The Stogie Guys

If you do a little research on the Trinidad brand, you’ll find no shortage of inconsistencies. Some claim that Cuban Trinidads were once reserved for foreign diplomats visiting the communist isle. Castro himself refuted this. Others maintain that Trinidad was specifically crafted to appeal to American consumers who illegally purchase Cubans. This assertion remains highly controversial.

Whatever the case, today there are two separate versions of the brand that is named for the city of Trinidad, Cuba: one made by Habanos SA with Cuban tobacco, the other made by Altadis USA in the Dominican Republic. Like so many other cigar brands, the split was a direct result of Fidel Castro’s criminalization of private enterprise and the subsequent embargo. (more…)

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.”

Despite their relatively expensive price, I’ve always considered the cigars in the Ashton Classic lineup to be of excellent value. The robusto-sized Magnum (5 x 50) is no exception. I purchased this one at my local tobacconist for $7 and was rewarded with great construction and subtle flavors of nuts, cream, citrus, hay, and pepper. The Magnum is a must-try, even for those who rarely smoke Connecticut shade cigars.

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.”

It’s been a while since I lit up a Tatuaje Cajonu 2003 (though I’ve got a box of the Gran Cojonus stashed away in a cigar locker somewhere). It’s a great looking cigar, with a dark, oily wrapper framed by twin bands. The cigar produces a dense smoke with tons of earthy notes and a dark chocolate finish. The full-bodied smoke stays the same from beginning to end and sports flawless construction. Still, I  found it to be a touch one-dimensional. Given the high price and all the other great Pete Johnson smokes, I’d conclude that it’s a good cigar but hardly Tatuaje’s finest.

Verdict = Hold.

–Patrick S

photo credits: Stogie Guys

We’re pleased to announce a new contributor to StogieGuys.com: Mark Carlos McGinty, author of the award-winning novel The Cigar Maker. “Mark M” adds unique expertise to our site, focusing on the rich history of the cigar industry and examining the intricacies of the cigar industry today.

Regular readers will recall that Mark has contributed to the site a few times already. In May, he wrote an article on the complex legal issues that will arise when the Cuban embargo finally ends. More recently, he wrote about the history of the Cuesta-Rey brand and the two revolutionaries who started it in the 1890s. (Both articles are well worth reading, if you haven’t already seen them.) As Mark’s bio notes, cigars and Cuban culture run in his family:

Mark Carlos McGinty is a descendant of Cuban cigar makers and the award-winning author of The Cigar Maker. You can read an excerpt of his book here. His work has appeared in Maybourne Magazine, Cigar City Magazine, Yahoo! Entertainment, and La Gaceta. Mark grew up in Minnesota but spent a good part of his childhood with his Cuban relatives in West Tampa eating ropa vieja and Cuban sandwiches, drinking café con leche and fresh-squeezed orange juice from his grandfather’s tree. His great-aunt rolled cigars for Arturo Fuente so, of course, his favorite cigar is the Arturo Fuente Flor Fina 8-5-8.

Mark spent seven years writing The Cigar Maker, a time when he ate a lot of Cuban food and smoked way too many cigars. Most of those seven years were spent researching the history of Cuba, Tampa, and the cigar industry during the period of 1850–1910. A labor of love with dozens of family anecdotes woven into the story, The Cigar Maker was a finalist at the Indie Excellence Book Awards in 2011, won the Bronze Medal at the Independent Publisher Awards, and was a finalist for ForeWord Magazine’s 2010 Book of the Year. Visit the book’s official website to learn more: www.TheCigarMaker.net.

Mark’s first novel, Elvis and the Blue Moon Conspiracy (Beaver’s Pond Press, 2003), won an Eric Hoffer Book Award Honorable Mention for General Fiction. He graduated from Stetson University in DeLand, Florida, and obtained his master’s degree from Xavier University in Cincinnati. Mark lives in Minneapolis with his wife and daughter and pays close attention to the Minnesota Twins, a subject that could one day warrant its own book.

Please welcome Mark to the site in the comments below. And as a bonus, we’ll select one commenter to win a signed copy of The Cigar Maker.

–The Stogie Guys

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Last year, with considerable mystery, a website for Tatuaje Anarchy sprung up. As we first revealed, the cigar was an exclusive cigar made for the West Palm Beach-based Smoke Inn chain of cigar shops. That cigar (reviewed here) was the first exclusive made to celebrate Smoke Inn’s 15th Anniversary.

Proprietor Abe Dababneh has since followed up the Tatuaje Anarchy with more exclusive blends. Currently available is the Padrón Anniversary 1964 SI-15 blend, a thick toro size of the popular Padrón Anniversary line available with both natural and maduro wrappers. Coming in August is the My Father El Hijo, produced at Don Pepin Garcia’s My Father Cigars factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. (A final release, by Fuente, is due this Fall.) (more…)

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 cigar by Casa Fernandez came in the sampler pack sold by Cigar Rights of America to support their fight against anti-tobacco laws. The Nicaraguan smoke features a flawless dark wrapper with just a bit of shine. The blend is the same as the original Casa Fernandez line, but the size is new. The cigar tastes of roasted coffee, cedar, and a distinctive spicy finish that focuses on the tip of the tongue. Complex and full-bodied with superb construction, it’s great with a pour of Zaya rum.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credits: Stogie Guys

I’ve always been a fan of Knob Creek. I recall my father picking up a bottle at some point when I was in college, and I remember it tasting far better than the Jim Beam I had grown accustomed to drinking at school. (Coincidentally, Beam makes Knob Creek along with other small batch bourbons that I’ve come to enjoy, including Booker’s and Baker’s.)

But I didn’t realize Knob Creek came in a Single Barrel edition until a friend recently bought me a bottle. (He owed me after he polished off most of a bottle of my Baker’s.) Sure enough, late last year Knob Creek came out with its first single barrel Knob Creek. (more…)