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.”

When I first acquired this maudro-wrapped Churchill (7 x 52), it cost $180 for a box of 25—a price I was happy to pay given its flavor and quality. Now, almost two years later, the investment seems even wiser, despite the fact Cuban Crafters dropped the box price significantly. With perfect combustion qualities and a taste of cocoa, coffee, pepper, and black licorice, this is a fine smoke that ages beautifully, adding creamy notes with time.

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.”

This house brand for the Orlando-based Corona Cigar Company is made by Avo. The Toro (6 x 52) features a Connecticut broadleaf maduro leaf that, while not as dark as many wrappers of that variety, has plenty of oils. The filler is a combination of Dominican Olor, Cubano, and San Vicente tobaccos. The well-constructed, medium-bodied smoke displays a combination of roasted flavors, peanuts, and café au lait.  Even at $10, this is an excellent buy and a reminder that house blends need not be a cheap bundled smokes.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

One thing’s for certain about Rocky Patel: He makes a heck of a lot of cigars. Rocky’s flashy website doesn’t even bother to mention many of his blends, be they seasonal, limited editions, retailer exclusives, or what have you.

But you can bet his most popular lines are listed online, including Vintage ’90 and ’92, Decade, 1961, Sun Grown, and Olde World Reserve. The latter was introduced at the 2005 industry trade show (back then the IPCPR was called RTDA), and then re-blended and re-introduced in 2006. Since, both Olde World Reserve versions—the Costa Rican-wrapped Maduro and the Corojo—have garnered praise from the mainstream cigar media and enthusiasts alike.

Some even go so far as to compare Olde World Reserve to the Padrón Anniversary series. Rocky, on the other hand, is more interested in internal comparisons. On his website, he lists the line as “a full-bodied smoking experience that combines the smooth complexity of the Vintage series with the earthy strength of The Edge.”

Three vitolas are available in the Olde World Reserve portfolio, each comprising Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos and sleeved in decorative tissue paper: Robusto (5.5 x 54), Toro (6.5 x 52), and Torpedo (5 x 54). The Torpedo is black—and I mean jet black—with an oily, mottled exterior leaf. It has a firm feel, a clear pre-light draw, and a subtle fragrance of sweet cedar.

That subtle fragrance transitions into a bold, full-bodied aroma as the foot is toasted. So it isn’t surprising that the initial flavor is rich and powerful, encompassing notes of black pepper, moist chocolate cake, espresso, and toffee. Later, cream and roasted nuts develop as the cigar’s thick, dense smoke coats the palate. All the while the Torpedo’s combustion qualities are very good. They include a finely layered gray ash and a fairly straight burn line.

When the Olde World Reserve Maduro first came out, it fetched around $10-11 apiece. These days, you can get a box of 20 Torpedos for $160 ($8 per cigar) at Citizen Cigar. That makes this smoke a much more attractive investment, and one that’s a smart buy if you’re looking for a sweet, complex maduro. It may not be on par with the Padrón Anniversary series—most cigars aren’t—but this Rocky Patel creation is worthy of four 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.”

Like the original Hammer + Sickle, this Connecticut broadleaf-wrapped maduro is crafted by Davidoff master blender Henke Kelner and features Dominican binder and filler tobaccos. Only 10,000 cigars were made, packaged in black crystal ten-count boxes. The thick toro (6 x 54) is perfectly constructed. The flavors are a classic full-bodied maduro, with coffee, wood, and earth. As such, the line is a radical departure from almost everything else blended by Kelner. Even if Moscow City is a bit pricey at over $10 each, it’s an interesting smoke worth a try, particularly for those who enjoy full-bodied maduro cigars.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Abe Flores reinvented his company prior to last summer’s industry trade show. There, he introduced his re-blended standard lines, dropped his cigars’ prices by 10%, and debuted a new creation: the 1878 Cubano Especial Capa Maduro.

That cigar got off to a fast start. In August, when we reported live from the International Premium Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association (IPCPR) annual convention in New Orleans, Flores told us that he had sold 8,000 boxes of the Capa Maduro in two months. Priced around $5 each, his strategy was to lure more enthusiasts to Pinar del Rio and entice them to try his other lines.

Now Flores has a new line that he’s eager for us to try. Called the 1878 Cubano Especial Capa Natural, it features the same interior tobacco as its Maduro predecessor—a Dominican criollo ’98 binder and a two-country filler blend from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic—wrapped around a four-year-old Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper.

The Capa Natural Robusto (5 x 52) is an attractive, golden-colored smoke with an intricate pigtail cap and a pre-light aroma of sweet hay. The wrapper is clean and oily with minimal veins. In all, this cigar makes an aesthetic impression befitting a stogie twice its price.

Notes of leather, grass, dry oak, and vanilla characterize the introductory profile. While the flavor is more salty than it is creamy, there’s an underlying nuttiness present that adds a balance to the overall taste. Floral notes will also be found by attentive enthusiasts.

After the first inch, it becomes clear that the Capa Natural Robusto is built with care and precision. The white ash builds off the foot sturdily, the smoke pulls through with ease, and the burn is straight and true. These combustion qualities are consistent from light to nub and across all three samples I smoked for this review.

All three also developed flavors of cedar and black pepper at the midway point—welcome additions to the medium-bodied profile. Here, I conclude that the 1878 Cubano Especial Capa Natural Robusto is a homerun as far as I’m concerned. Between its MSRP of $4.55 and its complexity, this promises to be a welcome addition to my humidor for some time. I look forward to sampling the seven other vitolas in the Capa Natural line, and I have no reservations about awarding the Robusto four and a half stogies out of five.

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

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

Christmas may be over but, if you hurry, it’s still not too late to pick up some of the fantastic offerings that breweries create for the holidays. I recently selected three Christmas-inspired Belgian ales from my local beer store.

While the following brews can be hard to find, I wasn’t necessarily looking for these particular beers; rather, I was more interested in the broader Belgian ale style, which has the strength, flavor, and complexity to go well with cigars.

Delerium Noels

Over 20 years ago, before micro-breweries took off and Belgian ales could be found with regularity in the U.S., Huyghe Brewery released the well-known Delerium Tremens ale. In 2006, the brewery produced a Christmas Ale, which features a cola-like sweetness and fruitcake flavors. That light sweetness goes perfect with a Cameroon-wrapped cigar, like the Fuente Hemingway.

St. Bernardus Christmas Ale

This abbey ale from Watou in West Flanders has a remarkably strong, intense nose. The 10% alcohol-by-volume beer features fruit notes of cherry and dates, a syrupy intensity, and roasted nut flavors. It’s a full-flavored beer that can stand up to a maduro. I recommend pairing it with the EO 601 Blue.

Corsendonk Christmas Ale

Available November through February each year, the Corsendonk Christmas Ale  is an inviting mahogany color. It is well-balanced with chocolate notes and a touch of citrus, Christmas spices, and molasses. While each ale was enjoyable, of the three this was my favorite. My pairing of choice is the Davidoff Millenium Blend.

These three holiday ales demonstrate that while whiskeys and rum may be more classic pairings, a flavorful Belgian ale can be an excellent accompaniment to a fine cigar. And don’t worry if you can’t find these specific beers, as there are many great and unique others (and finding your favorite can be part of the fun).

If you have a favorite Belgian ale that you think pairs with a fine cigar, let us know in the comments.

–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.”

Originally released in 1995, the ultra-rare Partagas 150 features a Cameroon wrapper that is over 30 years old. It shows no ill-effects from its age, with firm construction, an excellent draw, and perfect combustion. The cigar features surprising strength, with plenty of medium-bodied Cameroon spice and sweetness, combined with a myriad of subtle flavors including earth, cocoa, honey, and oak. Back in 1995 this sold for around $12 per stick, but the one I smoked featured a price tag of around $50. Despite the considerable cost, when you factor in the opportunity to smoke a piece of history, connoisseurs should consider picking up this exquisite smoke.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys