.

Aniversario 1965, the company’s first big move into the higher end of the market, is available in Robusto, Toro, and Churchill shapes, and has Nicaragua-grown Habano-seed  filler, binder, and wrapper tobaccos. I smoked four Toros (provided by Nat Cicco) for this review. The press release put out last year says the cigars retail for around $8, but it also says the cigars are band-less, and clearly they aren’t.

It’s a well-made, box-pressed cigar with an even burn, easy draw, and sturdy ash. The cigar features a pigtail cap and a dark, oily wrapper. The profile tastes of molasses, powdered chocolate, earth, and a little leather. It’s pretty simplistic, though pleasant, with not much variation from start to finish.

The Aniversario 1965 Liga No. 4 doesn’t exactly stand out, but it’s still a well-made, tasty cigar. A classic example of the new higher baseline for cigar quality that I mentioned in my recent commentary.

Well-made, well-constructed, and featuring a pleasant, if not particularly balanced, profile, it’s an interesting new addition that I wish was easier to find. (A quick Google search suggests it’s tough to find.) While it’s no Liga No. 9 or Padrón 1964, the Nat Cicco Aniversario 1965 Liga No. 4 does earn a rating of three and a half stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys