Tasting Notes:

Well constructed, honestly I don’t think I’ve ever seen a poorly constructed cigar from Tatuaje. The cigar is firm but has a fantastic draw. I’m picking up some black pepper before lighting it, leaving my mouth tingling.

After lighting up the first third is dominated by the spice, with a nice heavy smoke that coats your mouth. The spice mellows a bit around the halfway mark, picking up some leather, wood, and black coffee. I’m a bit surprised that I can feel a faint nicotine buzz, rather pleasant, I don’t know the last time a cigar gave me one. The cigar finished up much like the second third, though definitely picking up some sweeter notes.

Overall:

Definitely a stronger, later in the day cigar. I suggest you take your time with it, and not have an empty stomach. I’ll be picking up two or three boxes soon. This is probably one of my top five cigars for 2011 and be one of  my go to evening smokes.

Sponsored By: The Party Source Welcome cigar enthusiasts and aficionados. We are delighted to provide you with immediate, any time access to the premier cigar humidor in the region.

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I know this is a newer release from Pinar Del Rio, but I can’t find much information on this cigar except that it is Dominican and Nicaraguan Blend made in Dominican Republic. I picked up a Toro for under $4 as one of the cigars to try on my vacation. Finally getting a moment of peace after a rather hectic vacation I sat down to try this cigar.

The PDR 1878 Cubano Especial has a mild-medium, but much complexity. Unfortunately the first one I tried was later in the day and I couldn’t pick up many of the subtle flavors. Even smoking this cigar in the morning I’m not sure I picked up everything, some of the flavors were a bit elusive. The cigar gave off plenty of smoke that felt smooth and creamy in the mouth, complimenting well my morning cup of coffee. The main flavors come across as nuts and coffee with an overlay of something floral, being a farm boy I couldn’t help but think of alfalfa or clover hay.

Verdict: Make this one of the first cigars you smoke in the day or you might miss out on what it has to offer. I thought it paired well pretty well with my coffee with cream and sugar. I’ll be adding the reasonably priced Connecticut to my buy list. Pinar Del Rio Cigars available at The Party Source.

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General Cigars Announced the La Gloria Cubana Artesanos De Tabaqueros back in April on the Team La Gloria Site. Tonight this was a special cigar presented to us as a surprise at The Party Source’s weekly cigar tasting. Typically I scan through press releases and ignore most of what is said since you can’t smoke words. This press release did a great job though describing some of the work that went into this cigar.

Created by Team La Gloria Cubana to showcase the artistry of La Gloria Cubana “tabaqueros” (artisan cigar makers), Artesanos de Tabaqueros cigars are a stunning embodiment of the time-honored craft of cigar making. So exacting is the skill required to handcraft cigars of this complexity that Benji Menendez personally selected an elite group of just 18 master cigar makers, representing the cream of the crop from El Credito Cigar Factory in the Dominican Republic.

Meticulously crafted to combine two different wrappers and two distinct tastes in one eye-catching cigar, Artesanos de Tabaqueros is a world-class smoke that opens to a rich and intriguing spice and ultimately reveals a depth of flavor that can only be achieved through a precise balance of unique and rare tobaccos. Hand selected from General Cigar’s extensive library of Dominican and Honduran tobaccos, the cigars are dressed in both a supple Connecticut Shade and hearty Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper. The blend is made solely of proprietary tobaccos, each aged five years or more.

 

Also while poking around the Team La Gloria site I found this video which takes a look at this cigar being made. It is fairly short and to the point.

Now, on to my impression of the La Gloria Cubana Artesanos de Tabaqueros. When the local sales representative from General Cigars, David Crowe, handed me this cigar the first thing I did was push it up out of the cellophane enough to smell it. Immediately I could smell a very rich barnyard smell. I couldn’t wait to sit down and smoke this cigar. The presentation is beautiful. When you crack open a box you don’t want to smoke them, you want to put them on the mantle.

Almost all the cigars I’ve smoked in the past with two different wrappers would often have burn issues, but this cigar burned perfectly right through the transition. The Artesanos de Tabaqueros isn’t tightly filled cigar it has quite a bit of give to it, but the draw is right.

I was told there is ligero in the filler and it definitely stands out with that familiar bite you’d expect. The Connecticut Shade end start off with earthiness, hay and a little black coffee. There is a definite change once the Ecuadorian Sumatra Maduro takes over, with rich bittersweet dark chocolate coming through. The coffee is still hanging around along with nuttiness and touch of cinnamon. It finishes as well as it starts, rich and smooth right to the end.

Verdict: I admit I don’t pay much attention to what the big cigar manufacturers release year to year, because honestly most haven’t really impressed. This is completely different. This is a beautiful cigar that I’d love to share with someone, in fact I plan to take two on vacation to share with my father. In my local shop this cigar retails for $8.00 and for a difficult to make unique cigar it is a reasonable price. A definite must buy if you can find them.

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The Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial is the second cigar to be blended and released by Jaime Garcia the son of Don Pepin Garcia. Typically I’m not a fan of cigars over a 50 Ring Gauge, but the vitola I reach for most often of this cigar is the 6×54 Toro. The Reserva Especial has dark Connecticut broadleaf maduro wrapper wrapped around Nicaraguan binder and filler. The filler is a blend of tobacco from the Garcia family and some from the Oliva family farms. There seems to be conflicting information on the binder as I’m seeing both Nicaraguan and Ecuadorian listed on the sites I checked. Unfortunately the My Father Cigars website has nothing listed as the cigar appears to be under construction. I picked these up at The Party Source for $6.40 each.

Each one of these dark maduros I smoked was very well constructed. The cigars have a nice weight to them and all six smoked down to almost nothing. Unlit the Reserva Especial has a distinctive smell you associate with a good maduro with rich tobacco flavors even coming through before lighting. Large ring gauges and broadleaf wrappers seem to lead to burn issues for me, but besides the occasional touch these burned very well.

The cigar starts off with a bit of spice before settling down and the maduro sweetness comes through. The smoke is thick and lingers in the mouth a bit creamy on the palette. The spice is always in the background a little hint of pepper underneath the dark chocolate, leather and coffee. The flavors do change throughout the smoke, sometimes the spice coming through heavier or the chocolate fading into the background.

Verdict: I go through phases where I enjoy different types of cigars more than others. Lately I’ve been smoking more maduros and the Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial hits the spot. I am always a bit disappointed when I’m finished with this cigar, wishing there was just a bit more to smoke without burning my fingers.

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You’ve probably already seen a few reviews of this cigar, but I met with Jon Huber at a local event recently and he sent me a few samples. He mentioned the misplaced band since it came off easy enough I made a quick alteration to repair it.

I’m a big fan of the original CAO La Traviata and not the only one at least according to #CigarChat. So you can bet I was eager to try this. The five pack I got didn’t last long and since I just smoked the last one time to write up a review.

Everyone I had was well made, no issues with a burn or bad draw and a nice dark brown Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro. Having the same Cameroon binder and Nicaraguan/Dominican filler as the original line you can get a chance to see the difference a wrapper can make in a blend.

I didn’t realize the huge difference the wrapper can make in a cigar until I smoked these two cigars back to back. Both have a good amount of spice but the pepper is more predominant in the Maduro. Along with the spice the cigar is a rich cocoa and the smoke heavy in the mouth. It reminded me of combination of a Snickers bar combined with a bit of cayenne pepper.

Verdict: If the price is the same as the original or even slightly more this cigar is homerun. It is a satisfying smoke all around. I’m eagerly waiting for the Maduro to hit the shelves. Now it is time to purchase a bigger laptop case I can smuggle boxes home in instead of just singles. The wife is getting suspicious…

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I’m finally getting back to writing a review. These cigars recently showed up at my local shop and were recently featured in one of the weekly cigar events.  The Nick’s Sticks is a Nicaraguan Puro that is a revival of a cigar made in Nick Perdomo’s first cigar factory in Miami, FL during the mid 90′s. The cigar is reasonably priced under $60/box.

Medium to Full Bodied, but not the smoothest smoke not a cigar I’d suggest for a new cigar smoker. Predominately earth and woodiness with a spicy finish. No big flavor changes throughout the smoke.

I’ve been enjoying these during the day when I work from home or around the yard. They cigar is straight forward, no subtle flavor changes. Good cigar for the price.

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Thanks to all of you who participated in last night’s #cigarchat event, which was sponsored by CAO Cigars and Blue Havana cigar shop in Chicago. You can find a full transcript of the conversation here.

Here are a few of your tasting notes from the chat (and if you don’t like that, here’s our full review of the CAO La Traviata.):

1. mikethebig1: Well constructed, great flavor, nicely priced. (Link)

2. andym78: smooth draw, great flavor (spice, coffee, sweetness) medium body, all round great smoke! (Link)

3. keith1911: Great draw, lots of flavor (spice, leather, coffee, & sweetness), at a great price! (Link)

4. planetrussell: La Traviata uniformly excellent…and beautiful. (Link)

5. pappyferrara: The La Traviata is a great balance of Strength and Flavor. Great Construction and perfect draw. (Link)

6. shing999: The burn and draw have been perfect, still some spice on the retro and tasting a bit of dark chocolate now. (Link)

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Considering I’ve smoked over a box of the Carlos Torano Exodus 1959 50 Years Short Churchills it was time to write the review. I meant to write it about a month ago, but the holidays and the kids bringing home colds to share forced me to cut back on how much I’ve been smoking.

The Exodus 1959 50 Years commemorates the 50th Anniversary of the Torano Family’s exodus from Cuba and is the third cigar to join the Exodus line. It is available in three sizes Robusto (5 X 50), Torpedo (5 1/2 X 52) and Short Churchill (6 X 48). The Wrapper is Brazilian Arapiraca Sun-Grown, the Binder is Honduran and the Filler is a blend of Nicaraguan tobacco from Esteli and Pueblo Nuevo.

Already a fan of Brazilian tobacco and the Exodus line it didn’t take much for me to fall in love with this full bodied, full flavored cigar. I’ve smoked all three sizes and haven’t had any issues with the construction. I’m impressed when I can go through 30+ cigars of the same blend and not have any issues. The cigar has a spicy bite that is mellowed some by the sweet dark chocolate flavor and the finish had a leather quality to it. Occasionally I picked up something that reminded me a bit of coffee with cream and sugar.

Verdict: For the past couple of months this has been my go to cigar. This is my favorite cigar of 2009. A fantastic full flavored cigar that is reasonably priced at under $7.00 in my local shop. If you find them don’t get one or two, get a box. Available at The Party Source (Call to Order 1-866-78CIGAR)

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Here are your Twitter reviews from tonight’s #cigarchat event:

1. shiru54: The Vintage Especial form @TesaCigars is a mild smoke w/hints of leather and stronger cedar. mild throughout. # (Link)

2. shiru54: Didn’t heat up till nubby. ash was consistant, but feathery. prob due to me movin round too much. great for new smokers #cigarchat (Link)

3. noellechun: Vintage especial from tesa is lovely. Mild with just a little spice. Perfect with scotch #Cigarchat (Link)

4. vusumuzi: My Vintage Especial was perfectly accompanied by some Johnny Walker. Smoky, meaty flavor. Smooth, with a good draw. (Link)

5. thotful: This Vintage Especial from Tesa is a smooth flavorful smoke. Lush on the palate. Nice leather n cedar notes, not overpowering #cigarchat (Link)

6. DanielHonigman: My take on the @TesaCigarCo Vintage Especial: Leathery, toasty. Lighter than I usually smoke, but very pleasant. #cigarchat (Link)

7. YourFriendEvan: I loved the spice & cedar, but it burnt a bit funny. I blame no matches. (Link)

8. mcangeli: There’s a bit of a woody flavor on this Tesa. Not bad. Nice draw #cigarchat (Link)

9. mcangeli: Also has a nice even burn on it… #cigarchat (Link)

10. mcangeli: Not bad ash either… http://twitpic.com/xqucm #cigarchat (Link)

11. mcangeli: Wrapper is coming undone. Blaming it on the weather here in GA http://twitpic.com/xqutn #cigarchat (Link)

…and my favorite of the night:

12. LenKendall: Interesting tasting note: The Vintage Especial tastes like a good omelet #cigarchat (Link)

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CAO’s latest cigar has a more traditional feel than some of the releases they’ve done in the past few years. La Traviata is an old Cuban brand back from the turn of the 20th Century that began its life in Tabacalera Cubana, Agramonte no. 106. CAO resurrected the brand and tried to stay true to its traditional roots in taste and presentation. It boasts a Ecuadorian Habano Wrapper, Cameroon Binder along with Nicaraguan and Dominican Filler.

The Intrepido is 7 X 54, a larger cigar than what I typically smoke, but this is what I reach for on Monday afternoon when I’m finishing up work from home. I usually finish it up just in time to sit down for dinner around 2 1/2 to 3 hours to smoke.

One of the big things I’m looking for in a cigar is consistency I’ve smoked close to 20 of these and everyone has been dead on. The last one gave me a little trouble with the draw at the start, but quickly corrected by cutting a bit more of the cap off.

The cigar doesn’t go through any big flavor changes as you smoke it, a constant medium-full cigar. Cedar, Leather and pepper are the dominate flavors with a hint of black licorice rounding it out. The La Traviata has a creamy finish that lingers on the palate for a bit especially in the first 2/3′s of the cigar.

Verdict: The suggest price of this cigar is $4.95 to $5.75 and very good cigar for the price. I’m usually not one to call watch how others rate a cigar, but I wanted to mention that Cigar Insider gave this a 93 Rating making it CAO’s highest rated cigar in over 10 years. The CAO La Traviata is one of two cigars that I think are the best bang for the buck. Inexpensive, good flavor and consistent.

Disclosure: All cigars for this review were purchased by me, no freebies this time.

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