Joya de Nicaragua Cabinetta Serie Cigar Review
This cigar is part of a sampler that I received from Drew Estate – my reviews are my own.
My first reaction upon seeing this cigar is that it has a serious identity crisis. It has a light wrapper visible all the way from the foot to the band, which is Ecuadorian Shade (and it actually runs the whole length of the cigar), and then it inexplicably changes to a darker wrapper from the cap to the other side of the band, which is Nicaraguan Criollo.
There may be something to this whole “identity crisis” motif for this cigar. It’s from Joya de Nicaragua and its cigar cousin, the Antano, is a full bodied powerhouse. This is not. But it is a good looking cigar with no serious imperfections. Yes, it has a couple of veins and is a little dry to the touch but they have all (by “all” I mean the other four samples) performed well up to this point.
Cigar Stats
Length: 6″
Ring Gauge: 50
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Shade and Nicaraguan Criollo
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $140.00/Box of 24
Ron Washington Inspiration (Expletives) Flame!
It’s a cross between burnt and sweet nuts. I usually go for the full bodied cigars but this medium bodied flavor piñata is very nice.
In addition to those nutty flavors there is a dry, grassy flavor. Lots of smoke from this one and I should mention that unless you are going to retrohale this cigar you are going to miss out on a lot of the flavor.
Not exactly a smooth cigar this Joya de Nicaragua. Honestly, when I first received these cigars I didn’t want to like them. The double wrappers scream of gimmickry but with each successive cigar I am being won over.
After about the first third of the cigar creaminess comes into the flavor profile. It has also smoothed out a good amount.
At around the two thirds mark a mildly sweet floral flavor enters. The nuttiness is still the major flavor and it reminds me of a mild nut, like a cashew. It is a medium bodied cigar with a good draw and burn.
Once the burn line crosses over to the darker wrapper it takes on an earthy flavor. Unfortunately, this new flavor is too fleeting.
Fortunately, on the whole this is a great cigar. Very good flavors and the technical aspects of the cigar are spot on. Definitely give this cigar a try.
90 points
Cigar.com Cuban Label Cigar Review
Alright, here’s the deal. A couple of months ago I got curious about the quality of some of the private label cigars that are out there. Thanks to their easy and mostly color coded naming system my sights quickly acquired Cigar.com’s stable of cheap private label cigars. After smoking all of the different varieties that Cigar.com has to offer I realized that none of the cigars were really excellent and by that I mean something that I would give 90+ points to. But some of them are definitely passable cigars.
That is why I am going to change the format here a little and either give the Cigar.com house blends a PASS or FAIL. To keep things fair, all the cigars sampled are in the 5″ x 50 robusto vitola. I have already rated the Sun Grown Label and gave it a passing grade. Now onto this cigar.
Here is what Cigar.com has to say about it’s Cuban Label house blend:
For this blend we use a high quality Nicaraguan filler and binder. However, the Cuban Label gets most of its character from the special Cuban/Sumatra hybrid seed sun grown in Ecuador. With the perfect blend at hand, we depend on the expert cigar makers and rollers at Tabacalera Fernandez to put the finishing touches on the Cuban Label. This Nicaraguan factory has an esteemed reputation for making flawless cigars. The result is a peppery and earthy full-flavored cigar with a medium to full-body. The Cuban Label is complex and balanced with a long pronounced finish.
These cigars come in five different sizes: churchill (7.5″ x 50), gordo (6″ x 60), corona (6.5″ x 42), robusto (5″ x 50) and torpedo (6″ x 52). As of the publishing of this post, they cost less than $3.00 when individually purchased and can cost less than $2.50 when purchased in a box of 20 except for the gordo vitola which costs $4.00 for a stick and $60.00 for a box of 20.
Beautiful this cigar is not. Dull brown is the color and there are some veins and bumps all over the cigar. A sizable soft spot can be found from the foot to about an inch down from the foot of the cigar. With that being said I have smoked this cigar a couple of times before this review and I have liked it… pretty much… well, mostly.
Laundering Incineration!
What the Hell? I cut this cigar and as I am doing some maintenance to the cut, you know, making it look good and functional, and I see what looks like a very light brown stem sticking out. Alright, that is no big deal but then I start pulling it out and, honest to God, it doesn’t look like it is tobacco. It looks like it is a piece of paper! That is weird and I can say that has never happened to me with all of the cigars that I have smoked. Not a good omen.
The sensible part of my brain is having this inner dialogue about whether or not it is smart to smoke this cigar but, while debating with myself, the sensible part of my brain realizes that I have already lit the cigar and am smoking it. As the sensible part of my brain slinks off to whatever dank corner of my skull that it calls home I am struck by the fact that this is actually a pretty good cigar. The spice is good and is the dominant flavor. Like the description on the site says this is definitely a peppery cigar. There are also notes of cedar and some grass (I’m trying to pin that flavor down but the best I can come up with is that it has a Chinese food flavor to it). No paper flavor yet.
Entering the second third and the spice, while still enjoyable, has become a little bit overbearing and has a certain amount of harshness to it. By no means is this a deal breaker, especially for a cigar that is meant not for greatness but just for smokability. Still no paper flavor yet.
Nearing the end now and it’s still spicy. The spiciness, if you like that flavor in a cigar, is something that I think you would enjoy in this cigar; as long as your expectations are not over the top. It’s a good cigar but it is not very well rounded, especially after the first third when it becomes a monochromatic spice machine. But, since I appreciate spice, I enjoyed this cigar. Medium-full bodied with a good draw and burn. Never tasted paper, which means I probably pulled it all out.
PASS
Emilio AF2 Short Cigar Review
With an average amount of veins running along the length of the cigar and some minor discolorations here and there I can honestly say this isn’t a great cigar to look at. Fortunately, I don’t smoke cigars because they’re pretty. And I didn’t buy this cigar anyway, it’s a sample from Emilio Cigars. And yes, that’s right, only one smoked. That’s why this is a short review folks.
The feel of the wrapper is a different story. There is a good coating of oils along with the tactile sensation of very fine fur. It’s an interesting feeling and, from my experience at least, makes me think this will at least be a good cigar.
Here’s some information about this cigar:
Our AF2 blend, produced and blended by A.J. Fernandez is certain to delight. Crafted from rich Nicaraguan fillers combined with the strength of Pennsylvania ligero and a beautiful Ecuadoran Habano Oscuro wrapper. These cigars are available in cabinet boxes of 20 in four sizes: Robusto, Toro, Torpedo, and BMF.
I’m smoking the 6×50 Toro for this review.
California Sucks Flame!
It’s good. Spice at its core; grass, bitter chocolate and some toffee give it support. An extremely interesting group of flavors here, kind of surprised. Well, I’m surprised because I had not heard much about this company before, that’s all.
The second third improves on the first third. It’s spicy core, which was a little wild and harsh during the first third has moderated and become a fuller experience. Hay and sweet grass have also come on. The smoke leaves a warm and dry feeling in my mouth and the flavors linger until the next puff.
During the final third the spice dissipates quite a bit. During this third I did recognize some chocolate but the main flavor was smoky hay. This is a medium bodied cigar with a great burn and draw.
4.5 points
Oliva Serie V Cigar Review
Very good looking cigar. The mottled near-black finish of the wrapper has veins running every which way but not in enough quantity to scare me. Oily? Yes, but not very. Consistently packed from cap to foot with enough tobacco to give just the slightest amount when I check for soft spots.
I forgot to mention a medium sized, oblong hole that appears three inches from the foot of the cigar. It runs 1/8th of an inch long by 1/16th of an inch wide at its widest point. Shouldn’t be too much of a problem as far as the flavor is concerned but I am keeping it in mind for the overall score (in other words, not a huge deal). Actually, now that I think of it, I cannot remember seeing a hole in any other of the Oliva Serie V wrappers that I have had.
The pre-light draw is reminiscent of the last Serie V I had. This one has a better draw and the mix of spice and chocolate is inverted with spice being a much more prominent factor in the flavor profile. It has been at least two minutes since I took the pre-light draw and I can still feel the spiciness on my tongue. My anticipation grows.
Cigar Stats
Length: 7″
Ring Gauge: 52
Wrapper: Nicaragua – Habano Sun Grown
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua – Jalapa Valley Ligero
Price: $8.50/Single | $175.00/Box of 24
Bar Rescue Torch!
Bitter chocolate and a certain amount of earthiness greet my palate first. Then comes a bitter spiciness, which is something that is good in an interesting sort of way. It’s an interesting flavor combination but I am going to withhold judgment for now. Shortly after the first rush of bitterness it gracefully fades into the background leaving a mixture of spice and earthiness to take the lead.
The aroma for this vitola is identical to the previous one; rich chocolate cake. The pre-light draw was not a misnomer because the draw is just as good now as it was before the cigar took the flame.
Strength is something that I am acutely aware of early on in the cigar’s progression. Unlike with some of the smaller vitolas in the V line the strength apparent here is much more serious. I am less than a half inch into the cigar and if it progresses much further in the strength category I may go into convulsions and start talking in tongues! That, of course, is pure hyperbole – I love the strength of this cigar – the more the better!
Before getting into the second third of this cigar the flavor profile has imperceptibly shifted away from that chocolate flavor. Spice and a grassy earthiness have now completely taken over. The spice is more temperate now – the strength has undergone no such change. All of this has taken place over the first third of the stick.
Walking away from a cigar for more than a couple of minutes usually leads to it dying – not so in this case. Doing so has given my palate some time to normalize and refresh itself and the cigar has ever so slightly changed. Now, at the halfway point, it is spice, grass and a hint of chocolate. All three work together in harmony. The spice is, and has been, a warm spice of varying strengths; each version a joy.
Time is not something I really think of in terms of cigars. But this one is an extremely slow burning cigar. It’s been over an hour since I first lit it and I am only halfway through it now. I have been sipping it, enjoying all its nuances, which is why it is taking so long. There really is no other way to go at this cigar though. If you don’t have the time to truly enjoy this cigar then you are better off leaving it in its humidified lair until a large enough chunk of time produces itself.
The remainder of the cigar is consistently great. Breaking into the final third is a saltiness accompanied by a decent helping of meat. A hint of leather creeps its way into the final bits. The burn is also good; it has been fairly even throughout. Give yourself up to three hours to smoke it, though. You will not be disappointed.
94 points
G. De Graaff ‘S-Gravenhage Short Cigar Review
After my grandmother came back from her most recent sojourn, this time to see the Continentals amongst them a certain former foreign exchange student from Germany, she brought me this cigar for my birthday. As you can tell by the title of this review the cigar’s name is quite a mouthful. It looks like it is a house blend but beyond that I don’t have much information on the cigar. What I have found can be seen here.
Here’s a little bit of information from that site:
De Graaff cigars have been hand-made for generations by the old established house of cigar makers De Graaff, using only the highest grade tobaccos from Brazil, Cuba and Indonesia. The tobaccos are blended in their factory according to old family recipes which conscientiously are kept a secret. One of the advantages of their cigars is that no artificial tobacco is used, another that each cigar has its own particular sophisticated composition, resulting in an unique balance between fragrance and taste.
With all that being said I cannot vouch for the makeup of this cigar nor can I seem to be able to find the vitola that I smoked on their website. Here’s the basics: it’s a thick cigar measuring in at more than a 55 ring gauge I’m sure. The length is about 5 ½” and the only reason why I don’t know the exact length is because I was sure I would be able to find the vitola on their site, but I didn’t.
The cigar did get a little smashed in transit but there was no tearing of the wrapper and I do not think it had much of an affect on the performance of this cigar. It has a triple cap and the wrapper is medium brown with some smallish veins.
Friedman Flame!
Honestly, this cigar is starting off awesomely. Spice, grass and earth make up the core. Immense flavor in the early goings. Pretty intense though, hopefully it will mellow out a little bit as it progresses.
Burnt toast and sweet spice come on during the second third and they are tasty. The intensity has yet to flag, which I’m actually liking now with the new flavors on board. I would peg this as a medium bodied cigar.
Taking the band off of this cigar is proving to be a pain because the band does not reach all the way around the cigar and, to make up for this fact, the manufacturer has decide to use tape to bridge the gap instead of making a larger band. This is a problem because the tape has stuck to the wrapper. I am only able to remove the band at the expense of the wrapper, which has now been torn.
Charred meat is coming on strong in the final third, which is a flavor that I really like. There is also the sweetness but without much of the spice that was ever present during the first two thirds of this cigar.
In retrospect, my favorite third of this cigar was the first third where the flavors were perhaps a little wild but they were interesting. The second third offered a more well rounded experience that most anyone would enjoy. The final third took a step back in terms of f lavor and enjoyability but, overall this was a very good cigar and I bet many people would enjoy it.
4 points
