New Havana Cigar – ELO1

Cigar Name: New Havana Cigar – ELO1
Wrapper: Habano Ecuador
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Size: No 1 (Toro) 6.25” x 52
Strength: Full
Body: Full
Price: $130/20 (bundle)

Smoking Time: One and a half hours

Ever since I have become a fan of Tatuaje cigars, I have been a fan of New Havana Cigar.  They are a small shop in Cleveland, OH with a big internet presence.  For whatever reason, they always seem to get large amounts of Tatuaje limited release and overruns (more on that later).  Now, I am all about a great cigar, but I do hate some of these marketing ploys to charge more for a “limited” release just because it seems like a good idea to make an extra buck.  That being said, you can find some good deals out there and this is one of them.  The ELO1 is actually the “same” cigar as the Verocu #1 Lado Occidental from Tatuaje in 2008.  You won’t find that written anywhere, but if you read between the lines, that is what it is.  I don’t know if this is an overrun, they found extra leaf and make these, these were already made and they found them buried in the warehouse or if the cigar fairy just waved her wand and “poof”.  Whatever the reason, this is the best tasting cigar I have had all year.  

Appearance: There is no band on this cigar but it has an oily, milk chocolate wrapper.  There are no visible flaws and it is good looking cigar, not great, but good.  8/10

Construction: No soft spots, just an even, solidly built cigar.  9/10

Burn:   The first half of the cigar is great, but on every one of the cigars that I have had, the last half has needed touchups.  Nothing terrible but just a little annoying.  However, I believe it is du to the massive amounts of Ligero in the last half.     7/10

Aroma:  Chocolate, leather, salt.    10/10

Draw: Excellent.     10/10

Flavor: The flavors coming out of this were somewhat overwhelming.  They were just coming at me from every direction.  It was a rollercoaster of a ride.  Salt, lots of earth, chocolate notes, hopps (fruity).  Just AMAZING!  10/10

Availability: Sold out. I will say, for the price per cigar, it wasn’t bad.  This is just one of those limited availability things.         5/10

Personal Overall Experience: I am going to savor every one of these suckers.  The first 3-4 I had were knock me on my arse strong.  And I love full bodied cigars.  They have mellowed over the last few months, but not by much.  Holy cow, this is an excellent cigar.  I have never had one so full flavored.  I wish I could give this a higher score overall, but with the availability, I just can’t.            30/30.

Total: 89/100

Matt

Review: Sol Cubano Cuban Cabinet

Cigar Name: Sol Cubano Cuban Cabinet
Wrapper: Ecuador Habano
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua, Honduras
Size: Churchill 7” x 47

Strength: Medium - Full
Body: Medium - Full
Price: $2.00-5.75 Each

Smoking Time: Hour and a half

I bought these cigars from CigarBid.com (Cigars International).     I have been enjoying these for several years now and really are my favorite go-to daily stick.  Nothing fancy, just good and consistent.  These are blended by A.J. Fernandez. 

Appearance: There are very few veins present and the wrapper is a golden brown.  The foot looks like there is a lot of tobacco.   9/10

Construction: The wrapper looks very thin and therefore probably very fragile.  These must be maintained pretty well.  Overall, there are a couple of sunspots but nothing to be worried of.  There are also a couple of softER spots, but nothing I would consider “soft” in itself.    8/10

Burn:   This is one of the highlights of this cigar.  These are so consistent in the burn that I have gotten spoiled smoking them so much.    10/10

Aroma:  Barnyard, hay and grass    8/10

Draw: Again, along with the burn flawless.      10/10

Flavor: Spice up front and mellowing as it burns.  It is not one dimensional but it is not a roller coaster of a ride either.  It is pretty smooth in its development    8/10

Availability: This is an internet exclusive so you can’t go into a brick and mortar store.  I like the pricing but I would like to be able to walk in and buy these if I needed them.  8/10

Personal Overall Experience: As I said previously, this is my go to daily cigar.  I won’t smoke these one after another and frankly if there was a special occasion that I wanted to smoke one for, this would not be my first choice.  However, this is and always will be in my humidor for the drive home or working in the yard.    27/30.

Total: 88/100

Matt

Liga Privida T52 Robusto

Cigar Name: Liga Privida T52 Robusto
Wrapper: American Habano
Binder: Brizil Mata Fina 
Filler: Nicaraguan, Dominican, Honduran
Size: 5” x 52
Strength: Full
Body: Full
Price: $9.00-$13.00 (single)

Smoking Time: One and a half hours 

The Liga Privida T52 uses a unique wrapper called a stalk cut Connecticut.  The guys at Tobacco University can explain it better than I:  “This term describes a plant which is harvested all at once by cutting the stalk, low to the ground. Unlike primed plants, all of the leaves are harvested at one time. This technique is common with Broadleaf and San Andreas tobaccos, which are typically used for Maduro and Oscuro cigar Wrappers.”  When I first heard about it, I wanted to try it badly because supposedly, all the “juices” will flow from the stalk down to the leaves leaving a thick, oily wrapper.  Let’s see if the hype stood up. 

Appearance: The dark brown wrapper has a lot of tooth on it and the oils are just oozing out.  The label is kind of cool too with T52 Hand written on it with a copper lion embossed.  9/10

Construction: No veins and PACKED with tobacco.  There is some heft to this thing.  You could use it as a billy club.      9/10

Burn:   Faboulous.  There was no issues and it stayed cool the entire way.  10/10

Aroma: You know that leather chair that sit in your grandfathers living room for probably 100 years.  Imagine that.  That is what you will smell when you pick up the Liga Privida T52.  Rich, powerful and nostalgic.      10/10

Draw: Great draw.  It was made very well.      9/10

Flavor: Lots of leather, subtle spice and umami.  Yup.  You heard me.  UMAMI.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umami           10/10

Availability: These are very hard to find.  There is I believe one store in Missouri that carries them (Springfield, MO, Just for him) so you will probably have to find them online.  However, they are popular so if you find them you better get them.  That is a big downfall for me.  Plus, they are expensive.      7/10

Personal Overall Experience:  This is an excellent cigar.  I wish they were less expensive and I wish they were more readily available, however, for special occasions or to perk you up after a bad day, you can’t go wrong here.    28/30.

Total: 92/100

Matt

Review: CAO La Traviata Divino

Cigar Name: CAO La Traviata
Wrapper: Colorado Habano Ecuador
Binder: Cameroon
Filler: Nicaragua, Dominican Republic
Size: Divino (Robusto) 5” x 50
Strength: Medium - Full
Body: Medium - Full
Price: $5.00-$7.00 Each

Smoking Time: Just over one hour

I bought these cigars from Alcorn specifically for our May meeting.  I have had a few of them before and wanted to make sure everyone else got to share.  On to the review…  

Appearance: CAO is known for their consistency and each of the cigars that I purchased (7 total) were carbon copies of the next one.  A reddish Colorado wrapper with lots of oils and a gorgeous but simple label make for an impressive first impression.  10/10

Construction: Well made with a lot of tobacco crammed in.    9/10

Burn:   Flawless.  No touch ups needed and a couple of these I smoked while working on my deck with several moments in between puffs.  Not once did I have to relight.  10/10

Aroma:  Tobacco and leather.    8/10

Draw: No complaints.  It performed like a champ.       10/10

Flavor: Chocolate and some peppery spice.    9/10

Availability: This is a Brick and Mortar exclusive.  You are not (supposed to) able to buy these on line.  However, I have yet see a cigar store that does not carry these.  This is a wonderful idea to have such a value priced cigar ONLY at B&M stores as they are the backbone of the industry.           9/10

Personal Overall Experience: I was not blown away at this cigar.  I was however extremely pleased at two things:  1. The value.  You simply can not beat this for a regular production cigar in a store.  2.  The consistency.  Like I said, this will not blow you away, but it will give you the exact experience you are looking for with out any doubt.  This is like the Peyton Manning of the cigar industry.  A rock-steady performer.  27/30.

Total: 92/100

Matt

Review: Alec Bradley Tempus Quadrum Maduro

Cigar Name: Alec Bradley Tempus Quadrum Maduro
Wrapper: Honduran Maduro
Binder: Indonesia
Filler: Nicaragua and Honduran
Size: Robusto 5.5” x 55
Strength: Full
Body: Full
Price: $3-10 each

Smoking Time: Just over an hour 

My wife actually introduced me to this cigar when on a trip to Houston, she brought me back a couple of cigars (I love her).  One was this Alec Bradley.  I have had a couple of his cigars before but never the Tempus.  They were alright but nothing really memorable.  That cigar she brought back however was something to behold.  The way she told the story was that when she walked into the store, she asked the owner to show her some cigars with some plume on it.  He was, I understand, taken aback (as I was that my wife actually knew what plume was – that’s so hot).  Anyway, she brought me back one and it was great.  I then bought several on cigarbid for $3.00 each.    I could not pass up a deal like that. 

Appearance: This is a very elegant looking cigar with the box press and double label (one at the head and one at the foot).  There was a lot of plume on the first one I smoked and the rest of them were very oily.  There were no veins present and it looked bold.  10/10

Construction: This is not a rock solid cigar but there were no soft spots.  9/10

Burn:   The burn was excellent.  No touchups needed and it burned cool like the other side of the pillow.    10/10

Aroma:  Chocolate and nuts.    9/10

Draw: Good.     10/10

Flavor: This would be great with some coffee for an after dinner cigar.  The flavor was again full of chocolate and nuts.  9/10

Availability: Plenty.  I got mine on cigarbid for $3.00 per stick but you can walk into any brick and mortar and buy them (or similar) off the shelf.  They are quite a bit more pricy though.  And I found out that this size is only available to Cigar.com, Cigarinternational.com and Cigarbid.com.        8/10

Personal Overall Experience:  I have had a great time enjoying these and will be on the lookout for a box purchase.  This is not an overpowering cigar and in fact would rate this more on the medium side than full.  However, I just wanted to smoke one after the other.  It is very pleasant and enjoyable cigar.        27/30.

Total: 92/100

Matt

New cigar lounge in St. Louis

I just heard that Zino cigars is opening a lounge at Brennans in the Central West End.  Here is the link:

http://www.zinoplatinumstl.com/index.html

I have yet to have a Zino (or a Davidoff for that matter) but it is great to see a lounge (and future shop) open rather than close!

I don't get to the Central West End often (going on two years probably) but this could spark my interest in going.

Matt

Montecristo Relief Organization

I caught this press release on a couple other websites and wanted to make sure we had it up as well.  

In response to the devastating tornado that struck Joplin, Missouri this week causing catastrophic damage, human suffering and loss of life, the Montecristo Relief Organization is immediately donating $25,000 to provide vital aid to victims and to recovery assistance.

Additionally, the Montecristo Relief Organization will match, dollar for dollar, the first $75,000 in contributions made by Altadis U.S.A. and CBI employees, customers, consumers and vendors. If you would like to contribute and have your donation matched by the Montecristo Relief Organization, please send your check made payable to the Montecristo Relief Organization/Joplin fund to:

Montecristo Relief Organization
Joplin Tornado Relief
c/o Altadis U.S.A.
PO Box 407179
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33340-7166

Help and support is needed immediately, so time is of the essence. The Montecristo Relief Organization will match donations made by June 15, 2011.  Funds will be distributed to both the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army designated for specific aid to the Joplin disaster. We thank everyone in advance for joining us in this vital relief effort.

The Montecristo Relief Organization was established in 1999 by Altadis U.S.A. after devastating hurricanes swept through the Caribbean killing thousands of people, injuring millions, and causing unimaginable suffering. Since its inception, the Organization has donated millions of dollars to build homes, schools, medical facilities and provide scholarships and economic opportunities to disaster victims in the Caribbean and the United States.

If you are able to donate, I can't think of a better way to do so.  There is so much bad press out there about cigars, it is nice to see some good news for a change.  

Matt