Friday, July 20, 2012

INCH Series by E.P. Carrillo No. 64 Natural Review



INCH Series by E.P. Carrillo No. 64 Natural - 6 1/8 X 64. Wrapper - Ecuadorian Sumatra, Binder - Nicaragua, Filler - 3 leaves from Dominican Republic (a mix of Dominican Piloto Cubano, Corojo and Criollo '98 and some Nicaraguan viso. The inspiration for the name and the antique ruler styled band comes from the 64 ring gauge which measures one inch in diameter. Full bodied.

 Initial lighting taste - Dry wood and spice.

 First third - Oily leather followed by spice and a fruity, plum flavor.

Second third - Oily leather continues along with spice and plum fruit. Extremely smooth flavors.

Last third - Oily leather, spiciness and plum fruitiness. Long wonderful finish of spice and leather.

Construction - Attractive looking, light-brown colored wrapper with some small veins visible, a silky texture and a triple cap head. Very nice.

Burn - Straight burn with a dark gray, slightly flaky ash. The ash did hold on until tapped off.

Draw - Very good draw with tons of smoke.

Loved this cigar - I was amazed at how tasty this cigar was for such a big ring gauge. Complexity was very good but the balance and smoothness of this smoke is what really stands out. MSRP for this vitola is a very consumer friendly $10.00 which is a bargain for a 2 hour plus smoke. The INCH Series will be a regular production line, but due to the limited availability of filler leaves in the blend, only 100,000-125,000 cigars will be produced in 2012 and come in both Natural (Ecuadorian Sumatra) and Maduro (Connecticut Broadleaf) in the following sizes:

No. 60 - 5 7/8 X 60 (Box of 24) $210/$8.75
No. 62 - 5 X 62 (Box of 24) $186/$7.75
No. 64 - 6 1/8 X 64 (Box of 24) $240/$10.00

Highly recommended.

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Aging Room Havao Connecticut "Impromptu" Robusto Review


Aging Room Havao Connecticut "Impromptu" Robusto - 5 X 48. Wrapper - Ecuadorian Connecticut, Binder - Dominican Havano Criollo, Filler -Dominican Havano Criollo. Between mild and medium bodied.
Initial taste - Cedar and pepper.

First third - A nice breadiness with cedar and a peppery spice. A tangy citrus begins to emerge.

Second third - Citrus is now the dominant flavor followed by spice, bread and cedar. Nicely balanced.

Last third - Tangy citrus, spice, breadiness and cedar. Long finish of tangy spice that lingers on the palate.

Construction - Beautiful light-brown wrapper with a silky oil texture. No major veins and a very well constructed triple cap head.

Burn - Sharp burn line producing a light-gray, solid ash that holds on.

Draw - Perfect draw with plenty of smoke exhaled.

A wonderful cigar with the most unique flavor profile that I have tasted in a Connecticut with the tangy citrus flavor. Very good complexity and balance. I bit fuller than other Connecticut cigars that I have smoked. MSRP for this size is $5.50. A perfect cigar for early in the day but can also be enjoyed later on even after a big meal. Highly recommended.

Friday, July 13, 2012

Torano Master Habano Maduro Robusto Review



Torano Master Habano Maduro Robusto - Wrapper - Nicaraguan Habano Maduro, Binder - Ecuadorian Habano, Filler - Nicaragua and Dominican Republic. Full bodied.

Initial taste - Peppery spice and cedar.

First third - Pepper, Earth some leather and cedar with some sweetness emerging toward the end of the first third.

Second third - The pepper settles down to a steady spice followed by a wonderful caramel sweetness, Earth and cedar notes. The leather flavor is now gone. Very nice balance.

Last third - Spiciness continues along with the sweet caramel Earthiness and cedar notes. Long wonderful finish of sweet Earthiness and spice.

Construction - Beautiful dark-brown, oily wrapper with no major veins and a nicely constructed cap.

Burn - Fairly straight burn with a salt & pepper colored ash that was a bit flakey but held on.

Draw - Very nice draw producing a generous amount of smoke.

A fantastic cigar with a great flavor profile that had both bold flavor and smooth balance. The complexity was very good as well. At first this cigar was a spice bomb but settles down and smoothes out to create a wonderful smoking experience. MSRP for the Robusto is $7.00 which is a great price point for such a good smoke. This is a cigar I could smoke all day, every day - highly recommended.

Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Alec Bradley American Sun Grown Blend Robusto Review



Alec Bradley American Sun Grown Blend Robusto - Wrapper - Nicaragua Habano (Jalapa), Binder - Nicaragua (Jalapa), Filler - Nicaragua (Esteli & Condega). Medium bodied.

Initial lighting taste - Cedar and spice.

First third - Spice followed by cedar, leather and a slight bitter, mineral taste.

Second third - In this third of the cigar, the flavors settle down and smooth out - spice, cedar, leather and a nice citrus flavor emerges.

Last third - Spice continues along with leather, tangy citrus and cedar. Long finish of spicy citrus and leather.

Construction - Attractive dark brown wrapper with no soft spots or major veins. There was a nice oil sheen to the cigar as well as a good looking cap.

Burn - Straight burn with a solid white colored ash that holds on.

Draw - The draw was very good providing ample amounts of smoke.

Although this cigar started off slow for me in the first third, it really picked up in nice complex and balanced flavors - this is a cigar that builds as you smoke it with a very nice last third. It also tends to smoke hot so you have to take your time smoking this cigar. MSRP for this vitola is $4.75 which is a very consumer friendly price point and a great value for what you get in this cigar. I would recommend trying this cigar.

Thursday, July 5, 2012

East India Trading Company to release "Red Witch"


The East India Trading Company, a subsidiary of the Gurkha Cigar Group, Inc are proud to announce the upcoming launch of the ‘Red Witch’, which will ‘set sail’ at this year’s IPCPR trade show at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL on August 2-6th.

Red Witch is the second cigar release under the East India Trading Company, with the first being the enormously successful ‘Wicked Indie’ last fall. Named after a trading ship from the British rule during the 1800’s, Red Witch is a medium to full bodied cigar featuring a silky Ecuadorian, Rosado wrapper, paired with a carefully selected Dominican binder and 3–year aged filler from the mountainous region of Jalapa, Nicaragua.

The Red Witch is an attractive, box-pressed cigar offering tasting notes of spice, earth and sweet delicate undertones with a long and smooth finish. Housed in rustic 50-count boxes, Red Witch will be available in three vitola’s: 5 x 52 robusto, 6 x 54 rothchild, and a 6 x 60 XO with an MSRP: $4.99-$6.39. These cigars will be on display at the 2012 International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers convention, booth numbers: #1067-1374.

“We are very excited about the launch of Red Witch, which fits in well with the overall theme and heritage of the East India Trading Company,” said Kaizad Hansotia, Chairman of Gurkha Cigar Group. “Trading ships were a vital part to the importing and exporting of goods during this era, where tobacco was one of the earliest traded goods.”