Cigar Reviews

8 Comments Posted on by cigarfan Cigar Reviews, Don Pepin Garcia

Siboney Reserve Robusto

The original Siboney was a pre-revolution Cuban cigar, named for the small  town east of Santiago de Cuba. Interestingly, Siboney is where U.S. forces landed in the first days of the Spanish-American war. Decades later it was also the site where Castro gathered with his men before their attack on the Moncada Barracks, generally considered the start of the Cuban Revolution.

The original Cuban Siboney cigar is no longer in production, but that of course bars no one from riding its illustrious coattails to marketing bliss. (Illustrious may be overstating it. So may bliss.) Famous Smoke appears to have the rights to the brand name (these people notwithstanding) and they market two different blends under the Siboney name.

The “traditional” Siboney is a Honduran bundle cigar made by Alec Bradley. The Siboney Reserve is a Nicaraguan near-puro made at Pepin Garcia’s Nicaraguan factory, My Father, in Esteli. The Reserve is packed in boxes, but it’s still designed to be an economy cigar.

The Reserve version’s best feature, in my opinion, is its wrapper — an aromatic Nicaraguan Habano Rosado leaf. The filler is Nicaraguan corojo, and it appears to have a double binder: Nicaraguan Criollo ’98 and Honduran Habano.

Only three sizes are currently in production:

  • Churchill – 7 x 50
  • Robusto – 5 x 50
  • Torpedo – 6 a/2 x 54

Construction Notes

The Siboney Reserve Robusto is a nice looking stick, but it doesn’t really compare to higher-end cigars coming out of the My Father factory. The wrapper is a slightly mottled colorado maduro that is a little less ruddy than what I would expect from the “Rosado” billing.  It’s somewhat dry and veiny, but otherwise attractive enough.

The trademark Pepin triple-cap is present, but it’s not as nicely finished as other Pepin smokes. The head is rounded with a patch on top. The draw is on the loose side, and one of these was seriously underfilled.  The burn is too quick, but it manages to keep the heat under control. The ash is crumbly, loose, and flaky.

Overall fair construction. This is a long-filler cigar, but without prior knowledge of this I’d guess it was a well-built Cuban sandwich. A little disappointing.

Tasting Notes

The Siboney Reserve Robusto is a fairly straightforward, medium-bodied, woody Nicaraguan style cigar. It opens up a little grassy with an oaky aroma and a whiff of vanilla. Some light pepper notes crop up after half an inch or so, but it is quite mild for a Pepin blend.

The middle section is woody with some light spice, but mostly it tastes of simple tobacco. The aroma is the centerpiece here, maintaining a steady flavor of wood with continuing hints of vanilla. The smoke is rough on the tongue at times.

The last third is dry and peppery, but the oaky aroma shines through. Half an inch before the band it develops a papery aftertaste and quickly turns ashy .

Conclusion

The Siboney Reserve is not a bad cigar, but it’s not a great one either, especially coming from a factory that produces some of the best cigars in Nicaragua. This one reminded me a bit of the Tatuaje Series P, the broke man’s Tatuaje. I recommend to all broke men (and women) being one myself (broke, not a woman) that smoking one or two really worthy cigars a week is far better than to smoke garbage all week long. Not that this cigar is garbage exactly, but it’s not a DPG Black either.

Boxes of the robusto are priced well at around 80 USD, which makes it a near-bargain cigar, but you can probably do much better without looking too far.

Final Score: 75

7 Comments Posted on by cigarfan Cigar Reviews, La Aurora

Cigar Wrappers and the Aurora 1495 Connoisseur Selection

How much influence does the outer wrapper leaf of a cigar have on its taste overall?  The wrapper comprises only about 10 percent of the tobacco in a cigar, give or take, but it seems to have a disproportionate effect on the blend. The question is how much of an effect, and the debate is perennial.

Some seasoned aficionados say that the wrapper accounts for 60 percent of a cigar’s flavor. Others say less, some say more. But almost everyone agrees that the wrapper is a cigar’s most valuable player. The reason that wrapper leaf makes such a disproportionate impact isn’t exactly clear, but the fact that it does so is easy to prove.

In 2007, Jose Blanco of Aurora cigars presented the Aurora 1495 Connoisseur Selection, a series of four cigars with exactly the same filler and binder, but each with a different wrapper. The standard 1495 cigar has an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, but for the Connoisseur Selection the usual wrapper was replaced by four other familiar varieties: Corojo, Connecticut, Brazilian, and Cameroon.

That these five robustos are not all the same is obvious from looking at them. The Connecticut and Corojo are claro in complexion, while the Cameroon and Ecuadorian are swarthier. And the rough dark hue of the Brazil stands completely apart.

But under the hood they are all the same: a Dominican corojo binder which holds in place a blend of Dominican piloto cubano, Nicaraguan and Peruvian filler leaves.  The core flavors of the binder and filler shine through in the Connoisseur Selection, but the wrapper lends each cigar a singular distinction; in effect, changing the wrapper makes each cigar an entirely different blend.

Here are my brief impressions of each cigar in the Connoisseur Selection:

Corojo

  • Tart, somewhat papery with black pepper. Dry.
  • Sweet and nutty aroma, caramel and vanilla overtones.
  • Creamy texture
  • Acidic/Citric. Gets a bit sharp after the mid-point.
  • Becomes more leathery in the second half, but marked by black pepper.

Connecticut

  • A little tannic and dry, but soft and creamy.
  • Mild at first; smooth and simple with a touch of pepper on the tongue
  • Bready aroma with floral notes.
  • Mild, dry aftertaste.
  • Citric in the mid-section, then sharper with more pepper.

Cameroon

  • Soft spice with some tannins, dry but not as dry as the others.
  • A touch of pepper, but by comparison much more mellow.
  • Minty note on the tip of the tongue.
  • The mid-section is woody with toasty overtones.
  • The last third is tart/dry with pleasant soft spices typical of Cameroon.

Brazil

  • Full-bodied maduro style — sweet and chocolatey.
  • Some pepper on the the palate and gums.
  • Woody flavors with some dryness after an inch or so.
  • It doesn’t burn as evenly as the other blends — thick wrapper.
  • The spice dies away in the mid-section, but returns in the last third.
  • Fairly mellow and sweet, with a note of leather or musk.

Ecuadorian Sun Grown Sumatra (Standard 1495 Blend)

  • Earthy start, tart on the tongue. Dry.
  • Sweet cedary aroma, becoming leathery.
  • Black pepper in the sinuses, salty on the tongue.
  • Becomes woodier in the mid-section. Complex with lots of changes.
  • Muskier in the mid-section.
  • Potent with a lengthy finish and peppery/tannic aftertaste.

Aurora 1495 Brazil

The common denominators here are a tannic, woody dryness and black pepper. But considering that the only difference between each of these five cigars is the wrapper, the differences are staggering. The Connecticut is smooth and creamy, as you would expect, while the Corojo is spicier. The Brazil is sweet with chocolate and coffee-like notes, and the Cameroon has the run of the spice cabinet. It’s just what I would expect from these types of wrappers, but when combined with the rest of the 1495 blends, they create completely different cigars.

I reviewed the 1495 corona a few years back, and since then I’ve found that I like the larger ring gauges in this line better — they’re a little bit smoother and not quite as concentrated as the corona.  But of all the cigars in this collection I am most impressed by the standard 1495, the one with the Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper. I can’t say it’s the finest wrapper of the bunch, but in combination with the rest of the 1495 blend, I believe it makes the finest, most complex smoke.

Conclusion

The 1495 Connoisseur Selection is a brilliant hands-on way of seeing for yourself the role that a wrapper leaf plays in the flavor of a blend. I don’t know if it’s 60 percent, but it’s damn important. This is a crucial experiment to perform if you really want to understand the art of cigar blending, or if you just want to sharpen your cigar acumen. It doesn’t have to be done with this particular cigar, but why not? The 1495 is a great smoke in its own right.

And to further your education even more, don’t miss the Stogie Review’s blind tasting of the Cameroon and Connecticut 1495, and a blending seminar with Jose Blanco.

12 Comments Posted on by cigarfan Cigar Reviews

Cuba Aliados Miami Edition

A man doesn’t get to be 85 years old in the cigar industry without seeing a lot of changes, and Rolando Reyes, Sr. has seen a thing or two. He currently presides over a thriving facility in Danli, Honduras, where most of the Reyes Family cigars are made, but a couple years ago he made a trip to Miami to interview cigar rollers for a special project.

It certainly wasn’t Reyes’  first experience in Miami — for four or five years in the ’80s he made Miami his home, until the move to Danli in 1989. And while Don Rolando remains in Honduras to supervise the factory there, his grandson and president of the company, Carlos Diez, has been revitalizing the company in Miami.

In 2009 the company inaugurated the Reyes Family line of cigars, a sign that the company might be headed in a new direction. At the time I thought that the old blends — Puros Indios, Cienfuegos, and Cuba Aliados — would be subsumed under the new name, but it didn’t turn out that way.  Which is good, because Cuba Aliados must hold a special place in Don Rolando’s heart — it’s been  his brand ever since the the ’70’s when he emigrated to the U.S. from Cuba.

With only six rollers, the Miami shop is very small, especially by comparison with the hundreds of Hondurans employed in the Danli factory. The rollers in Miami are Cubans who come to the table with experience in the Cuban cigar industry, as opposed to the folks in Honduras who had to learn the trade from scratch. Give one of these Miami cigars a gentle squeeze and you’ll see the difference is palpable. Each roller rolls one and only one specific size, which improves consistency. And the blend is quite a bit bolder than is typical for Reyes.

The Aliados Miami uses a Nicaraguan Habano wrapper, binder from the Dominican Republic, and filler leaf from Nicaragua. Only three sizes are made, but they’re all big smokes:

  • Robusto – 5 x 50
  • Toro Viejo – 6 x 53
  • Valentino – 7 x 49

Construction Notes

What I noticed first about the Cuba Aliados Miami (after removing the cedar sleeve) is how densely rolled it is. This is a really solid cigar, and this is made clear by the slow and regular burn as well as the pre-light characteristics. The Habano wrapper is dark and grainy with plenty of oil. The head of the cigar is shaped well, and even though it isn’t perfectly triple-wrapped it cuts cleanly and looks fine.

The grain from the wrapper is evident in the dark gray ash, which holds for a good inch and a half before it starts to bend a little precariously.  These are slow burning, luxurious cigars, so make time for them. I spent about an hour with the robusto, and close to 90 minutes smoking the toro and churchill sizes.

Overall excellent construction.

Tasting Notes

The Aliados Miami opens with a combination of black pepper and a dry woody flavor that I think of as quintessentially Nicaraguan. After half an inch or so the wrapper kicks in a sweet cedary aroma that blends really well with the spicier notes on the palate.

The mid-section turns to another flavor on the Nicaraguan palette — cocoa. The spice mellows but remains assertive. The cedar and cocoa meld nicely and produce a sweet sensation on the tongue that at times almost reminded me of mint.

The last third turns a little darker. The cocoa turns to a semi-sweet chocolate taste with tannic overtones, and the nicotine kicks in. The smoke texture is full in body, leading me to think it would be matched by this in power, but it’s a little more moderate in that regard. It starts out in medium-strength territory and sneaks up to full strength only at the finale. The burn gets a bit hot at the band, but the flavor and aroma are still fresh for the nubbin’.

Conclusion

Cuba Aliados Miami is a crisp, well-balanced cigar that exhibits what I think of as Nicaraguan flair, but it does so without losing its composure. (Or making me lose mine.) It’s assertive, not aggressive, and that is a quality that I wish more upper echelon cigar makers would emulate.

The construction qualities of this cigar were top notch. I had to double check my math after scoring one of these cigars — the Toro Viejo — at a 47 out of 50 construction points. That’s the high water mark for the year so far, and judging by last year’s entries it might be the one to beat for 2010.

Considering the quality of the blend and the limited nature of the release, it’s surprising to see how reasonably the Miami edition is priced —  around 6 or 7 USD per stick.

The modest price tag is about the only thing it has in common with Reyes’ other cigars. For fans of Puros Indios or the classic Cuba Aliados, the Miami Limited will be a bold new experience, but a very enjoyable one.

Final Score: 90

5 Comments Posted on by cigarfan Cigar Reviews

Upper Cut by Punch

 

Upper Cut is the newest cigar blend to fall from the Punch family tree. It is in part the result of the “Punch Election” conducted by General Cigar: they offered different prototype cigars to willing participants and tweaked the final blend based on the feedback they received.

The promotional material for this cigar focuses on the inclusion of tobacco from the volcanic island Ometepe. This island is actually two volcanoes called Concepción and Madera which rise out of Lake Nicaragua. The name comes from the Nahuatl Ome, meaning two, and tepetl, meaning island. Concepcion is the tallest of the two and is still active, whicle Madera is considered to be extinct. It is on Madera where the rich volcanic soil and tropical conditions allow for the cultivation of a unique type of tobacco.

The Plasencias have been growing cigar tobacco on Madera for years now, and Ometepe leaf can be found in cigars like Bolivar and Partagas Decadas. I don’t know if the filler tobacco in the Upper Cut is from a Plasencia farm, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it is.

Photo by Adrian Sampson

One of the beautiful things about volcanic soil is that is tends to be so rich in minerals that little fertilizer is needed, and at the same time it offers excellent drainage.  The soil in some parts of Ometepe is too sulfuric, but much of it is perfect for growing crops.  (Throughout history people have chosen to live near active volcanoes, despite the risk. The reason is the soil, and how well it supports the crops necessary for life. Like tobacco.)

Ometepe leaf is described as sweet and earthy, and the Upper Cut certainly exhibits those traits. The filler is composed of this and other Nicaraguan tobaccos, which is held in place by a Nicaraguan binder leaf and finished off with a dark Ecuadoran Sumatra capa. Only three sizes are currently in production:

  • Grand Corona – 6 x 45
  • Robusto – 5 1/4 x 50
  • Toro – 6 5/8 x 54

Construction Notes

The Grand Corona in this line is a solid, well-built cigar. The wrapper is leathery in appearance with a fine sheen of oil. It’s solidly packed and draws quite well. It burns relatively slowly, needs no maintenance (despite a slightly uneven burn) and produces a righteous ash.

Tasting Notes

The Upper Cut Grand Corona opens with a sweet woody flavor which quickly reveals a pleasingly complex aroma. I couldn’t put my finger on it at first, but it’s a strange combination of sandalwood sweetness and sulfuric earthiness. Combined with a carmelized brown sugar sweetness on the palate, the taste is unusual and rather beguiling.

The cigar gradually builds in body and loses some of its subtlety at the mid-point, becoming a little more dry. The sweet wood turns more tannic, and the sugars take on a charred aspect. This is a medium bodied cigar at best, but it isn’t light on the palate.

The flavors start to wash out a bit in the last third as the grilled flavors bully the subtle ones off the block. There is some residual sweetness in the aroma though, an earthy, toasted wood scent that is still quite pleasant. Unfortunately, I found these returns diminishing an inch from the band, which was a little disappointing considering how well it started out.

Conclusion

I almost want to give the Upper Cut Grand Corona a split review — an A- for a great first half, and a C+ for a sputtering finale. It comes out of the gate with lots of promise, and for the most part it delivers, but the last third suffers by comparison with the first. But excellent construction gives this cigar a boost, and a reasonable retail price of $6.50 per stick makes this blend worth trying. Besides, some people like that charred flavor. If you’re one of them, and you’re in a medium-bodied frame of mind, I bet you’ll enjoy this cigar.

Final Score: 85

A special thanks to General Cigar for providing these review samples.

4 Comments Posted on by cigarfan Cigar Reviews

LGC Serie R Lotus Giveaway

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I’m down for the count this week with an exquisitely sadistic flu bug, so instead of a cigar review I will pass along this bit of nifty news: General Cigar is giving away a Lotus. And that’s not a lighter, folks. That’s a 2010 Lotus Elise sports car, and it could be yours if you’re one of the five winners of a three-day, two-night stay in Las Vegas. Of those five lucky first-prize winners, one will get the key that starts the engine.

From the press release:

Richmond, VA – Serie R cigars invites its loyal legion of fans to celebrate their enjoyment of strength, refinement and performance through an exciting sweepstakes culminating in the giveaway in Las Vegas of a 2010 Lotus Elise sports car valued at more than $52,000.

Consumers of legal smoking age who make an online box purchase of Serie R cigars from Best Cigar Prices, Holt’s Cigar Company, JR Cigars, Mike’s Cigars, or Thompson Cigars between now and May 15, 2010 are automatically entered in to a drawing to win a trip to the Serie R Performance Driving School which will be held on 9/17 to 9/19, 2010 in Las Vegas. No purchase necessary. For complete official rules, visit www.cigarworld.com/lotus.

Strangely enough, the La Gloria Cubana Serie R Robusto was one of the first cigars I ever reviewed for this blog. (Long long ago, when I was young and laconic.) And having gone for a week now without a good cigar, a Serie R sounds really really good. This is what I thought of this stick in 2006:

The Serie R maduros I’ve sampled are indeed rich, hearty cigars. I was prepared to be blown away, but was pleasantly surprised by their smoothness. There is a solid woody element with a touch of sweetness on the nose. The construction and burn were perfect, which is not an easy feat with a maduro wrapper as luscious as this one. For some reason Connecticut broadleaf fermented to this hue with all its oils does not want to burn as readily as the rest of the cigar, but in this case that proved to not be true.

Slow down at the midway point to avoid a tarry aftertaste. This one does not want to be rushed. A great 30 to 45 minute smoke, and in my opinion the best LGC yet.

It’s been a while since I fired up a fat Serie R, but as soon as I get the green light from my immune system I have one clipped and ready… unless I find one of the new LGC Artesanos de Tabaqueros first. ( Read the CA blog entry for details. Sounds like a great experiment, and hopefully more than a gimmick.)

~cigarfan



6 Comments Posted on by cigarfan Cigar Reviews

Brick House Robusto

The latest trend for cigar manufacturers is to resurrect extinct Cuban brand names, no matter how unusual, and slap them on their latest blend. (CAO’s La Traviata, for example.) The Newman family, on the other hand, has been sitting on an old Cuban brand name of their own for half a dozen decades. And instead of being unusual, it’s pretty mundane: Brick House. The original Brick House brand honored patriarch J.C. Newman’s Hungarian heritage by depicting his home in the old country, a home that reportedly doubled as the town’s tavern. Sounds like a rockin’ place.

The first incarnation of Brick House was released in 1937 as a “clear Havana,” a cigar made in the United States from imported Cuban leaf. The new blend released in 2009 is a Nicaraguan cigar with what I assume is a proprietary wrapper leaf called “Havana Subido,” ™ a sun grown Ecuadorian Habano. Like the Newmans’ El Baton, Brick House is made by Tabacos San Rafael in Totogalpa, Nicaragua. (On the map it looks like Totogalpa is right next door to Esteli, which mitigates the surprise.)

Four sizes are currently in production:

  • Churchill – 7.25 x 50
  • Robusto – 5 x 54
  • Corona Larga – 6.25 x 46
  • Toro – 6 x 52

Construction Notes

The Brick House Robusto is a nice looking stick with a ruddy colorado maduro wrapper. It doesn’t glisten exactly, but it exhibits more shine than is typical on sun-grown wrapper leaf. The cigar is well built with a nicely finished cap. One sample was visibly underfilled at the foot, causing a very loose draw. I was surprised to find that this did not promote a fast burn — the burn wasn’t slow either, but it didn’t burn fast and hot the way I feared. The burn was a little uneven, but it corrected itself, and the ash was long and firm.

Overall good construction.

Tasting Notes

The Brick House Robusto smokes like a classic medium-bodied Nicaraguan — woody with a sweet spicy aroma. The smoke is smooth from the start as it opens with mildly spicy cedar and a dash of salt. After half an inch or so a cocoa flavor presents itself, but without the bite that often accompanies heavier Nicaraguan blends.

Some black pepper shows up on the palate in the middle section, but it’s fairly mild. The smoke is still medium-bodied and the texture is smooth. The finish is slightly dry.

The last third is meatier and has more zing. It edges into the full side of medium at this point, but remains well balanced. The aroma is sweet and cedary, blending well with the darker grilled flavors on the tongue. The cocoa fades a bit at this point and disappears as the spice takes over at the band.

Conclusion

The Brick House is far more approachable than many brawnier Nicaraguans, but it shares the flavor palette that has made Nicaraguan cigar tobacco so popular in the last few years — cocoa, black pepper, and cedary spice in a balanced combination.

The other significant difference between Brick House and the competing array of bigger-boned Nicaraguan cigars is the price. The Newmans have priced this cigar economically at around 5 USD retail, and have instituted price protection to prevent Internet discounters from undercutting local brick-and-mortar shops. This is great news for both smokers and tobacconists, because this is a really decent smoke for a very reasonable price. And these days you can’t ask for much more than that.

Final Score: 88

3 Comments Posted on by cigarfan Carlos Torano, Cigar Reviews

Torano Exodus 1959 50 Years

Like many cigar makers, the Toraños celebrate anniversaries with new cigars, but unlike most anniversaries, this one has a bittersweet flavor. 1959 was not a magical year for the Toraño family, but it is the year that made them what they are today. Hence the 1959 Exodus line of cigars, which includes this recent addition, the “50 Years” blend.

In the words of Charlie Toraño, the Exodus 50 years blend was created “to remind smokers of the hardship inflicted by Cuba’s Marxist communist regime, especially its exile of the world renowned tobacco and cigar families, including ours.”

The 50 Years blend, released last year, is an addition to the familiar Silver and Gold Exodus 1959 labels. The new blend features a dark Brazilian Arapiraca wrapper, a nice contrast to the Silver label’s Honduran and the Gold’s Nicaraguan covers.  The ornate copper-colored label has some people referring to the 50 years cigar as the “Exodus Copper.”

The “50 Years” 1959 is rolled in Toraño’s Nicaraguan factory, while the other Exodus cigars are made in Honduras. Currently only three sizes are in production:

  • Robusto – 5 x 50
  • Short Churchill – 6 x 48
  • Torpedo – 5 1/2 x 52

Beneath the Brazilian wrapper is a binder from Honduras, and the filler is a combination from two areas of Nicaragua: Esteli, and Pueblo Nuevo.

The Toraños introduced the new line with their “Roots Run Deep” tour that traveled across the U.S. during the spring and summer of 2009, and it looks like they plan to keep the show running in 2010. Carlos and Charlie travel with a veteran torcedor who rolls special “Tour Blend” cigars that were so popular with event attendees that the blend is now available by the box at events. So check out the tour when it swings by your town.

Construction Notes

The 1959 “50 Years” is not advertised as a maduro cigar, but in appearance (as well as in performance) that is what it is. The wrapper is dark and oily with the slight chipping that maduro leaf is prone to. The roll is solid and the draw is firm, just the way I like it. The burn is a little uneven due to the oil-drenched wrapper leaf, but it corrects itself and builds a solid ash.

Overall very good construction.

Tasting Notes

This blend has been prescribed for dessert by some aficionados, and after smoking a few I can see why. The “50 Years” smokes like chocolate pie, the Mexican kind, with plenty of cinnamon and a splash of coffee liqueur.

The first slice is served up with a nice dose of pepper, not too strong, but assertive.  There is a woody base flavor, cedary with a touch of cinnamon. It starts out medium to full in body and stays in that range for the duration of the cigar.

These are fairly short cigars, so the flavor transitions aren’t dramatic. It does seem to get a little smoother in the mid-section though, with the pepper dropping off a bit and dark roasted coffee flavors coming to the fore. The flavor remains rich and semi-sweet.

In the final inches the wood gives way to leather, but the overall flavor is still soundly in that coffee-cocoa-chocolate territory, especially in the aroma. The sweetness coming off the wrapper has a distinctly liqueur-like quality, something almost like Kahlua.

Conclusion

I think most maduro lovers will get a bang out of this cigar. It’s balanced and well-blended, but on the heavy side with a lengthy finish and a little bite.  Overall, this is an excellent smoke that would go really well with a glass of tawny or vintage port after dinner.

Prices are in the medium range at 7 USD for the robusto and short churchill, and a dollar more for the torpedo.

Final Score: 88

Other Reviews of Note

(There are quite a few reviews of the Salomon, which is unfortunately not a regular production size. The following are reviews of cigars on retailers’ shelves now.)

Cigar Jack calls the Short Churchill his favorite cigar of 2009.

The Stogie Guys give the Torpedo a favorable Quick Smoke.

Barry rewards the Robusto with a 93 for A Cigar Smoker’s Journal.

A balanced review of the Robusto from the Cigarnut.

3 Comments Posted on by cigarfan Cigar Reviews, Rocky Patel

Rocky Patel Renaissance Robusto

It’s not Frankenstein. It’s not even the Frank. But it’s alive! Rocky Patel’s Renaissance cigar is born again, resurrected from the scuttled remains of the Edge Sumatra.

But it’s not that simple. It never is. Reanimation is not for amateurs. So a little more detail.

Rocky Patel’s Decade, Edge Sumatra and Renaissance cigars are all different blends but they bear a passing resemblance because they share the same, or nearly the same, wrapper leaf.  The wrapper used for all these cigars is, (or was, in the case of the Edge)  a very nice Sumatra leaf grown by the Oliva Tobacco Company in Ecuador. The only problem is that there is a finite amount of this splendid weed, which means that Rocky had to make some hard decisions  about how to allocate it.

The Decade, an Anniversary cigar with an excellent reputation, was assigned the best of the higher primings. This put the squeeze on the Edge Sumatra, which at the time was using the same leaf. Because there wasn’t enough wrapper to go around, the Edge Sumatra was discontinued. But it was still a nice (and popular) blend, so Rocky brought it back using a lower priming wrapper leaf from the same plant and called it Renaissance. It was understood that the Renaissance was the new Edge Sumatra, but it didn’t taste quite the same due to the lower priming wrapper. It just wasn’t “edgy” enough.

To satisfy the ravening crowd, Rocky brought back the original Edge wrapper with the same filler blend, but he kept the new brand name and released it as a limited edition. And that is how the Edge Sumatra became the Renaissance. Which is why it is a renaissance, quite literally.

Construction Notes

The most impressive aspect of this robusto is the oiliness of its dark colorado maduro wrapper. It feels a bit narrow for a robusto, but the roll is solid and the draw is spot on. The head is formed well, but the cap is not picture perfect. I solved that by shearing it off.  The stick burns evenly and builds a solid ash.

The Drop Test

After smoking this cigar for about ten minutes I managed to fumble it. While reaching for the ashtray I somehow lost finger traction and watched in horror as the cigar slipped away and smacked on the concrete of my garage floor. I was sure my poor robusto was going to be battered and bruised beyond all hope of recovery. I brushed off the ash and dirt and to my huge surprise I found it totally intact. Not a crack. Not even a chip.

The drop test is not an officially sanctioned element of the KOTF reviewing methodology, but in this case the Renaissance robusto passed with flying colors.

Overall excellent construction, with bonus points.

Tasting Notes

I almost want to call this cigar “Decade Lite.” The wrapper provides a piney aroma with fruity notes; the cherry that comes through reminds me a lot of the Decade. There is a touch of chocolate and a sweet spice — not pepper — that is easy on the palate. It’s not as rich as the Decade, but it seems similar. The aftertaste is pleasant and mild.

At the half-way point the smoke is still smooth and genteel with an excellent aroma and no bite.  The smoke is medium in body, with moderate nicotine.

In the last section I noticed a more herbal base flavor. It combines nicely with the aroma, which is still bright and piney. The combined effect is rich and complex without being overbearing.

Conclusion

As a descendent of the Edge (if not an actual Edge in disguise) I was expecting a heavier cigar with bolder flavors, but it turns out this cigar is a middleweight, an elegant and accomplished middleweight. I guess the other Edge blends aren’t as heavy as they profess to be either. Either way, I think the Renaissance could take ’em on points.

The robustos in this line retail in the 7 to 8 USD range, which is a fair price given the quality. It’s a little less than the Decade, and about the same as the Olde World Reserve, both of which I think are slightly superior cigars, but I like the fact that the Renaissance has been flying under the radar. The Renaissance is a fine cigar in any case. And it passed the Drop Test.

Final Score: 90

12 Comments Posted on by cigarfan Cigar Reviews

La Traviata by CAO

La Traviata is the Top 25 cigar that didn’t make the cut. So many people noticed that this cigar wasn’t on Cigar Aficionado’s “best of” roster for 2009 that it was thought to be an oversight. The objections were so widespread that CA issued an explanation: the new CAO blend was released too late in the year to be eligible for inclusion in their list. This is how you get attention by being overlooked.

So it’s safe to say that a whole lot of people have been digging this cigar. I finally found a couple boxes at the tribal smoke shop and grabbed a handful for “analysis.”

La Traviata is an old Cuban brand name and an even older Italian opera by Giuseppe Verdi. The opera tells the tragic tale of a consumptive courtesan (la traviata literally means a “strayed woman”) who falls in love, with somewhat predictable consequences.  The first production of the opera was a failure in part because the woman playing the courtesan was hardly consumptive — she was in fact obese — and a close examination of the woman on an old box of Cuban La Traviata reveals a similar misconception. It would appear that the cigar and the opera share little aside from the name.

But the folks at CAO wanted to “harken back” to the era of pre-nationalization Cuba with this blend, so the name fits. On the other hand, I’m a little skeptical that it’s possible to replicate the flavor profile of a late 19th century cigar. (Maybe they have some seriously aged cigar blenders swimming in the factory’s Cocoon pool.)

The cigar features an oily Ecuadorian Habano leaf wrapped around a Cameroon binder and filler comprised of ligero from both Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. The blend was released late last year in three parejo sizes, and two more have just been announced: a corona gorda and the first figurado for the line, a petite belicoso.

  • Divino – 5 x 50
  • Radiante – 6 x 52
  • Intrepido – 7 x 54
  • Animado – 5 5/8 x 46
  • Favorito – 5 1/2 x 52  (belicoso)

For this review I smoked the robusto-sized Divino, with samples drawn from two different boxes.

Construction Notes

The wrappers on these sticks are thick and oily, though the texture seems to vary from smooth to quite grainy. The color is a very dark colorado maduro, or perhaps even straight maduro. Veins are prominent but not unsightly, and the head is a little irregular but solid. The cap is pasted on, not wound, but shears away nicely.

The roll is rock solid to the touch but the draw is excellent. The ash is solid and the burn is even. All this cigar lacks is the perfect Cuban-style triple cap. Other than that, there’s really nothing to complain about here.

Overall excellent construction.

Tasting Notes

A hard woody flavor combined with a peppery overtone opens this cigar. The smoke is smooth, but a tad tannic on the palate. The sweet spicy aroma reminds me a little of hickory, similar to what I find in Illusione Original Document and other cigars that utilize Aganorsa Nicaraguan tobaccos. The flavor here is not quite as clean as that, but it’s bright and tasty.

The tannins even out in the middle section but never disappear entirely. The foundation flavor remains woody, at times veering to leather. Light caramel-coffee flavors and notes of malt show up in the aroma.

Up to this point I found little to substantiate the Cubanesque aspirations of La Traviata, but in the last third I did find a fleeting muskiness reminiscent of cuban cigars. It didn’t last long, but for those last few puffs about half an inch from the band I could have been fooled. Unfortunately the flavor becomes a little dirty after this point, somewhat carbonized and burnt tasting, but this is after a very eventful three quarters.

Conclusion

Now I understand what the rumpus is all about. This is a dandy smoke. La Traviata is medium to full in body with a rich and complex woody flavor that finishes up with leather and a momentary glimpse of the forbidden isle. All of the cigars I’ve smoked from this line have had rock solid construction and burn beautifully.

But wait! There’s more! CAO has set the price point for La Traviata alluringly low, right around 5 USD per stick for the Divino. I can think of many cigars in the 10 dollar range that pale by comparison to this smoke.  This could be the best buy of the year, and for what it’s worth, I think it’s the best blend CAO is making right now.

Final Score: 90

5 Comments Posted on by cigarfan Cigar Reviews

H. Upmann Reserve Maduro

Altadis USA introduced the H. Upmann Reserve Maduro in 2008, around the same time that they also unleashed the Montecristo Reserva Negra (which is a spankin’ good cigar.)  I liked that Montecristo so much that it made my top ten for the year, but I have to say that I made the choice with some hesitation.

Last year Imperial Tobacco hoovered up Altadis like a dust bunny, making it not only the owner of major brands like Montecristo and Romeo y Julieta, but also 50% owner of Habanos S.A.  And as much as I’d like to say that the size and power of the company — and its reputation as the neighborhood bully —  has proved a detriment to the quality of its cigars, I can’t.

The fact is that I don’t like a lot of Altadis cigars. A gargantuan international conglomerate can be expected to produce a homogenized product with mass-market appeal, and they do. But occasionally they also produce something special, like the Reserva Negra and the RyJ Museum Edition.

So I was looking forward to seeing if the Upmann Reserve Maduro could live up to the Reserva Negra. They use the same wrapper, a San Andres Morron from Mexico, which I have come to believe is the tastiest maduro wrapper in use.  The filler is a Nicaraguan and Honduran blend, and the binder is from Nicaragua.

Six sizes are in production:

  • Sir Winston – 7 x 50
  • Belicoso – 6 1/8 x 52
  • Titan – 6 x 60
  • Toro – 6 x 54
  • Robusto – 5 x 54
  • Corona – 5 x 44

I smoked this in both the Belicoso and the Robusto sizes and found no significant difference in flavor between sizes.

Construction Notes

Like most Altadis cigars, the H. Upmann Reserve Maduro is built pretty consistently — the roll is solid and it’s a nice looking stick. The dark brown maduro wrapper does not look over-processed, the way some oily black maduro wrappers can be, and is finely toothed. Some moderate veining does not detract too much from its overall appearance.

Both the robusto and the belicoso burned evenly and produced a solid light gray ash. Both sizes draw very well, almost too well at times — the final third of the belicoso was a little too loose and I had to ease up on the throttle to avoid a hot burn.

Overall very good construction.

Tasting Notes

The Reserve Maduro is a mild to medium-bodied cigar that is framed by the aroma of its wrapper. The base flavor for the first couple of inches is grassy with soft bittersweet chocolate accents.

The herbal foundation of the cigar gradually gives way to a woodier flavor with a slightly tannic finish. It remains mild and mellow but the aroma intensifies, adding a shot of espresso to the sweetening chocolate.

Without much drama the cigar gently transitions to a nutty flavor and the chocolate overtones dissipate, leaving a slightly bitter aftertaste that is easily masked by a few swigs of black coffee.

Conclusion

If the Montecristo Reserva Negra is like a rich Godiva chocolate, then the H. Upmann Reserve Maduro is a handful of peanut M&Ms. The chocolatey aroma characteristic of San Andres maduro is utilized to great effect in both cases, but the Upmann is by far a milder bodied, less serious cigar.

My only complaint about the Upmann Reserve Maduro is the lack of transition — from start to finish this is a somewhat montonous smoke. Its one tune is sweet and easy listening, but after thirty minutes I wanted to change the station.

The Reserve Maduros are packed 27 to the box and retail for around 5 or 6 dollars per stick. If you’re a sucker for mild and sweet maduros, you’ll want to put this one on your sampling menu.

Final Score: 86