My Father Limited Edition 2011 Short Cigar Review
Wrapper: Hybrid Ecuadorian Habano Criollo | Binder: Nicaraguan | Filler: Nicaraguan | Box of 12: $185.00; Single: $18.50 | Toro | 6 ½″ x 52
0/3: While attending an event in Chattanooga in August I got to talking with someone there who told me I had to try this cigar and that I wouldn’t be disappointed even though it costs quite a bit of money. Okay, let’s see.
It is a beautiful cigar. A consistent medium brown color to the wrapper and the feel of said wrapper is oily, soft leather. Like what Pig Pen (of Charlie Brown fame) does to the air whenever he enters the scene this cigar’s aroma was easily discernible even from a couple of feet away and, unlike the case with Mr. Pen, this aroma was a very nice mixture of sweetness and spice.
1/3: I’m greeted with a very strong and distinct pepper that is totally unaffected by any of the other flavors. I think it’s wonderful but those who don’t like pepper probably won’t agree and won’t like the first inch or so of this cigar.
It does change a little after that first inch. The pepper is now more like red pepper flakes. There’s also some leather and sweetness.
2/3: Bright spice enters the fray here. The leather has disappeared. Some fruity flavors have come into the mix. Medium-full bodied cigar.
3/3: A lot of flavor is going on during this final third; spice and fruity sweetness mostly during the first part of this third. After that it morphs into a floral sweetness with some leather creeping back in.
4/3: I am glad that I bought this cigar because the flavors were strong throughout and there was a great deal of evolution in the flavor profile. It was medium-full bodied with a good draw and burn. If you want a special cigar that delivers on everything that matters then you should give this cigar a try.
4.5 out of 5 points – great but not legendary
Alec Bradley Prensado Short Cigar Review
I received the cigar used for this review from Cigars Direct. All reviews are my own.
Wrapper: Trajes, Honduran | Binder: Nicaraguan | Filler: Trajes, Nicaraguan & Honduran | Box of 20: $175.00; 5 Pack: $47.00 | Churchill | 7″ x 48
0/3: Looks well made, slightly darker than medium brown in color, no noticeable imperfections on the wrapper, fairly hard packed with a soft box press. I should note that I am shocked, SHOCKED!!!, that I haven’t reviewed this line before. I thought I had (maybe that’s why I never did a review because I thought I already had).
1/3: Starts out very well. Coffee, earth and some sweet spice. It’s got a bit of strength but not so much as to overpower.
2/3: Flavors are pretty much the same as before but the spice does pick up a little in intensity. With the increase in spice it does add to my enjoyment of the cigar because the extra spice adds an extra dimension to the flavor profile.
3/3: Bitter earthiness is the main force in the flavor profile during the final third. I like it because the flavors are deep and work well with the spice and the hint of chocolate that is starting to break through now. I did have to touch up the burn line a couple of times but this is a rather long cigar and it wasn’t too much of a hassle.
4/3: It is pretty easy to see why a certain publication that has been around for two decades likes this cigar so much. Medium-full bodied with a good draw and decent burn, this cigar has a lot of flavor in what I like to refer to as the dark end of the flavor spectrum.
4.5 out of 5 points – a cigar most everyone will like
Tatuaje TAA 2012 Cigar Review
The other day I finished watching “Into the West“, which is one of those multi-generational miniseries that follows a family (two in this case) through the generations and, in the process, you also get to see a dramatized version of history, the “Wild West” in this case, and, based off of my watching of this show, I’m reasonably sure that the image on this band is that of an Indian. Upon further inspection I notice that the Indian is wearing a headdress made of tobacco leaves (this is a special cigar for the Tobacconists Association of America) and that immediately got me thinking of a Cabbage Patch Kid.
But none of that is important. What is important is that this cigar is a beauty. A box pressed toro, the very dark brown Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper has that rough, toothy texture that gets me excited to smoke a cigar. The box press is pretty drastic in that it’s a fairly flat cigar. Very oily with a closed foot this cigar looks like it is going to be a treat.
Cigar Stats
Vitola: toro
Length: 6 ¼″
Ring Gauge: 50
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Price: ~ $12.00/Single
Space Jump Incineration!
After a slightly longer than normal session of toasting the foot, this cigar opens up with some pretty nice flavors. Fruity spice with a bit of a bite on the finish, clay earth and a small helping of very bitter chocolate in the background. The flavors are working well together.
Leather gets added to the mix during the second third. While the spice has decreased in importance the earthiness has increased and changed into this incredible dustiness. It’s still has a good deal of bitterness as well. This is one of those cigars where the smoke’s consistency is very granular; sort of like a thousand little flavor molecules surrounding your taste buds. Very interesting cigar.
The final third is a lot like the second with leather, earth and bitter chocolate. Like I said about the second third, this is a very interesting cigar, which, in this case, means that it’s unique… in a good way.
Medium-full bodied with an excellent draw and burn, this cigar does not have a great deal of evolution in the flavor profile but what it lacks in that department it more than makes up for with the mixture of flavors. It was good from beginning to end.
91 points
La Sirena Short Cigar Review
I received this cigar as a gift from Barry, who works for Miami Cigar & Co. All reviews are my own.
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro | Binder: Nicaraguan Criollo ’99 | Filler: Nicaraguan Corjo ’99 Viso and Nicaraguan Criollo ’98 Ligero | Box of 10: $102.00; 5 Pack: $55.00 | Size: A | 9.2″ x 48
0/3: Big… Ass… Cigar. Very oily cigar with one stretch mark. I’m amazed there aren’t more imperfections with a cigar of this length. It is a little spongy to the touch and, since it has been resting in my humidor for about 10 months, it is a little banged up. But not too banged up to hurt performance, I hope.
1/3: I don’t normally smoke “A’s” but when I do I get this unsettling feeling that I should have some kind of support system about 2/3rds of the way down to make sure it doesn’t break. It’s irrational, I know, but that’s what my brain is thinking.
Good, clean spice comes through strong during the first third. A bit of floral flavoring comes through too. There’s some earthiness as well.
2/3: Floral spice is the main thing going during this third. There’s also a good deal of earthiness going around and some meaty flavors. But, like I said, it’s mostly floral spice, which has a little bit of sweetness to it.
3/3: Leather and that floral spice which covers everything like the Blob on some hapless 1950′s town. Still, I’m liking it. Maybe not as much as the robusto, which I gave 95 points to a while back, but, still, very good.
4/3: Medium-full bodied with a good draw and burn, this cigar is easily above average. It’s a bit expensive but, then again, it does last a really long time and is great throughout. It’s not the same robust spice explosion that you get with the smaller vitolas but the flavor here is very nice. More like two-plus hours of restrained delight.
4 out of 5 points
Ortega Serie D Maduro Short Cigar Review
Wrapper: Mexican San Andres Maduro | Binder: Nicaraguan | Filler: Nicaraguan | Box of 10: $64.00; 5 Pack: $34.00 | Robusto | 5″ x 52
0/3: First off, I have to thank Keith from Tiki Bar Online for gifting me this cigar. It has been safely resting in my humidor for a couple of months now and it was resting in Keith’s for some time before that.
This is the first offering from Eddie Ortega’s new cigar company and I’ve heard only good things about it. It’s a perfect looking box pressed cigar with a minimum amount of veins and a dark brown wrapper.
1/3: Strong flavors ranging from earth to a bit of spice (close to habanero) and even some chocolate.
2/3: During the transition from the first to the second third a great bitter chocolaty flavor takes over. There’s still a bit of spice hanging around and some vanilla.
3/3: The final third sees an increase in the spiciness buttressed by a healthy dose of chocolate. Spice and chocolate works well in food and it works just as well in a cigar. Earthiness makes a resurgence. I had to perform a touch up to the burn line during this third.
4/3: There is a nice intensity of flavor with this cigar that I like. It never got harsh and was always enjoyable. Medium-full bodied with a decent burn and a good draw this is a cigar that most people will like. I think most people will also like the price point of this cigar. A good fit for those who like heavy flavors; mainly the earth and the chocolate.
4 points
