Cigar Review: Don Tomas Sun Grown
By Jason | May 9, 2008
Brand: Don Tomas
Line: Sun Grown
Vitola: Robusto 5 x 50
Origin: Honduras
Wrapper: Honduran Jamastran
Binder: Honduran
Filler: Honduran
Flavor: Mild
Strength: Mild
Price: $72.00 (Box of 25)
I took the family on a road trip to the zoo this weekend to see the amazing, catatonic pandas. I soon learned that nothing can sleep harder or longer than a panda. After three hours of zoo time, we made our way across town to the gigantic, extremely crowded, no parking space having mall. Luckily, I found a space only about 2 miles from the entrance with a Tinderbox. So, splitting from the pack, I closed myself off from the rest of the world while I perused the wares. Fifteen minutes later, I leave with a thinner wallet and a smile on my face. When we finally made it home, it was time to fire up the grill and a cigar. Ok. Enough. On with the review.
I chose the Don Tomas Sun Grown Robusto to review not for its incredible complexity, but because I found it to be my perfect grill gar. I’ll explain that statement later. This medium brown Honduran puro was released by General Cigar in August 2007 and consists of tobacco aged for three years. It’s not the best Sun Grown on the market, but for the money, its not too far away.
Construction:
This is probably one of the top ten best constructed cigars I have ever smoked. It is firm from foot to cap with very small veins. It has a nice smooth wrapper with a floral and hay fragrance. I was afraid the draw would be too tight because of the firmness and weight of the cigar, but I was wrong. It has just the right amount of resistance to keep me from smoking too fast, yet allows clouds of thick smoke. The light gray ash held firm until I flicked it off. It has a nice amount of resting smoke with a mild, pleasant aroma.
Burn:
Oh, baby. Let’s talk burn. This cigar has a burn as straight as I’ve ever seen. No touch ups required throughout the entire smoke. Any uneven burn it may have had corrected itself very quickly. There is no need to babysit this cat. This is the type of burn you want when you have something else to do besides rotate, touchup, and/or relight. Again, perfect grill gar.
Flavor:
This cigar has a base flavor of nuts, wood, and a little spice, plus a little something extra that I couldn’t put my finger on until the second third: tea. Not grandma’s two cups of sugar to a gallon of Lipton (sweet tea for those of you up north), but a nice mild Earl Grey. These flavors don’t hit you full force by any means. The flavors are very mild, yet easily traceable. It’s not something that will satisfy you after a hefty steak dinner, but if you need something to smoke and you haven’t eaten in a while, this won’t knock your socks off. It is marketed as a medium bodied smoke, but I just didn’t feel it.
Verdict:
I enjoyed this cigar as a cigar to smoke while I am doing something else. It’s not something I would want to smoke to take my mind off of a trying day at work. When I grill, I like to focus most of my attention on the act of cooking. I just need a dependable cigar that can get me through. This one has a flavor profile I like, construction that can’t be beat, and the price is right. I’m going to try to keep some of these for occasions such as this.
This cigar has the same flavor profile as the Arturo Fuente Sun Grown, but to a lesser extent. If you want a Fuente Sun Grown and are on a tight budget, those can easily cure your craving. For about $3 a pop, you can’t miss.
Popularity: 1% [?]
Tags: Arturo Fuente, Cigar Reviews, Don Tomas Cigars, General Cigar, Sun Grown
Topics: Cigar Reviews | No Comments »
Cigar Review: CAO Brazilia Gol!
By Alex | May 8, 2008
Brand: CAO Cigars
Line: Brazilia
Vitola: Gol! 5 x 56
Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Brazil
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Flavor: Full
Strength: Medium-Full
Price: $89.95 (Box of 20)
The CAO Brazilia has long been one of my favorite smokes–I always have a couple on hand in my humidor. It’s perfect for a quiet, contemplative smoke, which is what I was in the mood for tonight. So I grabbed one of these and headed outside with my MP3 player to enjoy a smoke on the porch. My wife was kind enough to bring me two fingers of scotch to go with it (Talisker Single Malt, Aged 18 Years), and I found that the combination of a beautiful spring evening, some Johnny Cash, and a great cigar and scotch pairing made for a fantastic evening.
As always, my cigar lit up well and evenly, and I was instantly hit with the delightful earthy tones of this cigar. It hit the right spicy notes with the aroma of hickory burning on a grill. I took a sip of scotch to go along with the cigar and immediately noticed that the few puffs after a sip combined with the flavor of the scotch for a delightful woody taste that I savored for awhile.
As the evening wore on, the burn stayed good, and didn’t require any touchup. The second third of the cigar made for that delightful change I’m used to–the move from the nice coffee flavors to more earthy tastes–almost reminiscent of truffles. The woody undertones remained, and as I sipped some scotch with it the flavor of the cigar became a little sweeter, and for a minute or so I could have sworn that the cigar took on a taste that I can only describe as a hint of toasted marshmallow, which complemented the earthy flavors.
By the time I got to the last third, the flavor changed yet again. The coffee tones were back, only this time with a hint of cream. At this point, that coffee and cream flavor mingled with the scotch to add undertones of hazelnut and the earthy truffle notes I’d detected in the first part of the cigar. As I finished the cigar, the coffee notes changed a little bit–almost reminiscent of espresso, and the scotch brought out some notes of honey and fennel. It was only reluctantly that I had to put the cigar down at this point, because I could no longer physically hold it.
As I smoked, the night went from light to dark, and a little breeze had picked up. A relaxing end to what had been a stress filled day.
Popularity: 3% [?]
Tags: Brazil, CAO Cigars, Cigar Reviews, Nicaragua
Topics: Cigar Reviews | 9 Comments »
Cigar Review: Puros Indios Viejo Toro
By Carl | May 7, 2008
Puros Indios (Reyes Family Cigars), has been around for years. Nearly everyone has heard of the hard working Mr. Reyes Sr. He is considered one of the best in the industry. This particular cigar has been rated 91 in Cigar Aficionado. This cigar is rolled then aged an additional 4 years for smoothness.
Popularity: 4% [?]
Tags: Cigar Reviews, Honduras, Puros Indios Cigars, Reyes Family Cigars
Topics: Cigar Reviews | 1 Comment »
Cigar Review: Camacho Coyolar Puro
By Jesse | May 6, 2008
Originally released in 2005 under the name "Say Uncle" the Camacho Coyolar Puro is the Eiora’s family first venture in using tobacco not from their farm. This cigar is full bodied and deserves your respect, after my first experience with this cigar I found out why.
Popularity: 7% [?]
Tags: Camacho Cigars, Cigar Reviews, Eiora, Honduras, Strong Cigars
Topics: Cigar Reviews | 3 Comments »
Cigar Review: Rocky Patel Decade Toro
By Eric | May 5, 2008
Commemorating Rocky Patel’s ten years of premium cigars is the Decade. Boasted as the best of Patel blends to date, this attractive line is made in Danlí Honduras at the El Paraiso factory. The Decade is donned with a yellow dual band making it quite clear you’re about to smoke a cigar ten years in the making. You can hear Rocky himself on this blend here.
Popularity: 7% [?]
Tags: Cigar Reviews, Honduras, Rocky Patel Cigars, Video
Topics: Cigar Reviews | 7 Comments »
