The 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.”

If Jim Carrey’s Riddler from the horrifically campy Batman Forever designed a cigar band, it would look something like this. It’s about as far as you can get from the traditional Trinidad look. Introduced last summer, the 6-inch, 54-ring gauge, box-pressed cigar’s blend—Dominican binder, Nicaraguan filler, and Mexican Criollo ’98 wrapper—is also unusual. The profile has a unique syrupy sweetness, along with hints of coffee and cream. Construction is perfect. This is a unique, pleasant, medium-bodied smoke that may surprise you.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Sindicato was clearly one of the most anticipated new cigar companies at this month’s industry trade show in Las Vegas. And that came as no surprise. It is the first cigar outfit to be launched by a formidable “syndicate” of veteran tobacco retailers.

These retailers include Abe Dababneh (Smoke Inn in Florida), Dan Jenuwine (Quality Fresh Cigars in Michigan), Gary Pesh (Old Virginia Tobacco in Virginia), Robert Roth (Nice Ash Cigars in New York and Pennsylvania), and Jeff Borysiewicz (Corona Cigar Company in Orlando). The group is headed by Jim Colucci, formerly executive vice president of sales for Altadis. So while Sindicato is new, it’s getting a great head start with a base of 45 top retailers—not to mention some of the biggest, most sought-after retailers in the industry.

Three distinct brands comprise the Sindicato lineup. Casa Bella is a “premium bundle” smoke from the Dominican Republic with prices around $2 per cigar. Affinity is an Ecuadorian Connecticut-wrapped blend with a mild profile that “delivers a rich, flavorful, and complex taste.” And Hex, Dababneh’s personal favorite, will be sold as “a refined medium- to full-bodied cigar.”

Hex sports a dark Ecuadorian Habano wrapper around tobaccos from Condega, Nicaragua. It is available in five sizes, including the Perfecto (6.25 x 52) which retails for $183.75 for a box of 21. The Perfecto is a gorgeous, pigtail-capped smoke with an oily shine and negligible veins or seams. A big aroma of earth, cocoa, and red pepper is apparent off the tapered foot.

One might assume a cigar as dark and menacing as this would have a powerful, spicy intro. But that’s not the case. After setting an even light, a balanced, medium-bodied profile of black cherry, dry wood, and white pepper emerges. The smoke production is solid and the mouth-feel is velvety. Little changes from beginning to end, save for a slight increase in intensity.

The Perfecto burns nicely with a thick, black mascara that requires no torch touch-ups. The solid, gray ash hangs off the foot well, and the draw remains moderate throughout. Interestingly, resting smoke only emanates from the foot a few seconds after each puff; otherwise, when sitting un-smoked, virtually no smoke is produced.

This young cigar isn’t a nicotine ass-kicker or a spicy flavor-bomb. Rather, it dominates the palate in a different way: with an oily, palate-coating texture that, I think, begs to be paired with sipping bourbon. I wonder how it will age. Right now, I find it works best in the evening after a meal, and I’m awarding it a very solid rating of four stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

When I visited Drew Estate three months ago it was clear that the My Uzi Weighs a Ton Kentucky Fire Cured (MUWAT KFC) would be released at the (then-upcoming) 2013 IPCPR Trade Show. For the blend called Nica Rustica, the immediate future seemed far less clear.

At the time, I was given a pre-release sample which I described as “gritty, rustic, slightly vegetable, and even a bit grating.” That blend included a unique and nontraditional (for cigars) strain of tobacco that grows wild in Nicaragua. I’m told that tobacco has been eliminated from the final release.

Nica Rustica is being introduced in trunk-like boxes of 48 comprised of two 24-count bundles. Retailers, I was told at the Trade Show, could order full boxes or simply refill bundles of 24. Frankly, this strategy is pretty smart on Drew Estate’s part. Retailers essentially get to sell the cigar in bundle form (I say that in the purely packaging sense) without it actually being a bundle cigar (which, fair or not, carries certain prejudices).

The cigar comes in just one size (at least for now; Liga Privada was also first introduced in just one size): 6 inches with a 52 ring gauge with a pigtail cap  and a closed foot. The cigar’s suggested retail price is $6.95. (I smoked two for this review, both given to me at the Trade Show.)

The cigar uses Connecticut Broadleaf “mediums” for its wrapper, as compared to “No. 1 Darks” for the Liga Privada No. 9. The binder is Mexican San Andres Negro (the same type used as wrapper on the Undercrown) while the fillers are Nicaraguan, from Estelí and Jalapa.

Drew Estate says the strength is medium to full and I’m inclined to agree. It’s full of flavor with dry cocoa, wood, and black pepper, along with a hint of vegetal flavors that grates on the roof of your mouth. As you might expect from the blend, it shares many qualities with both the Liga No. 9 blend and Undercrown. But the flavor isn’t nearly as refined or dense as the Liga No. 9, nor are the flavors as  balanced or sweet as Undercrown.

Construction is absolutely impeccable, something it shares with both the other aforementioned Drew Estate cigars. The draw is flawless (something Jonathan Drew calls critical to Drew Estate’s success) and I’m always amazed at the volume of aromatic smoke Drew Estate’s cigars produce, even when just perched on the side of my ashtray between draws.

Nica Rustica is billed as “rustic, un-polished, un-refined,” and that’s pretty spot-on. It lacks balance and harmony, but attempts to make up for those deficiencies with plenty of strong, dominant flavors. Drew Estate is upfront about this trade-off. The similarity to Drew Estate’s other popular lines, combined with the price, nearly guarantees it will be a hit.

I place high value on balance and nuance, which is what amazes me about Liga Privada, which so flawlessly marries balance and complexity with intensity of flavor and strength. To that end, I’d trade some of Nica Rustica’s forcefulness for a little more balance, but I also know that, for many people, this will be right up their alley. Rustic and formidable, if lacking slightly in balance, Nica Rustica earns three and a half stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick S

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.”

I liked the original Casa Miranda quite a bit, but I always got the feeling the cigar didn’t do as well Miami Cigar had hoped. Maybe the wind was taken out of the sails when Willy Herrera, who blended the cigar, left El Titan de Bronze where it’s made in the time between when the cigar was announced and when it hit the market. I was looking forward to this cigar and was pleased to have been given a sample at the recent industry convention. Chapter Two is made at Don Pepin’s factory in Nicaragua and carries a more reasonable suggested price. (The Robusto (4.5 x 50) is $6.35.) I found it to be a well-made, medium- to full-bodied cigar with dry dark chocolate, coffee, and subtle cedar notes. It’s a tasty sequel.

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 verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”

Available at the Ohio-based online retailer New Havana Cigars, this Pete Johnson creation measures 6.75 inches long with a ring gauge of 42 and costs about $8 per stick. It is manufactured by My Father Cigars with a slight box press and a nice triple-cap. Sweet pre-light notes transition to a balanced bouquet of flavors including caramel, coffee, black pepper, and dry cedar. Construction is solid with the only downside being an overly airy draw that burns rather quickly and makes this enjoyable smoke a little too brief. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself lighting up another after the first NHC Selección Limitada leaves you wanting more.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

So many sticks debut at the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) Trade Show, I usually find that before I’ve had a chance to try many of the new cigars, it’s time for the next convention.

In an effort to keep my expectations in check, I’m tightening my focus. Here are four I’m hoping to get to soon, and why.

Foundry: Michael Giannini has cooked up some intriguing smokes in his role as General Cigar’s mad scientist. And for these small batches, the emphasis is on small, as in a few hundred boxes. Some are just for B&Ms, others will be sold online. Packaging is unique, the tobaccos said to be exotic and rare. Who knows if I’ll ever see any of the 18 blends, much less get to try one. If you do, please submit a Guest Quick Smoke.

Aging Room: A Dominican perfecto, the M21 Fortissimo is another Aging Room limited edition: 30,000 cigars in 10-count boxes. The price is about $13 per stick. My fondness for Aging Room cigars makes this one I really hope to find.

San Cristobal Revelation: At least I should have no trouble finding this one. Like its siblings, this latest line extension from Ashton is rolled by Don Pepin Garcia. With an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper over Nicaraguan filler and binder tobaccos, Ashton is promoting this line as medium in strength. It’s offered in a mix of regular and very large ring gauges.

Melanio Maduro: Following the success of one of my favorites, the Serie V Melanio, this one-size (6.5 x 52) box-pressed torpedo was being offered only at the Trade Show. While it could become an annual release, Oliva marketing director John Conroy said this year just 10,000 10-count boxes were available. The single-stick price is around $13.

So, what’s on your hot list?

–George E

photo credit: Stogie Guys