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 reviewed the Artesanitos (5 x 46) in January 2009, it was prone to occasional spurts of intense bitterness—an unwelcome trait that tainted an otherwise delicious cigar. Now, after over a year of aging, this Ernesto Perez-Carrillo creation has a better rounded tone. The balanced flavor of cedar, nut, and spice shines through with flying colors, and the physical properties remain superb. At $8 apiece, this is an easy recommendation if you can be patient.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

As we have since July 2006, each Friday we’ll post a mixed bag of quick cigar news and other items of interest. We call ‘em Friday Samplers. Enjoy.

1) Government officials in Tacoma are trying to close down a local cigar lounge for code violations. Paul Mackay, owner of El Gaucho restaurant, has spent $15,000 on renovations to bring his lounge in compliance with Washington’s statewide smoking ban, effective since 2005. But this week the county health department ordered him to stub out the cigars because of violations: the lounge sells food and is open to the public. “Here we are trying to stay alive, and they keep dumping new rules, regulations, and taxes on us,” said Mackay.

2) Other Smoking Ban Alerts: UK doctors are urging politicians to ban smoking inside all cars. California lawmakers eye a statewide ban for parks and beaches. Michigan’s private clubs are lobbying for a ban exemption. Arizona State may criminalize tobacco on its  four campuses.

3) Inside the Industry: La Gloria Cubana is introducing a new cigar called Artesanos de Tabaqueros, which features a band at the bottom third of the cigar, a Connecticut wrapper below, and an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper above. Rocky Patel is introducing a new Decade Edición Limitada with a richer, spicier blend. Online retailer Thompson Cigars has sold off its non-tobacco retail operations, leaving the company to focus on its core cigar business.

4) Around the Blogs: Stogie Review lights up an Avo Limited Edition 2010. Cigar Inspector inspects a Fuente Work of Art Maduro. Velvet Cigar fires up the D’Crossier Golden Blend. Cigar Examiner examines a Berger & Argenti Classico. Nice Tight Ash smokes a Rocy Patel Decade Edición Limitada.

5) Deal of the Week: We’re not sure why it’s called the “Presidential Sampler,” but it’s still a good deal. You get ten cigars from big names like Montecriso, Romeo y Julieta, Graycliff, Gurkha, Camacho, CAO, Padilla, and Cohiba, for just $60 including free shipping. Grab your here.

–The Stogie Guys

graphic credit: Stogie Guys

The late Nick Perdomo Sr. was, in the words of his son, the family’s “saving grace.” Formerly an employee in the Cuban cigar industry, he relocated to Nicaragua in 1995 to oversee his son’s once fledgling Miami enterprise blossom into a successful business. He did so occasionally donning a pair of holsters and loaded .45s.

To honor is “father, mentor, and hero,” Nick Perdomo Jr. introduced the Patriarch at the 2008 IPCPR Trade Show in Las Vegas. The cigar is, according to Perdomo’s website, “traditionally handmade in father’s favorite blends” and “comprised of exquisite tobaccos from the fertile Nicaraguan valleys of Estelí, Condega, and Jalapa.”

Patriarch is offered in three different wrappers—Connecticut, Corojo, and Maduro—and available in six traditional sizes. Included are the Churchill (7 x 48), Corona Extra (5.6 x 46), Epicure (6 x 50), Lonsdale (6.5 x 42), Robusto (5 x 50), and Torpedo (6.5 x 54). I sampled two Corona Extras in the Corojo format for this review. Each Nicaraguan puro sported an oily exterior leaf, a moderately firm feel, a tight cold draw, and pre-light aromas of honey and raisin.

The medium-bodied flavor, spicy and sandy on the palate, tastes of birch and peanut. There’s an underlying creaminess present that helps smooth out what would otherwise be a dry, meaty profile. Without it, the Patriarch would be ordinary at best and somewhat harsh at worst.

Instead, it’s balanced and satisfying with some nuance. And things get a bit more interesting at the midway point when dark chocolate and coffee notes enter the equation.

The taste, somewhat bitter in the final third, mellows as the cigar approaches its end. All the while the physical properties are admirable with an even burn and a solid ash that holds strong for up to an inch and a half. My only complaint is the persistent resistance on the draw.

Overall, the Corona Extra Corojo is a dignified yet simple treat. Fire one up with friends or family, recommends Nick Jr. Heck, given the story behind the smoke, it might make for a thoughtful Father’s Day gift. Whatever the occasion, I suspect it will neither dazzle nor disappoint, earning a rating of three and a half stogies out of five.

[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here. Cigars for this review were provided by Cigars Direct.]

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

“Symphony” is a fitting name for the newest creation from cigar traditionalist and pioneer Paul Garmirian. Its harmonious flavor calls to mind a complex, balanced composition that leaves the audience calling for an encore performance.

That’s high praise. Rest assured, however, that my admiration is well-deserved. I’ve come to expect big things from Garmirian’s boutique, and the 20th Connoisseur exceeds my expectations in every way.

This blend made its world premier in December at a highly anticipated PG event at Morton’s in Reston, Virginia. It was a rare occurrence. PG resists the temptation to come out with something new every year—a hallmark of the company’s dedication to traditionalism and disdain for slick marketing and over-extension.

Celebrating the brand’s 20th anniversary, Symphony was crafted by Henke Kelner of Davidoff fame and Eladio Diaz, his chief blender. It consists of four different filler tobaccos, a Havana-seed binder, and an exterior leaf that PG calls “greatest wrapper we have ever seen.”

PG, evidently, went to great lengths to top their 15th Anniversary blend, released in a Connoisseur size (6 x 52) five years ago and later expanded into a full ten-vitola line. Garmirian’s work makes a great first impression. The Symphony 20th Connoisseur, the only size currently available, is dark and silky with a mouth-watering pre-light aroma of hay and molasses.

From the first puff, the profile is full-bodied with a powerful yet smooth taste of wine, warm tobacco, cereals, and roasted nuts. The aftertaste has a lingering cedar spice and the sweet resting smoke reminds me of corn and pencil shavings.

This flavor, which persists throughout the two-hour smoke, commands undivided attention. I smoked two Connoisseurs for this review, both with nothing other than a beverage and my thoughts to keep my occupied. I never found myself even slightly bored. The subtleties and balance in taste are plenty entertainment for a serious cigar enthusiast.

As it should be with a cigar that costs $17 apiece. Thoroughly impressed with its performance in flavor and construction, the new Symphony 20th is a must-try while supplies last.  And that may not be for long. The Connoisseur is the only size that will ever be available and it will never again  be in production. Why? Because the filler tobacco includes a mystery leaf of unknown origin that had been aging in Kelner’s warehouse. It therefore cannot be replicated.

So, depending on demand, PG expects B&Ms to run out of the blend in one to two years (supplies at PG’s own boutique shop could last three to five years). But I wouldn’t wait that long to try this cigar, which is unquestionably worthy of our highest rating: five stogies out of five.

[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here. A list of other five stogie-rated cigars can be found 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.”

Made exclusively by Don Pepin Garcia as part of Cigar International’s Legends Series, this toro (5.7 x 54) features a golden wrapper and firm construction. The cigar demonstrated consistent flavors from start to finish: mostly graham and cedar. Towards the end of the medium-bodied smoke, grassy, slightly-bitter notes emerge. While not a terrible stick, I did find it to be somewhat uninspired and definitely lacking the depth of flavor I’ve come to expect from Pepin smokes.

Verdict = Sell.

–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 love it when cigar shops produce and sell small-batch house blends that you can’t find anywhere else. Such is the case with the Torres Figurado Doble Capa, a barber pole cigar made by Alex Torres of The Cigar Room in Austin, TX. The Dominican puro sports excellent physical properties and an uncomplicated flavor of damp earth, leather, and cedar spice. Give the shop a call if you’d like to try one.

Verdict = Buy.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

As we have since July 2006, each Friday we’ll post a mixed bag of quick cigar news and other items of interest. We call ‘em Friday Samplers. Enjoy.

1) Indiana politicians have again rejected legislation that would have criminalized smoking in Hoosier State bars, restaurants, and other “public” places. “Our Indiana association members and their customers had a lot to do with defeating this proposed legislation,” said Chris McCalla, legislative director of the IPCPR. “They contacted their state representatives and senators in opposition to the bill because it was discriminatory, unnecessary, and it would have cost jobs and tax revenues. The General Assembly did the right thing at the right time for the state of Indiana and for that we are grateful. If the issue is raised again in the future, however, we will be ready once again to defend our rights and the rights of all the state’s citizens and help defeat any such bills.”

2) A network of “smoke-easies”—nightclubs that allow patrons to smoke illegally—have sprung up in New York City. The New York Times reports that Manhattan’s popular M2 UltraLounge is at risk of being the first establishment closed by the city government for smoking violations.

3) Inside the Industry: Tobacco giant Swedish Match, owner of General Cigar, entered into an agreement with the Plasencia Group yesterday to form Caribbean Cigar Holdings.  To promote the new Habana Serie R No. 3 size, La Gloria Cubana is giving away five trips to Las Vegas and a 2010 Lotus Elise sports car.

4) Around the Blogs: The Stogie Guys, via the Daily Caller, feature the La Flor Dominicana Mysterio Oscuro. Stogie Review lights up a Camacho Select. Nice Tight Ash fires up a Padilla Cazadores. Cigar Inspector inspects a Rocky Patel Winter Series 2009. Keepers of the Flame smokes the Brick House.

5) Deal of the Week: March Madness is nothing if not another opportunity for an unpublicized Cuban Crafters sale. There are a number of discounts, but the best deal is a box of 20 Don Kiki White Label Churchills (2001 harvest) for just $50. Grab yours here.

–The Stogie Guys

graphic credit: Stogie Guys