Archive for February, 2011

Bye, Bye Embargo? Six Months May Tell

Monday, February 28th, 2011

Every year, for God knows how long, it is rumored that the Cuban embargo will be lifted and tasty Havana cigars will be available once again here in the U.S. of A. In February of 1962, JFK instituted a full embargo against the island that resides just 90 miles south of the Florida Keys. When our newest President was elected, it seemed to be a shoe-in for Habanos products to finally be sold on American soil, but on September 2, 2010, President Barack Obama extended the embargo through September 14, 2011, determining that the embargo “is in the national interest of the United States.” Well ain’t that just another kick in the cojones. But that date is only six months away and you’ve got to wonder if this time the talk is ‘for-real’.

cuban-missile-crisis_lWhen the embargo originally hit, everyone in the industry was convinced it would only last a few weeks, a month or so tops. But almost half a century later, it is still illegal to enjoy the tobacco that has been said to be rolled on the thighs of beautiful Cuban women.

What will happen here in the US when the embargo is finally lifted… well, the speculation has been bandied about for quite some time. The fragile Cuban economy will no doubt be boosted by the influx of tourism, along with the sale of commodities like nickel, cane sugar, and rum. But as we lovers of the leaf know, it is the cigar industry that will instantly be all the rage once more. While it will be cool to walk into your favorite cigar shop and find Partagas Serie D, Cohiba Siglo, and Vegas Robaina right there on the cedar shelving of the walk-in humidor, one has to wonder at what price will these leafy treasures be sold at. And again speculation says it’ll be a pretty damned expensive proposition.

Cuban-cigarsSome of you reading can’t wait to ‘legally’ get your American Mitts on some Monte Edmundos, Punch Punch, and Partagas Lusitanias… and then there are many of you who don’t give a rat’s ash about Habana cigars and feel that today’s sticks from Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic are much better than Castro’s contraband. It’s an interesting debate amongst cigar smokers and almost as heated as any religious or political discussion.

Me, personally, I love a well made, real-deal Cubano and I’m really looking forward to their availability in the U.S. but again, price will be the HUGE determining factor whether I purchase them or not. Hey, I’m not going to stop smoking the cigars I’ve grown to know and love, but I will definitely need yet another Spanish Cedar lined box to house my earthy sticks of love.

TrinidadAnd what about the trademarks that carry the same names here in America and in Cuba? General Cigars has already fought a  long and expensive battle to keep the Cohiba brand name, and one has to wonder about Partagas, Punch, and other potential conflicts that will arise. But our friends at Altadis will have no trouble as the parent company has ownership in Habanos, who already owns the brand names like Montecristo and Hoyo de Monterrey, so there won’t be a conflict with any of those shared names.

I guess the real question is, will the end of the embargo cause a cigar boom all over again here in the United States? I think if they were sold at reasonable and affordable prices, the answer is yes, and existing domestic brands would feel the hurt for a short time. But who the hell really knows – again, it is all just speculation,  and we’ll all just have to wait and see.

Another thought that you don’t really hear about is the fact that when legalized, Cuban tobacco can be mixed with tobacco from other cigar producing nations to create some really interesting blends. While that could start a whole new revolution, remember that there is only so much tobacco that one small island can produce, and if you are sending a multitude of smokes to the U.S. it will create a shortage in other parts of the world, most likely driving up prices considerably.

One of the biggest areas of speculations of all asks if we’re really just waiting for that old bearded goat in the khakis to finally make his way to that big curing barn in the sky. That was the thought for quite some time, until his brother Raul took power, and man who is said to be even more radically communist and still a part of that politically hardened old guard.

As I said, September 14, is only six short months away and it remains to be seen if John F. Kennedy’s tobacco bitch-slap will actually make it to the half century mark. In the meantime, I think I can still make it through the day with my Nic, Honduran, and DR beauties. Please don’t worry, really, I’ll be just fine.

Til Next Week,

TZ.Sig.2

Tommy Z . JR Cigars Blog With the Zman


GENUINE COUNTERFEIT CUBANS CIGARS

Handmade NIC
Wrapper: ECSU    Binder: ECSU    Filler: HON/NIC
Medium-Full Bodied

GENUINE COUNTERFEIT CUBANSThe Genuine Counterfeit Cuban Cigar is a blend of potent Esteli, Nicaraguan Ligero and Viso from the Perez Plantation, mixed with a base of Cuban-seed Seco. Bound with an Ecuadorian binder and rich, silky rosado Ecuadorian Sumatran wrapper, this cuadrado-pressed cigar offers the smoker a velvety-soft smoking experience with a distinct spicy bite.

DON TOMAS CLASICO CIGARS

Handmade HON
Wrapper: HON/CTBL    Binder: HON/CT    Filler: HON/NIC
Medium-Full Bodied

dtclasico-bigThe Don Tomás Clásico is a return to the original, pre-1990 “Cigar Boom” Don Tomás. During the boom years, many Honduran and Nicaraguan tobaccos became scarce and blends changed to tobacco resources from other countries, like Indonesia, Columbia, and Mexico. Now back to its classic Honduran roots, this cigar offers a rich, smooth, and flavorful old-world smoking experience.

HOYO DE MONTERREY DARK SUMATRA CIGARS

Handmade HON
Wrapper: ECSU    Binder: CTBL    Filler: HON/NIC/DR
Full Bodied

HOYO DE MONTERREY DARK SUMATRAA full-bodied line extension to the majestic Hoyo de Monterrey brand, the Dark Sumatra is wrapped in the darkest sun-grown Ecuadorian Sumatran leaf. This blend uses select tobaccos from five nations to provide a rich, robust smoke packed with earthy flavors. This is a cigar for those who crave a heavier, Cuban-style smoke.

Rodrigo Toro

Friday, February 25th, 2011

Mike from MikesStogies.com sent me a few samples of this boutique cigar. I would like to tell you to look at the Rodrigo website to look up details about this cigar, but there isn’t a whole lot going on there for now. This is a boutique brand that is available in very limited markets. You can find them in Pittsburg PA, upstate NY, Warwick RI, and Houston TX.

I don’t know if there are any plans of expanding markets. I can only speculate that their website will eventually be updated with information at some point. So without wasting any time, I smoked up my samples, and paired this review with water.

1_Rodrigo_Toro_Cigar

Wrapper: Habano Ecuador

Binder: Dominican

Filler: Dominican

Size: Toro 6 x 50

Price: Around 7 – $8.00

 

Pre-Smoke & Construction:

The wrapper had a slightly blotchy, rugged appearance with no flaws. The wrapper had almost no odor, perhaps a sweet tobacco. The foot had the same mild smell, with a slight spice. I found a couple hard and soft spots, but nothing I would call out of the ordinary. The pre-light draw was very free, and had a mild earthy spice.

The burn required a few corrections, and the ash held for about an inch.

2_Rodrigo_Toro_Cigar

Flavor:

The first third had dominant coffee and woody flavors. When passing smoke through the nose, there was a nice spice. It wasn’t punch you in the face pepper. In fact, there was no pepper at all. I’m not quite sure what spice I can compare it to. As this third came to an end, the spice mellowed out, and I think I started picking up on some fruity notes from time to time. A nice sweetness kicked in right at the end and closed out the first third.

3_Rodrigo_Toro_Cigar

The second third continued with dominant coffee and woody flavors. Up there with it was that sweetness I mentioned before. My palate is limited in flavor detection, and I had a hard time comparing the sweetness to a food. It was not mocha, but it wasn’t quite caramel either. There was a bit of a kick when passing through the sinus. The immense smoke volume created a somewhat thick, sweet, woody aftertaste. Far in the background, I picked up earthiness from time to time, along with elusive fruity notes.

4_Rodrigo_Toro_Cigar

The last third took turns switching the dominant flavor. Wood, coffee, sweetness. They all took their turns at the front of the profile. Sometimes they would mingle together in equal strength. At times the sweetness leaned towards bitter chocolate. With the flavors being so up front in this third, I didn’t pick up any nuances in the background like before. Through the nose, the spice wasn’t that intense. The aftertaste stuck to the mouth with a combination of sweetness, coffee, wood, and a cinnamon type of spice.

5_Rodrigo_Toro_Cigar

Conclusion:

This was a good medium to upper medium bodied cigar. I found it to be very relaxing, and the flavors switched up and kept my interest. From start to finish, the flavors were good, and I never had any harshness. I think this is a nice boutique cigar. Thanks again to MikesStogies.com for sending these to me to review. I think the Rodrigo is worth a shot.

St. Pete Cigar Tour

Thursday, February 24th, 2011

As many of you know, I documented the progress of Ed’s new shop as he moved in. But it has been about a year since a full tour of his shop has been done.

PIC_0008

Now that the new shop is totally complete, it is time to showcase the growing inventory and amazing lounge. So sit back for ten minutes and see what St. Pete Cigar has to offer.

My Father Le Bijou 1922

Tuesday, February 22nd, 2011

Ed and I stopped by The Stogie Review once again for our monthly guest spot. As always, the review is posted here for archive purposes.

DSC06230

The My Father Le Bijou is blended by Don Pepin Garcia. I enjoy the Le Bijou more then the original My Father, which was blended by Don’s son, Jaime. While the flavors are simple and pretty straight forward, I think this is a great smoke.

With the additional capacity of the shop and addition of a lounge, there was a bit of activity taking place during the review. This sort of threw us off at times, which you will surely notice.

Since the straight forward flavor profile left us short for words at times, we sent a tweet out asking if anyone had anything to ask of Ed. Mike from MikesStogies.com chimed in, so Ed and I had some random banter about what we look for when buying cigars. Check out what we thought in this video cigar review.

Running time – 23 minutes.

MP3 Audio Only

Dear Idiot Elected Officials…

Monday, February 21st, 2011

Dear Idiot Elected Officials,

Yes, keep raising taxes on tobacco… keep raising them until you get your way and no one will be able to afford to smoke any longer. And when no one buys tobacco products any longer, your government will not be able to collect the billions of dollars it generates in tax monies every year. And when that pool is dried up, you will undoubtedly move onto things like alcohol, food, and everything else that’s available to tax.

paterson-thoughtfulGovernor David Patterson of New York (a man blind in many ways) raised the tobacco tax to 75% last September 1. He wanted to raise it to 90% but somehow, New York State’s tobacconists were spared total annihilation – for the time being. The New York legislators know damned well that people will go online and to neighboring states and Indian reservations to buy their smokes for less than half the price, and they know damned well that cigar stores and tobacconists will without question go out of business. Why would a state do that to it’s valued retailers? Because in their eyes, anyone having anything to do with tobacco is NOT valued, and are in fact, from the devil. Massive pressure is put on the government by the AMA and anti-smoking groups and the real goal is to eradicate smoking in all forms, at any cost.

Now in New York City, a pack of cigarettes is a whopping $14.50. Yeah, that’s per pack. Remember as a kid, your uncle’s and neighbors who smoked three packs a day? Well, that’s now $1,300 a month. Okay, I don’t smoke cigarettes and never have, but I sure as hell do love cigars and have bought many a premium stick in the neighboring Empire State. While that is now a costly venture, I can’t even imagine purchasing a box where $75 has been added to every $100. How will these family owned shops survive? I think the answer is apparent.

WhoopiNow the goal of the tax hike in New York was to collect an additional 511 million dollars for hospitals and research. But Mr. Einstein Patterson, if the cost increase makes it prohibitive for people to buy their smokes in New York State, how will you collect the additional half a billion? Answer: You won’t.

And then there’s New York City’s swell mayor Bloomberg who extended the city’s public smoking ban to all parks, plazas and beaches across the city, including the entire area within Times Square. Okay, the absurdity is beyond f@#king comprehension. Every single day in Times Square alone, tens of thousand of cars, buses and trucks moves through at a snails pace emitting enough dangerous carbon monoxide to destroy Mother Terra, yet if you are caught walking across the street with your Macanudo Robust, it’s a $50 fine.

Now get this… Whoopi Goldberg, a known cigar lover, has gone on a public rampage denouncing mayor Bloom-doom and the city council for treating smokers like 4th class pariah.

“I’m done with this (anti-smoking) because I feel I pay taxes here just like everybody else. There should be a designated place and I’m tired of being treated like some damn criminal. If they’re really worried about the smell in the air, give us electric buses, give us electric cars, and then I’ll understand! But you know, (give smokers) a little respect because I understand that not everyone wants to smoke, I get that, but you can’t keep treating people like they don’t matter.”

times-squareGoldberg says she’ll defy the law everyday if she has to, all in the name of people’s rights.

“I’m going to take the hit, I’m gonna write the check, do everything until you guys do what you need to do to stop this nasty smell of cars and all the other nasty stuff… I’m sick of this!”

Now there’s a VIEW you didn’t expect to hear (even though she forgot to mention bum urine. Oh, I’m sorry, ‘homeless person’ urine.)

Every day is a fight for us lovers of the leaf and if you enjoy your precious cigars, you’d better continue to make some noise and let these demi-gods know that WE the People elected them, and WE will take them out.

Idiots, every damned one of them.

Walk softly and carry a big premium, hand-rolled stick, my friend.

Tommy Z.

JR Cigars Blog With the Zman

MACANUDO ROBUST CIGARS

Handmade DR Wrapper: CTSH
Binder: CTBL    Filler: DR/HON/NIC Medium Bodied

MACANUDO ROBUSTThe Macanudo Robust was reblended to be a stronger, more flavorful cigar. This new recipe begins with a bolder combination of Dominican, Honduran, and Nicaraguan long leaf filler tobaccos secured by a sweet tasting Connecticut broadleaf binder. The wrapper is a well-grained, exceptionally dark grade of Connecticut shade leaf that is a deep Colorado in hue and plush in flavor. Slightly stronger than medium bodied, this is a deeper, richer blend than its predecessor.

Shop review – Cuenca Cigars & Lounge

Sunday, February 20th, 2011

You may remember our occasional guest Timm. He reviewed the Davidoff Millennium Blend & the Trinidad Fundadores awhile back. Late last year, he made his way to south Florida, smoked some cigars, and visited the shop up for review today. So take a minute and see how Cuenca Cigars & Lounge treated him. Let’s hope he stops by the site again.

 

Cuenca Cigars & Lounge

Location:1928 Harrison Street

Hollywood, FL, 33020

Phone: 866-417-9454

Mon – Sun: 11:00 am – midnight-ish

Owners: Miguel & Ana Cuencna

www.cuencacigars.com

www.facebook.com/cuenca.cigars

 

Some cigar shops focus their attention on quality cigars, some on great atmosphere, or on in-lounge entertainment and some on location, but few manage to touch all the bases.

Located in Hollywood Florida just a little North of Miami is Cuenca Cigars & Lounge. From the street you can see the storefront, but the best news is the smiling faces both outside & inside.

1_Cuecna_Cigars

The owners, Miguel and Ana Cuenca, keep the shop full of nearly every quality cigar on the market, and all at very reasonable prices. Accessories are also available and include humidors, lighters, cutters, and various cigar-related accoutrements. Also available are hookahs and assorted pipe supplies

 

2_Cuecna_Cigars
The inside lounge area is intimate and comfortable.  However, the best seating is not in the store; it is just outside at a table playing dominos, enjoying a coffee and a smoke. The patio outside is a wonderful place to hang out after the sun goes down. Plenty of people to watch and some of the most warm-hearted, welcoming people I have ever met.

3_Cuecna_Cigars

Ana is an incredible conversationalist, a gracious and attentive host who’s always ready with excellent Cuban coffee, water, or soda. The patrons are very friendly and made me feel as if I was a local.

Bahia Gold (Natural)

Friday, February 18th, 2011

This cigar was gifted to me by Bonita Smoke Shop. They were kind enough to include it in a cigar bomb not too long ago. The Bahia Gold has an annual production of 273,600 cigars. After these cigars are rolled, they are aged for 12 months, and then they hit the shelves. As always, I paired this review with fine Florida tap water (PUR filtered of course).

 

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sun Grown Sumatra Seed

Binder: Dominican (Semilla Cubana)

Filler: Dominican Ligero, Seco and Viso (Semilla Cubana)

Size: Churchill 6 7/8 x 48

Price: $10.00

 

Pre-Smoke & Construction:

The brown chocolate looking wrapper had virtually no flaws, just a few veins here and there. The scent coming off of the wrapper and foot was earthy. The cigar was evenly packed, and had a very slight sponginess when squeezed. The pre-light draw was good, with slight resistance. The pre-light draw had an earthy and woody flavor.

The burn required two minor corrections, and the ash held for just over an inch.

1_Bahia Gold Natural

Flavor:

The first third had a dominant earthy flavor. After about an inch, I started picking up pepper when passing smoke through the sinus. Shortly after the pepper kicked in, there was a mixture of nuts and coffee. The smoke feel was dry but not unpleasant. It was OK, but seemed unrefined. The word “Scattered” comes to mind, if that makes sense.

2_Bahia Gold Natural

The second third had a decrease in that dry smoke feel. I didn’t crave water as much. The pepper went down a notch in terms of strength, but it did keep a little punch. Some draws had a dominant earthy flavor, others were nutty, and every now and then it was sweet. Coffee notes were in there at times as well. At about the half way point, the smoke thickened up and became a lot smoother. The flavors melded together, and it was hard to distinguish and pick the flavors apart at this point. The aftertaste was sweet and coated the mouth and tongue. Things just came together, unlike in the first third.

3_Bahia Gold Natural

The last third became creamy and sweet, almost chocolaty. The pepper became more of a sweet spice. The earthiness basically went away. The overall flavor profile became simpler, but seemed more satisfying. It was basically sweet chocolate, spice, and cream. There was something going on in the background, but I couldn’t pin it down.

4_Bahia Gold Natural

Conclusion:

This was a good medium bodied cigar. The first third left me underwhelmed, but from the second third until the end, I enjoyed it. If I were to complain, I’d say the price is a little high. But price aside, this was pretty good. Thanks to Bonita Smoke Shop for giving me the chance to try this cigar!

Falto Mentor

Tuesday, February 15th, 2011

Luis Falto was kind enough to send me a box of these for review. The Falto Mentor is in honor of Luis’ teacher, Manuel Inoa. Manuel is the master blender and production coordinator for La Aurora. Luis and Manuel have been working together for around 16 years. What attracted me to the Mentor was the beautiful, classy looking box. Inside you find 20 great looking cigars, and an autographed note explaining what this cigar is about (in Spanish). Falto is a small boutique company, which means Luis can be directly involved in every aspect of his brand.

I paired this cigar with water, and offer you my thoughts on the Falto Mentor.

!Falto Mentor Box

Wrapper: Habana Vuelta Arriba grown in Ecuador

Binder: Brazilian grown Sumatra & Cameroon

Filler: Dominican, Brazilian, & Nicaraguan

Size: 5 3/4 x 54

Price: Around $7.50

 

Pre-Smoke & Construction:

The chocolate bar looking wrapper had no real flaws, and had a few medium sized veins. Holding it in the light, it had an oily glisten. Sniffing the wrapper, I found it to have a mild cedar and earthy odor. The foot had a mild natural tobacco smell. Squeezing the cigar, I found no inconsistencies, and barely any sponginess. The pre-light draw was free, with just a little bit of resistance. The pre-light draw had a sweet cedar flavor.

The ash held for about two inches, and the burn required no corrections.

1_Falto Mentor

Flavor:

The first third greeted me with pillowy clouds of smoke. Initially there was a smooth woody taste with earthy undertones. The flavors opened up a bit after the first inch. When passing smoke through the nose, there was a pleasant spice that had a little kick. The smoke became somewhat creamy and took on some sweetness. That sweetness eventually became co-co with a coffee-ish tint.

2_Falto Mentor

The second third remained smooth and creamy. The core flavors were basically the same. There were woody notes, but the prominent flavor was a coco-ish, sweet creaminess. Coffee notes were still there, and I could swear I picked up some fruity undertones from time to time. Through the nose, the spice was still pretty mild, but the strength of it’s kick varied. The aftertaste lingered on the palate long after exhaling.

3_Falto Mentor

The last third basically rotated dominant flavors. Sometimes it was real woody, and other times it was creamy coco. All the while cinnamony spice made the mouth tingle. Through the nose, the spice kicked up a notch in strength with a cinnamon spice.

4_Falto Mentor

Conclusion:

This was an excellent medium bodied cigar that may have crept into the full range in the last third. The overall flavor profile was very good and well refined. I still am debating on if my crude review does it justice. No matter, this cigar tastes good, burns slow, and made me relax. Luis – Thanks for being so generous and letting me try this cigar. The Falto Mentor is a winner, I say try it!

Cigar LOVE is in the Air

Monday, February 14th, 2011

From Wikipedia: Saint Valentine’s Day, commonly shortened to Valentine’s Day, is an annual commemoration held on February 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions. The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs, Saint Valentine, and was established by Pope Gelasius I in 496 AD. It was deleted from the Roman calendar of saints in 1969 by Pope Paul VI, but its religious observance is still permitted. It is traditionally a day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionery, and sending greeting cards (known as “valentines“). The day first became associated with romantic love in the circle of Geoffrey Chaucer in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.

What a crock.

valentines_day_sex-12562As I stood in the greeting card isle at the A&P last night, I was just one of a sorry collection of buffoons looking for that perfect card to buy for their wife. The guys were holding flowers, mylar blow-ups, heart-shaped boxes of candy, and other trinkets and whatnot, all to please the ladies of their lives. It  was an amazing display of lemmings walking mindlessly off the face of the cliff. And then it hit me like never before: What a god damned friggin scam this whole thing is… a total ruse perpetuated by Hallmark, Russell Stover and Whitman’s, all created to separate us from the dead presidents that reside in our wallets.

As I read though card after card, the announcement over the speaker called for “CLEAN UP IN AISLE FIVE” as the chowder flowed from my stomach much like the headlines of each Hallmark ditty. “To My Dearest Most Precious Wonderful Wife”… “To the Woman Who Holds the Key to My Heart”… My Love, My Soul Mate Forever… “You Are the True Light of My Life. Good God, who on Earth actually believes that this drivel makes a woman happy. (Well, actually nothing makes a woman happy, but we’ll leave this for another conversation.) So I found the perfect card – a cartoon of a grotty looking little cupid, smoking a cigar and passing wind from his loincloth. The inscription read: ‘Love Is In the Air’ and as we all know, nothing says ‘I Love You’ like a well-timed fart joke.

valfunny2Earlier I took a trek to the mall to get her something special that I know she’ll return, because admittedly I am a clueless dunce when it comes to purchasing chick stuff. So I stop in the Godiva Chocolate store figuring that I can’t go wrong there right? Get this: Six large chocolate covered strawberries for forty-two dollars! Are you freakin’ kidding me? Seven dollars a strawberry? I almost soiled my Levis on command as the mindless shopping primates were buying them up as fast as they could be bagged. I then picked up a box of a dozen chocolate candy nuts in a gold shiny box wrapped in a fancy ribbon, with a $36 price tag and blurted out several obscenities that had me removed from the premises by a pimple-faced fat kid who took his assistant clerk position awfully serious.

Everyone knows that Valentine’s Day is for women and men usually get some meaningless bupkis from their significant other. You know what, I told my wife I don’t want no stinkin’ card, candy, or any other kinds of loving bullshit. I told her to get me the one thing I cherish with all MY heart, I said, “Get me some cigars, woman!”

Now, I know that my wife hates cigars. She hates the smell and everything about them – except for the checks I get for working in the cigar industry (that seems to be okay for some reason.) It would be a cold day in Hades before my wife purchased me a cigar, but dammit, here I am spending that cigar money on all of these trinkets and whatnot, and you’d think just once she could put aside her disdain for premium tobacco, and make the sacrifice for her hubby, you know, the one who gave her the farting cupid card.

Listen, I already bought the Mrs. a dinner on Saturday, did flowers and cards this morning, so I am officially heading down to JR Cigars in Whippany, New Jersey to buy me some premium, hand-rolled, happy-sticks of love. NOTHING really says “I Love You” like your favorite cigar and today I will fall head over heels.

WE REMEMBER the LATE, GREAT SAL FONTANA.

Picture 16Sal was a dear, longtime friend to Lew and all here at JR, as well as Christian Eiroa, and all at Camacho Cigars, who he worked with for quite some time. I had the incredible pleasure to personally spend three days with him at the IPCPR show in Vegas in 2008, and I laughed for a week after I got home. Nobody could spin a story like him and his sense of humor could not be topped. His list of friends is long and deep and Sal Fontana will be missed by so many. Rest well, my friend.

Tommy Z

JR Cigars Blog With the Zman

H. Upmann Sun Grown

Friday, February 11th, 2011

I have no idea how or where I came across the cigar up for review today. There were some in my humidor, and I smoked them. That’s all I know. The H. Upmann Sun Grown is another offering from Altadis. There is no big story behind this smoke, so let’s get to it…

 

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sungrown

Binder: Connecticut Broadleaf

Filler: Honduran and Nicaraguan

Size: No. 2 – 6 1/8 x 52

Price: Around $6.00

 

Pre-Smoke & Construction:

The wrapper looked nice, and had a couple good sized veins running throughout. It had a rugged look to it, but it didn’t look bad at all. The cigar was evenly and solidly packed. Towards the torpedo head, it was very firm. Despite this, the draw was good, offering slight resistance. The pre-light draw had a cedary taste. The wrapper pretty much smelled like my humidor – cedar. The foot had almost no odor at all, just a mild natural tobacco with a tinge of spice.

The burn required no corrections, and the ash held for around an inch.

1_H Upmann Sun Grown

Flavor:

The first third kicked things off with a nice pepper when exhaling through the nose. Wood was a dominant flavor and earthy notes were way behind it. Other then the nice little peppery punch, it was an easy smoke. As this third came to a close, things started to mellow a little, and I swore I detected some sweet notes.

2_H Upmann Sun Grown

The pepper dropped in strength in the second third, but it certainly didn’t go anywhere. The smoke became thicker and almost creamy. The woody flavors still dominated. That sweetness I spoke of before became a little stronger. There was another flavor in there that I couldn’t put my finger on. Whatever it was, it was faint.

3_H Upmann Sun Grown

The last third kept the same dominant woody flavor. The smoke did eventually become creamy. A sweet aftertaste coated the mouth and lips. That illusive flavor I spoke of… I determined it was leathery and earthy. The pepper kicked down another notch, but it still kept some of it’s zing.

4_H Upmann Sun Grown

Conclusion:

This was a good medium bodied cigar. It didn’t bring a lot of different flavors to the table. But what it did have was good. There was definitely no WOW factor, it was just a well rounded flavor profile. I think it met it’s price point. If you are a medium bodied smoker, this is worth checking out.

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