CigarChoice.net- Cigar Reviews and News

Here’s another review from Josh Skorton, on the Clint’s Cigar, similar to a smaller cheroot cigar, with much more flavor!!

Enjoy!
Scott and Josh

For those of you that frequent the world of Social networking sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, and the like, you no doubt have other “cigar” friends that you know, and talk to regularly.  Albert of Berger and Argenti Cigars was sending out reviews and press releases about the newest cigar in their lineup, the “Clasico”.  This, naturally had me curious.  With the amount of press I’d seen on this cigar, along with some other reviews I had read on fellow cigar bloggers sites, I knew I had to try them.  I sent Albert a message, asking what I could do to aquire a few of these for a review, and who I had to pay to get some.  He graciously sent me a 3 pack of the cigars, and told me to enjoy, at no cost.  Thank you very much Albert for the cigars, and giving me the chance to review them.  So…. Here we go!

Pre- Light:  As I pulled this cigar from it’s packaging, the first thing I noticed was how silky smooth the wrapper on the cigars felt, and how nicely they were rolled.  The size I was trying was a corona size, fairly small, I am guessing a 4.5×46 or so.  I was very anxious to try this cigar!  I clipped it with my ever trusty Palio and lit it up with my Ronson Jetlite.

Flavor/Aroma:  As I lit up, the first thing I noticed was that there was a nice sweetness, similar to some sorts of Nicaraguan tobacco that I’ve experienced before.  Along with that sweetness, I got a lot of nice cedar flavors, and a great smell to it.  This cigar tastes AWESOME.  I am really enjoying it, and am bummed that it’s going to be a fairly short smoke, but I am happy to have found such a nice cigar!

Construction/Smoking Characteristics:  The construction on this cigar was flawless.  No major veins, and nicely wrapped.  As I smoked the cigar, I did notice that the draw was a little loose, but the smoke was billowing, and the ash held strong for about 1/2 an inch before falling off.

Overall Impression:  Overall, I REALLY liked this smoke.  I am now on the hunt for a box  of these, and can’t wait to get these added to my humidor.  As the first in the Berger and  Argenti line of cigars that I have tried, I LOVED this cigar.  It WILL be a staple in my humidor.  I want to thank Berger and Argenti cigars for the chance to review this smoke.  If you are looking for a great smoke, that is reasonably priced, look no further than the Berger and Argenti Clasico!

As most of my readers know, as of late, I haven’t been able to give you guys as many cigar reviews as I would like, due to a lot of contributing factors.  I have been searching for a way to solve this problem, as I have fun putting reviews up on the site for my readers to enjoy.  I had been looking around at various reviews online, on forums, and in video, and none of them seemed to fit, until now.  I was on my home cigar bulletin board, www.stogiechat.com and came across Josh Skorton.  Josh is a musician as well as a pipe and cigar smoker, that does video reviews of cigars and pipes, as well as pipe tobacco.  After some collaboration, Josh and I came to the conclusion that we would work well together.  You will, from time to time, see videos posted here of his reviews.  I am going to start by posting up his video review of the Nub Connecticut.  You can also find a link to his YouTube Channel in my blog roll to the right, as well as by clicking this: Josh Skorton’s YouTube Channel.  I hope my viewers enjoy Josh’s reviews as much as I do!

I’m back!  Some of you may have wondered if I’d fallen off the planet, but I am around.  I have been extremely busy with work, school, and more work, so finding time to sit down and do a review just hasn’t been happening lately.  I decided that tonight was as good a night as any to do a review.  I’ve really missed being able to sit down and type out my thoughts on cigars, so I’ve decided it is time to get back into the swing of things.  You may or may not see some layouts change around here.. I don’t know if I am down with the boring white colors, but we will see if I get the urge to change things up.  Anyway, enough about all that, and on with the review…

Today’s cigar review is of the Alec Bradley Prensado Toro.

Origin : Honduras
Vitola: Gran Toro
Size : 6×54
Wrapper : Honduran Corojo 2006
Filler : Honduras, Nicaragua
Binder : Nicaraguan Jalapa
Hand-Made
Price : $10.00 + local CA taxes

The Alec Bradley Prensado was debuted at the ’09 IPCPR convention that was held in New Orleans.  It is touted as their strongest cigar to date.  I guess we’ll see how that holds up.

Pre-Light:   As I looked at this cigar, the first thing I noticed is that the wrapper is very toothy with a nice sheen to it.  The construction is pretty impeccable on this cigar as well.  I clipped this cigar with my trusty Palio cutter, and lit it up with my Ronson Jetlite.  I got some nice hints of nutmeg and spice, with some cedar mixed in there when I took a pre-light draw.   Time to see how this thing smokes!

1/3:  As I lit up this cigar, the first thing I noticed was that it was very creamy, with thick billowing smoke, and an incredibly easy draw.  I got osme nice cedar notes, with some thick creamy flavors.  The ash was flaky, but the cigar was burning pretty straight.  So far, I am really enjoying the cedar and creamy flavors I am getting out of this cigar.

2/3:  As I continued on this cigar, I got some hints of spicy flavors, along with the same creaminess, and cedar notes.  The smoke is billowing nicely, and the cigar is burning fairly evenly.  The ash is still a little flaky, but not so bad that it was irritating.  At this point, I am glad I picked up a few of these to smoke!  I am really enjoying this cigar!

3/3:  As I finished up this cigar, I got a little bit more of the cedar notes, and the creaminess kind of floated itself to the background.  The smoke is billowing nicely, and the ash has flaked a bit, and fallen, but man was I enjoying the cigar!

Overall Impression:  Overall, this cigar is worth every penny.  While I found it to be a little bit one dimensional, the flavors of cedar, spice and creaminess were great, and mixed together nicely.  For anyone looking for a straight up good stick, the Alec Bradley Prensado is it!

Smoke Em If You Got Em, Buy Em If You Don’t!
Scott

It’s been a while since I’ve done a review, but I finally have some time to sit down and type one out. I was going through my cigars, and I found a couple of Tatuaje Verocu #9′s. These cigars are available exclusively from Holts. The talk surrounding them is that they are typical of most Tatuaje products, in that they are very tasty, and very well constructed. I figured it was about time to smoke a couple and find out what the talk was all about!

Pre-Light: When I looked at this cigar, I noticed that it was pretty much flawless, as most Tatuaje products seem to be. It felt prettty tightly packed with tobacco. I got a nice pepper smell on the foot, with lots of nice fresh tobacco smell. So far, I am liking the way this cigar looks and smells, and I am anxious to light it up! I clipped it with my trusty Palio, and lit it up with my Ronson Jetlite.

1/3: As I started on this cigar, I got blasted with a nice white pepper taste, along with an incredible straight forward tobacco taste. The smoke billowed nicely out of this cigar, and the draw, even though the cigar seemed packed full of tobacco, was perfect! So far, I’m glad I found a couple of these rolling around in the wine-a-dor!

2/3: As I got to the second portion of this cigar, I got a lot of straight forward tobacco taste, with nice billowing smoke, and a perfect draw. As I continued on this portion, the raw tobacco taste began to have a slight peppery finish. So far, I am really enjoying this cigar.

3/3: As I finished up this cigar, the pepper that was on the finish blasted through the other flavors, and made itself known once again. Still burning nicely, and the draw is outstanding. It’s to the point where my fingers are starting to burn. I don’t like this, because it means the cigar is almost over. I am really glad I picked this cigar for the next review, as I am REALLY enjoying it.

Overall Impression: Overall, this cigar offered enough changes in tastes to keep me interested, and they were all flavors I enjoyed A LOT. The cigar burned straight as an arrow throughout the whole thing, and the draw was perfect. The smoke was always billowing plenty of thick smoke. I only have a couple very small gripes with these. The first gripe is that they are smaller cigars, so they only last about 40 minutes or so. At 4.5×49, they are smaller than I generally like to smoke, and the box is over $100. I generally like to keep my box purchases under $100 for daily smoking. These can be found at Holt’s for around $130, which is still reasonable. Overall, if you are a fan of Tatuaje products, don’t hesitate to pickup a few of these.

Smoke Em If You Got Em, Buy Em If You Don’t!
Scott

2/3:

I know, its been a while since an update, but life’s been getting in the way.  A few weeks on twitter, I was talking to Mederos Cigars, and he mentioned that he’d like to send me a couple samples to review, so I finally had some time to sit, smoke and enjoy.  As a disclaimer, I was given these cigars, with no charge, on the premise that I would review them with an unbiased opinion.

Wrapper: Corojo from Jalapa, Nicaragua

Binder: Esteli, Nicaragua

Filler: Esteli, Nicaragua

Pre-Light: As I pulled this cigar out of my wine-a-dor, and then out of the cellophane, I ran it across my nose.  As I smelled the cigar, I got nice notes of barnyard, with some pepper on the foot.  As you can see by the specs, this is a Nicaraguan puro.  I have yet to smoke a Nicaraguan puro that I didn’t enjoy, so I was really looking forward to this one.  I clipped it with my Palio, and lit it up with my Ronson Jetlite.

1/3:  As I toasted and lit this cigar, I couldn’t help but notice the great smells I was getting off the smoke that was passing my nose.
Lots of nice pepper and leather smells, with hints of barnyard.  As I took my first few puffs, I got the typical Nicaraguan pepper blast along with some nice cedar notes, and some faint barnyard and grassy flavors on the finish.  The finish with each puff is fairly short, which is nice.  Smoke is average in volume, which is ok with me.  So far, I am glad I agreed to review this smoke.

2/3:  As I got to the next portion of this cigar, the burn started to get a little bit wavy, but I didn’t feel the need to correct it just yet.  Still got more of the same cedar, spice and hay flavors I was getting in the first portion, but the spice seems to have picked up a bit.  I think the cigar is tunneling just a bit, as it’s starting to get hot where I am holding it.  I decided to slow down on my smoking to see if that helps with the heat issue.  Still really enjoying the amount of smoke I am getting.  So far, this is a very enjoyable smoke, despite the minor burn issues.

3/3:  As I finished up this cigar, I was still getting heavy spice, with hints of cedar and hay.  It seems to be  getting a little bit hot, so I decided to pitch it before I was completely done, but that’s just because I couldn’t really hold it well.  The smoke is now billowing more than it has the last couple sections of the cigar.

Overall Impression:  Overall, this cigar was fairly straightforward, and not overly complex.  The flavors of spice, cedar and hay are pleasant, and it made for a very nice smoking experience.  I am going to be looking for some of these shortly.  While not overly complex, the flavors in this cigar were very good, and worthy of keeping a few on hand for smoking.

As most of my readers know, I do most of my smoking outdoors.  Currently, if I am smoking at my home, I ash in my stinky ashtray, and then dump the ashes into a small trashcan, and leave them there.  This does require a little bit of work, but I’d gotten used to it.  I
was doing some searching for an easier way to take care of the cigar butts and ashes when I smoked at home, and I ran across the Cigamate.

The Cigamate is not an ashtray, but rather a portable cigar and cigarette disposal unit.  The unit is made out of what looks like ABS plastic, and has been fire tested for safety.  The unit comes apart in two pieces, and in the center of the base, there is a small metal cup, where the butts and ashes from your cigars or cigarettes fall when pushed into the opening at the top of the unit.  To use this receptacle, it couldn’t really get much simpler.  All you need to do is simply twist the top and pull upward to expand the unit, and viola, you’re in business.

Another great feature of this Cigar receptacle is that it has handles on each side, and is light weight.  This makes it easy for portability.  This makes it easy to take with you to campsites, or outdoor activities, and will allow you to properly dispose of your cigar butts without littering.  The Cigamate also has an open area around the inside of the base, that if needed, can be filled with sand or small gravel or rocks, to anchor the base.  The problem I see with that, is that you might loose some of the portability if you weigh the base down.

Other great feature of the Cigamate is that at the top of the unit, it is square and flat, kind of like a portable coaster/beer holder/cigar holder.  It seemed to work well for me, and made it easy to enjoy a smoke and a beer outdoors!

Overall, this Cigamate cigar/cigarette receptacle fits the bill nicely.  Not only does it act as an environmentally friendly place to put your cigar butts, but it also serves as a nice coaster and place to put your cigar when not being smoked.  If you are looking for something you can take with you to take care of your cigar smoking needs, be sure to look at the Cigamate!  You can find information regarding the Cigamate below.  Thanks to Jason of Cigamate for sending me one of these complimentary to review!

Cigamate Cigar Receptacle

http://www.cigamate.com

516.882.3110

Smoke Em If You Got Em, Buy Em If You Don’t!

Scott

Ok, so I figured I ought to do a Halloween review of a cigar, and since I just got the “Drac” review done yesterday, I figured why not throw up the review of the “Boris”.  I picked up this cigar at my local retailer, with a price point of $12.99 plus tax.  The box it comes in is very plain, but a nice looking box nonetheless.  After being disappointed in the “Drac”, I wasn’t really sure what to expect from this cigar.  Tatuaje’s website says this about the “Boris”:

The Boris (The Frank out of Costume) 7 x 49 Churchill – Wrapper: Sumatra Ecuador Rosado – 1,000 boxes of 10 produced

So, I don’t know if essentially this is a “Frank” with a different band, or if its a different blend. I do seem to recall the “Frank” being quite a bit larger in ring gauge and length, but I could very well be wrong about that, as I’ve never had a “Frank” first hand.  Anyhow, on to the review!

Pre-Light:  Before I lit this up, I took a good look at it.  The first thing I noticed was this particular stick was really well rolled, with very little in the way of veins or any imperfections.  I ran this cigar across my nose, and got some of that typical Tatuaje spice, with a little bit of a sweet tobacco smell on the foot.  I clipped this cigar with the ever trusty Palio, and lit it up with my Ronson Jetlite.

1/3:  As I started in on this cigar, I got a nice blast of spice, typically found in most Tatuaje’s.  This was followed immediately after with some pure tobacco flavors, along with some nice sweetness mixed in.  The smoke was incredibly thick, and billowed nicely.  As I retrohaled on this cigar, I got ALOT of the spice that I was getting on the beginning of this cigar.  Not so much spice that it was uncomfortable, but just enough!  The burn is really straight on this one at this point, despite it being a bit breezy at the house today.  The ash is a nice white/grey color, but it very flakey, and tends to want to fall every 1/2″ or so.  That doesn’t really bother me, as I have an ash tray right next to where I am sitting.  So far, I am REALLY enjoying this cigar, and it reminds me a little bit of a larger Tatuaje Black Label, just a bit.  Not every flavor I am getting is the same, but it does have some of the same nuances.

2/3:  As I continued on this cigar, not a whole lot has changed.  I am getting a little bit more of that nice straight tobacco flavor, but other than that, this cigar is staying pretty consistent.  I am ok with that, because I am really enjoying the flavors I am getting out of this cigar.  The ash is still flaking off at about the 1/2″ point every time, and the burn is staying pretty darn straight.  At this point, I am seriously wishing I had a box of these to keep around for a while longer, since these are going to be difficult to find shortly.

3/3:  At the final third, the typical Tatuaje spice came back, this time full force.  The natual tobacco flavors have seemed to diminish a bit, and I am getting mostly spice.  It was a nice change, that I wasn’t expecting.  The smoke is still coating my mouth nicely, and the finish is fairly short on this cigar.  Now I am REALLY kicking myself.  I really want a box, but I have no room in the wine-a-dor, and I have no money.  Crappy predicament to be in, for sure,  but alas, such is life.

Overall Impression:  Overall, the “Boris” is hands down one of the best cigars I have ever had the pleasure of smoking.  I am very disappointed that I didn’t buy more of these.  I recommend these highly, and enjoyed it very much.  If you haven’t had the pleasure of smoking this cigar, start running around now to try and find one or 10.

Smoke Em If You Got Em, Buy Em If You Don’t!
Scott

Ok, so for anyone that follows me on Twitter, or any number of the cigar forums knows that I was not happy with the way the Drac/Boris rolled out.  I had mentioned I was boycotting Tatuaje, and a few retailers, simply because of the way things had been going down, with price gouging, and a few other things.  I am writing this review, because I simply felt it necessary.  I bought 3 dracs and 3 Boris at a respective price of $12.99 for the Boris, and $14.99 for the Drac each, just because I stumbled upon them.  I started smoking the Drac with an open mind, simply because I enjoyed most Tatuaje’s, and being as limited as this cigar is, I really wanted to keep an open mind regarding this cigar.  Let’s see how it went!

Pre-Light:  The first thing I noticed was that this particular cigar that I photographed was rolled pretty well, although it felt a little soft as I ran my fingers down the length of it.  I clipped the torpedo shaped head, and took a pre-light draw.  The first thing I noticed was that it was I got a little bit of fruity taste, with a little bit of peppermint like taste on the finish.  I clipped this cigar with my trusty Palio, and lit it up with the ever so trusty, Ronson Jetlite.

1/3:  As I toasted up this cigar, and took a few puffs, the first thing I noticed was that I was getting a little bit of a blast of a candy/peppermint flavor, along with some white peppery spice.  The draw was pretty much effortless, and the smoke was billowing nicely.  The finish on this cigar was heavy, and very long.  The taste of fruity/peppermint held on to my tongue like it didn’t want to let go.  At this point, the peppermint/fruity flavor is not a bad flavor, but overall not something I enjoy usually.  As I finish up the first portion of this cigar, some of the typical Tatuaje peppery flavors were ones that I was enjoying, but this taste of fruit/peppermint on the finish was not all that great.

2/3:  As I moved on to the second portion of this cigar, the burn was starting to canoe, and I attempted to correct it.  At this point, I am not really happy with the way the burn is moving along, but as long as I am getting the nice Tatuaje peppery spice flavors, I will keep smoking.  I was still getting a consistent peppermint flavor.  The smoke was billowing really nicely, and the smoke smelled great.  The burn just would NOT correct itself, and before I got to the last portion of the cigar, I had to correct the burn 2-3 times.  One of my biggest pet peeves on any cigar is one that won’t burn at least FAIRLY straight.  This cigar didn’t burn worth a crap.  It kept wanting to canoe, and I made SURE that I lit it correctly.  At this point, I am getting frustrated with it, but I keep with it, just because I want to see if there are any changes coming.

3/3:  As I finish up this cigar, I got more of the typical Tatuaje spice, which came on stronger than the last couple sections.  The peppermint flavors and finish started to die down a bit, and I was starting to really enjoy this cigars flavors, with the diminishing of the peppermint flavors.  The smoke is billowing great, and the burn seems to have straightened itself out quite a bit.

Overall Impression:  Ok, so as many of you have noticed, I mentioned I was boycotting Tatuaje and a few retailers because of the way they handled the Drac/Boris rollout.  I am using this review to say a couple things.  As I sat here smoking this cigar, I realized one thing.  Pete did what he could to release this Limited Edition cigar, and make it fair.  I, however, did not agree with the way a number of retailers handled the release, and gouged people.  That being said, I decided I won’t be boycotting Tatuaje products, as Pete still makes great sticks that are not Limited Edition, and he has said himself that there were problems with this release, and he is working to correct it for next year.  I will be boycotting certain retailers though, that had bogus ways of “allowing” people to get the Drac/Boris.

Ok, now, since that disclaimer is over, on to the impression of this cigar.  Overall, this cigar is not one for me.  I did get some flavors that I enjoyed, and the typical Tatuaje spice was there, but the peppermint/fruity flavors were not good at all.  I have one more that I will let sit until next halloween, and we’ll see how it does next year.  This semi fresh Drac, however, was not something I will hunt out anymore of this year.

Smoke Em If you Got Em, Buy Em if You Don’t!

Scott

If you are a cigar lover, unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard of the collaboration of Matt Booth of Room 101 Jewelry, and Camacho Cigars.  Camacho cigars blended and rolled a line of cigars for Room 101 jewelry.  I finally was able to find a few of these at a local shop, so I had to pickup a few.  For this review, I picked up 4 of them.  My friend Nick @pepinblue on Twitter and I decided we would both smoke them, and review them side by side.  The release of this cigar was hyped up, like most new releases, and now is the time to see if the hype is lived up to!

Wrapper: Semilla 101 (Honduras)

Binder: Honduras

Filler: Honduras, Dominican Republic

Pre-Light: I handed Nick his Room 101, and I took mine.  We both pulled them out of the cellophane, and rolled the cigars in our finger tips.  We both noted that they were just about perfectly humidified.  We both noticed that the wrappers on these cigars were very thick, which made for a nice roll of the cigar.  In my cigar, there were no noticeable veins, and there was one small vein in the one Nick was smoking.  We clipped both these cigars with my Palio and lit them up with my Ronson Jetlite.

1/3:  For me, the first third was a lot of black pepper spice, with a touch of sweetness.  Nick mentioned he got a lot of spice in his cigar, especially on retrohale.  We both noted that the smoke was thick, and coated our mouths nicely, which made for a longer finish.  We both also noted that the cigar, that the cigar was very smooth.  Nick’s cigar had a little bit of an ash explosion, and wasn’t burning that great, but with some touch ups, it seemed to correct itself.  So far, I know I am enjoying the spice and smoothness in this cigar, and I get the feeling Nick is doing the same.

2/3:  On this portion of the cigar, as it started up, Nick and I both looked at each other and he said “It’s getting strong isn’t it?” At this point, all I could do is nod in agreement.  I did not want to take the cigar out of my mouth, as I was enjoying the spice, coupled with the smoothness, and the nice sweetness on the finish.  The smoke still coated my mouth, and came out in huge volumes.  As mentioned earlier, Nick’s cigar burn problems started to straighten out, and my cigar only needed one minor touch up.  Its official, as this portion of the cigar ends, we are both impressed with this cigar.

3/3:  As we finished up this cigar, any chatting we were doing has stopped.  we are both fully concentrating on the end of this cigar.  The spice has calmed down for both of us at this point, and the cigar is still incredibly smooth.  The smoke is still billowing, and for me, as I hit the end of this cigar, it wasn’t getting hot at all, and still burning great.  Nick’s smoke at this point is still burning decent, and has corrected itself nicely.

Overall Impression:  I think Nick and I have come to the same conclusion on this cigar.  We both enjoyed this cigar a lot and would not mind having a few more of these in the humidor for smoking.  The general consensus between Nick and myself was that Room 101 and Camacho cigars have hit a home run with this cigar.  I will be looking for more!

Smoke Em If You Got Em, Buy Em If You Don’t!

Scott