Don Pepin Garcia Series JJ Maduro Short Cigar Review
I received this cigar as a sample from Cigars Direct; my reviews are my own.
Wrapper: Nicaraguan | Binder: Nicaraguan | Filler: Nicaraguan | Box of 24: $100.00 | 5 Pack: $24.00 | Robusto | 5″ x 50
0/3: To me, Don Pepin Garcia is the Samuel L. Jackson of the cigar industry. You know that he is great but he doesn’t get the credit that he deserves from some people. Don Pepin Garcia makes some delicious cigars and the DPG Series JJ Natural is one of them. But what about this cigar?
Well, it feels tightly packed and it looks good enough with only a couple of largish veins marring the appearance of the wrapper. A fair amount of oils gives the dark brown wrapper a nice sheen. The triple cap (just like the Cubans do it!) looks solid.
1/3: I like puros not because I’m some sort of tobacco supremacist – far from it – but because it gives you a better idea about how the tobacco from a certain area will normally taste. Sure, I know, there are many variations within countries and the kind of tobacco leafs you get from one farm can be significantly different than the leafs from another farm a few miles away. But, still, I think that there are some trademark differences between countries; like with this Nicaraguan puro with its bold spicy notes that relentlessly remind the nerve endings in my nasal passages that they recently blew by.
There are also notes of nutmeg, barley and maple. The first parts of the beginning third were amazing but it begins to slide backwards a bit by the end of the first third.
2/3: Even though it has regressed somewhat from the beginning the plateau from which it started was very high. Spice is still the main flavor but now the biggest supporting flavor is a sweet floral flavor. And then at about the halfway mark my enjoyment of the cigar picks up again.
Deep, soulful flavors centering around maple with a fringe of spiciness that sticks around all over. It has a lot of complexity to it – other flavors include floral notes, earthiness and cocoa – and the flavors work extremely well with each other.
3/3: And there is a change back towards that floral flavor, which, while disappointing, still isn’t a bad flavor. But that floral flavor is not all there is. There is mesquite, which is not a flavor I get all that often. It doesn’t end amazingly though, with the flavors dying somewhat.
4/3: “Perplexing” is the best word to describe this cigar. One moment I am in love with it and the next I am confused. Alternating between the great and the merely good is something that I have not encountered too much but, still, this medium bodied cigar with a good draw and burn is a cigar that you should try. Personally, I think the version with the natural wrapper has the edge.
3.5 points
Don Pepin Garcia Black Edition Cigar Review
It’s a perfect looking parejo in almost every way. Construction is nearly perfect, almost absolutely cylindrical. There are a couple of minor veins that I am not worried about. Also, these cigars are very oily. This particular one that I am doing the review on is very oily as well.
The prelight draw is easy and gives off light tones of spice and sweetness. On the other end, the foot smells like tobacco and sweet spice. It looks like a solid cigar and, hopefully, this will be a solid cigar to smoke as well.
Cigar Stats
Length: 5″
Ring Gauge: 50
Wrapper: Nicaragua – Habano Rosado
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Price: $7.50/Single | $125.00/Box of 20
Wounded Warrior Amputee Softball Team Torch!
From the very beginning of this cigar the flavors are strong and well balanced, which is not something you can say of a lot of cigars. This good start is peppered with what feels like a healthy dusting of spice ranging from sweet spice on the tongue and black pepper through my nostrils. Cedar is a secondary flavor in the early goings as is a slight amount of citrus on the aftertaste.
Personally, I’m not one of those people who would get bored if my favorite team was winning the same way all the time. Let’s take the Lakers as our example. They have won a lot during the last 13 years or so by doing the same things. You have the triangle, they many of the same players, etc. In many ways, this cigar is the same way: consistent and excellent.
The flavors during the final two thirds of this cigar are pretty much the same as the first third but those flavors are excellent. I love the interplay between the sweet spice and cedar on my tongue and the lingering pepper in my nostrils. It’s not a complicated cigar but it’s an excellent cigar.
Now, if you want complicated in sports you would have to look at the Rays. Oh sure, it’s exciting watching every night and seeing them win with pitching one night then with a contribution from some platoon guy another team basically gave away. The next night they will win with defense. It’s exciting and will keep people interested (even in that hotbed of baseball fandom known as Tampa Bay) but, if I had my druthers, I will take the perennial contender with the tried and true formula. Yes, you would not be wrong in saying that I am a boring person.
Consistently great cigars are definitely fine by me. Actually, they’re better than that. This is one of those cigars where you can pick it up and know that you are going to get a perfect draw, a great burn, a medium-full bodied cigar with a great group of flavors every time.
91 points
Don Pepin Garcia Series JJ Cigar Review
A couple of nights ago I was at the Tiki Bar Herf and the conversation drifted towards movies. Normally, I think I can hold myself pretty well in a conversation about movies but not so in this situation. One of the herfers, I am told, worked as an editor on 24. Most of the other herfers have at least 15 extra years of movie watching experience on me as well. So, to say the least, I was outmatched.
But listening to the conversation gave me a mental checklist of movies that I should consider with one of those being “The Road.” I decided that tonight, Sunday night that is, would be the night where I poured myself some nice Scotch, smoked a quality cigar and watched an extremely depressing movie about a man and his son in a post-apocalyptic world. Unfortunately for me I picked a cigar that I have not reviewed yet: The Don Pepin Garcia Series JJ Belicoso with the natural wrapper.
It really surprised me to find out that I had never done a review for one of these cigars. I’ve definitely smoked enough of them to have done a few reviews. But, for whatever reason, here I am doing a review while watching a depressing movie.
Depressing movie or not I’ve got to press on with this review. After taking the cigar out of the cellophane I am greeted by a rather powerful combination of smells ranging from leather to spices. Pleasant aroma really. The construction looks mostly good. There are some bumps and raised veins though. It is an oily wrapper.
Cigar Stats
Torpedo
Lenght: 5 ¾″
Ring Guage: 52
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Price: $10.00/Single | $220.00/Box of 24
75% Road Flame!
Just as the movie gets the story moving along quickly this cigar gets the flavors rolling along just as quick. White pepper is quickly followed by some woody notes and a faint but noticeable sweetness. It’s an interesting mixture of flavors and I think it works. One other thing noticeable in the early goings is that this cigar leaves a fairly dry feeling left in my mouth.
Viggo Mortensen and his son are traversing through the ruins of a dead Earth. Trees still stand, there is still water, even a can of soda every now and then. But those trees are dead, the water is lifeless, and the soda was probably flat. Even with all this darkness on the screen in front of me I am still enjoying this cigar.
The second third still has some white pepper and wood. However, the main flavor impression I am beginning to get is floral. There is some sweetness to it but not that much. Like the movie, the flavors are still engaging more than halfway through.
With about a third left there is one more major change in the cigar. Woodiness has come back as oak. There is also a toasty flavor that comes through late in this cigar.
Overall, this is an above average cigar. There is enough there to hold my interest from beginning to end. My one complaint would be that everything about this cigar tends towards being dry. The flavors themselves are dry and, as I mentioned earlier, this cigar leaves you with a distinct dryness in your mouth. In the end, however, this is a sturdy medium-full bodied cigar with a good draw and burn that will not disappoint.
90 points
PS: Watch “The Road” – it is a very good movie. Depressing but good.
How To Roll a Cigar
I don’t know about you but I only smoke cigars – I don’t know how to make ‘em. To help us all understand what the process is I have found a couple of videos. The first one is from cigar.com:
Alright, now that we know a little more I tried to find someone who was more experienced rolling cigars. Luckily, on YouTube, there is this video of a master rolling a cigar. Don Pepin Garcia himself:
Interesting stuff. If you have any other videos about cigars leave a comment and I’ll get them up as fast as possible.
