Cigar Review: Devil’s Weed

Devil's Weed

Last week I approached the in house resident aficionado of Barrister Cigars to be a guest reviewer here at acigarsmoker.com and he jumped at the chance. So welcome aboard to Andre/Toastie/Tiger Woo. The man with many nicknames, some of which are not fit for reprint is a welcomed adition to the site.

So without further adieu on to the review…

Cigar: Devil’s Weed
Origin: Dominican Republic
Size: 5.58 x 46 (Corona Gorda)
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic (4 leaves)

Appearance & Construction (19/20): Enveloped in white paper printed all over with “Devil’s Weed”, this cigar was an intriguing option, if not for its name alone. Its cartooned embossed band was reminiscent of comic book art, displaying a devilish head hiding behind stylized text. Disrobed, its greenish colorado wrapper gave me an optimism for the experience to come, revealing impeccable construction and a velvety hand.

Flavor & Notes (15/30): Pre-light, the stogie exhibited subtly sweet notes of sandalwood and classic tobacco. However, upon lighting there was an immediate turn: the classic notes were replaced by what can only be described as a muddy, algae-like flavor. To my dismay this continued throughout the smoke, later becoming a pronounced chalkiness; imagine bitter flour. I was certainly surprised by this experience as I’d heard this cigar was quite popular, but, to say the least, I did not enjoy it one bit. I would only recommend this cigar to an avid cigarette smoker, as it showed a very similar profile.

Burn/Ash/Draw (20/25): Though I had issues with the flavor profile of this smoke, there were very little faults otherwise. While the long-lived, light grey ash would have hinted to some degree of creaminess for me, there was none to be found. The burn was even up until the middle when there was a slight boating and the cigar extinguished itself. Upon relight, it burned evenly but remained unchanged in character.

Overall (15/25): Overall, this was a quite miserable experience for me. While the stogie had the appearance of a great smoke, alas it was not to be. The flavors were uncannily off-putting, causing me to grimace puff after puff.

Rating: 69
Price: 4.75

Cigar Review: My Father (Don Pepin)

My Fathey by Don Pepin Garcia

Well the man with more blends on the market then anyone I can think of has done it again. Although this cigar was released in September, it is first showing up in cigar shops around town and on the internet as well.  This blend is the result of a family effort as it is created by father (Don Pepin) and son (Jaime Garcia). It comes from the El Rey de los Habanos factory down Little Havana in Miami, Florida and is limited to 50,000 cigars per year.  This small little factory has produced a lot of great cigars lately, will this one live up to the hype?

Cigar: My Father
Origin: Little Havana, Miami, Florida
Size: 5.5 x 54 (No. 2 Belicoso)
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano with Criollo (Hybrid)
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Strength: Full

Appearance & Construction (17/20):I was a little shocked by the amount of veins in the wrapper as some of them were very prominent. It did not look like a cigar typical of this price range. The foot of the cigar was a little loose for my liking, but it was acceptable none the less. The band of the cigar is nicely done, though the pink was a tad feminine for a cigar being called “My Father”.

Flavor/Notes (26/30): The pre-light draw of the cigar offered some distinct notes of cinnamon. The same notes were available to the nose at the foot. Upon lighting the cigar, there is some of that trademark Pepin pepper but it is much more subdued then your typical Pepin smoke. The notes of the cigar at times were a bit all over the place for me, but there underlying base was cinnamon and mocha. Other notes were of wood, caramel, and espresso.

Burn/Ash/Draw (24/25): A nice gray ash accompanied this cigar that hell it’s ash very well. Despite a slightly jagged burn line I managed to hold on the my ash for almost half the cigar. The draw had a slight resistance that is to be expected with a belicoso and was very acceptable.

Overall (21/25): I smoked this cigar at the usual spot for me, and I can see now I will soon need to find a new location to do my reviews. The area is now pretty much in the shade and with temperatures this morning at my time of smoke in the mid to up 40′s it was a bit cold. The water on the horizon had a glacial feel to it, and the wind blowing was causing wisps of sands to blow across the sand. It reminded of me snow, and the winter months ahead. I share this because I feel the overall score the settings you smoke a cigar have to be taken into effect. Let’s face it an Opus X would be enjoyed much more among friends than with evil in-laws. As far as the characteristics of the smoke, they flavors were nice, but they jumped around for me a lot which gave me a headache. The price tag on this smoke it a bit hefty, and to be honest I do not think it is warranted. To me the La Aroma De Cuba Edicion Especial is a stick that is better and about 25% less in price.

Rating: 88
Price: $11.40 (Before Local Taxes)

Cigar Review: Arturo Fuente Don Carlos

Don Carlos

With my buddy Joe heading overseas for work we decided to meet up yesterday for a quick smoke of a cigar. It was a last minute thing, and since I am no longer carrying cigars with me other then my morning smoke due to the lack of natural humidity outside I had to stop at a local B&M to pick up these smokes.

I stopped over at The Humidor located at 9212 3rd Avenue in Brooklyn, NY which is where it all began for me as a cigar smoker. The well stocked humidor is full of goodies, and they have a nice little smoking area with comfortable chairs and tables.

Cigar: Arturo Fuente Don Carlos
Origin: Dominican Republic
Size: 5.75 x 52 (Double Robusto)
Wrapper: Cameroon
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic
Strength: Full

Pre-Smoke: The scent of the foot was an odd mix of some sweetness and peppercorns in this well rolled cigar which was firm to the touch  The wrapper looked very aged with little magnesium bumbs all over the place which for me is the sign of a cigar that will be enjoyed. The pre-light draw was that of anise.

Smoke: This full strength cigar offered some nice notes throughout the smoke, that starts off with some anise and nuts which is different then a lot of cigars I have reviewed lately. As I moved on to the second third of the cigar the nuts remained but were joined by some nice coffee notes. The final third of our smoke the coffee was joined by strong earthy notes. As a result the cigar had a very earthy finish.

Overall: The cigar was a little annoying for me from the start as I had draw issues that did not clear up til halfway through, but being this is a cigar I smoke on a semi-regular basis I can’t recall it happening in the past so it will not reflect the final score. As a rule of thumb I believe at least one cigar in every box will have some type of construction issue. It is not acceptable, but it does happen.

Rating: 89
Price: $11.50

Cigar Review: Avo 787

Avo 787

You still have time to enter the contest for a t-shirt in size LARGE and a 5 pack of cigars. Just look a couple of posts down and leave a comment on the contest posting post. Friday 10/10 at 10:00am we will draw a winner at random.

I’ve had this cigar aging in my humidor for about 7 months. I constantly put off smoking it because well, my experiences with the 787 have been disappointing to me in the past. But I got tired of looking it sit in there, alone and I decided it was time to smoke it and see if I would add more to the collection or let it go extinct.

The cigar is blended by Henkie Kellne who is the master blender at Davidoff and as many of you know I am a fan of Davidoff cigars. The cigar is supposedly a response to cigar aficionados around the world who wanted a cigar that is both sophisticated and rich.

The Skinny:

Cigar: Avo 787
Origin: Dominican Republic
Size: 5.25 x 52 Robusto
Wrapper: Ecuador Sungrown (Connecticut Seed)
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic
Strength: Medium

Pre-Smoke: While this cigar is a sun grown wrapper, it is not overly dark. The foot is free of stems, and the roll for an Avo cigar is a bit sloppy. The wrapper has a lot of veins and there are plenty of soft spots near the foot with notes of earth.  The foot I was able to pick up notes of earth and pepper (sneeze alert!). When I clipped the cap one thing entered my mind. Do they remove the stems/veins from the filler tobacco? I could not find one on either end of the cigar which is almost unheard of. The prelight draw was very loose and there were notes of nuts and a mint like taste as well.

Smoke: The burn line on this cigar was nice all the way through, however it did go out on me a couple of times. The first third of the cigar were notes of earth and some nuts, while on the second third the notes were nuts, and a slight chocolate with the earth in the background. The final third of the cigar was all earth. It was also an average smoke producer.

Overall: Disappointing. I think over the years my palate has become more refined and that I seek out certain types of cigars more than ever. When I first started smoking I could see liking the 787, but now as I crave the boutique cigars and there full flavor blends I am let down by a lot of cigars. This was one of those cigars. In time I think I will have to visit some Davidoff blends and see where they sit.

Rating: 85
Price: $11.00

Cigar Review: Man O’ War

Man O' War

I held off a long time on ordering the Man O’ War cigar since it seems to be mail order only and let’s face it most cigars that are limited to some of the big mail order houses are pretty awful. But I caved in when cigar.com had a special of 3 cigars for $5.00. Besides the Man O’ War you also got a Don Pepin cigar, and a Camacho cigar. I knew I enjoyed 2 of the 3 so at that price I could not pass it up.

The Skinny:

Cigar: Man O War
Origin: Nicaragua
Size: 6.5 x 52
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua

Pre-Smoke: When I took this cigar out of the humidor I sneaked a sniff of the foot and was blown away by the over abundance of mocha. I left it in my shirt pocket as I had sushi for lunch with a couple of friends and at the end of lunch when asked what cigar I had with me today I told my friend to take a sniff. He too was blown away by the strong notes of mocha and my other friend agreed as well. So we left lunch and headed to my smoking spot where a cold breeze was coming off the water. The wrapper of the Man O’ War cigar is very chocolate in color, with some very slight veins. The wrapper and pre-light draw offer mocha notes as well.

Smoke: Mocha. That is what this cigar is all about. It is a note all the way through the cigar. It is the aroma of the smoke and it is the finish. Also during the smoke you pick up some nuts and at the end it does become a little earthy but none of them compare to the mocha that at times can become overwhelming if you are not a fan. I however am. The burn line despite the strong breeze was acceptable. I never needed to touch it up, and I never needed to relight it.

Overall: I wish I did not wait this long to pick up this cigar. I also wish my local B&Ms had the cigar. Although I will add this disclaimer; if I did not like mocha this cigar would have been overkill defined.

Rating: 89
Price: $9.00 a stick or visit cigar.com to get one in a 3 for $5.00 special.

Cigar Review: Oliva Serie G Tubos

Barry recently got a few cigars from a user group he is a member of and being that I am huge fan of Oliva cigars I confiscated them for my own personal use. My name is Sonny and I used to own a cigar lounge in Brooklyn, NY for many years, I am the person who is responsible for Barry first picking up a cigar. While I taught him how to smoke a cigar, he has taught me how to enjoy a cigar. Even though I won’t be a regular contributor here at acigarsmoker.com I joined Barry at his favorite spot to smoke on a comfortable September morning and offered to review this cigar.

The Skinny:

Cigar: Oliva Series G
Size: 6 x 50 (Toro)
Wrapper: African Cameroon
Binder: Nicaraguan Habano
Filler: Nicaraguan Habano

Pre-Smoke: When I took the Oliva cigars off of Barry I agreed to do a review and on this fine morning it was something I was looking forward to. The cigar had fine notes of cherry on the wrapper, while the foot offered notes of Cherry with some cocoa added to it. The cigar was firm to the touch, and the wrapped showed some veins and white dots, almost like tiny white heads. I was informed this was little pockets of magnesium that should add to the quality of smoke. I clipped the cigar with Barry’s idiot proof cutter from hippotech and the pre-smoke draw was easy with notes of cherry and cedar.

Smoke: As you can see from the picture this is a cigar that held on to its ash for a long time. I was impressed with how tight it was and the light to medium color in gray it was. The strength of the cigar was medium, however it was full flavor. The cigar offered notes of chocolate that got bitterer as the cigar went on. Accompanying the chocolate was notes of coffee in the final two thirds, and some cedar was mixed in throughout the cigar as well. The finish of the cigar was very nutty and it remained with me for quite sometime which was very welcomed.

Overall: I was very impressed with the Oliva Series G cigar and it was without a doubt the best Oliva I ever smoked. The cigar seems to have been well aged, and it was stored in proper conditions as well. The cigar was a great way to start the day.

Rating: 92
Price: $37.00 a box of 10

Cigar Review: La Aroma De Cuba Edicion Especial

One reason why I personally almost never order from online is because I like walking into a brick & mortar and being recognized by the owner or workers. Yesterday was a perfect example of this when I walked into the Cigar Vault in Brooklyn, NY. The owner, Joe saw me walk in and before you knew it he came over to me and said, “Barry, how have you been we got some new editions in the humidor this week let me show you”. You do not get that from shopping online. As we were completing my purchases he also informed me, “Barry I know how much you love the Opus X, those are coming in next week. It appears this is the Christmas shipment, and after that who knows because of all the flooding they had down there”. Its stores that go the extra mile to keep you informed that keep me coming back.

Today’s cigar was one of the new sticks that came in and I picked up a few most of which were for myself, and some to give my BOTLs over at cigarlive.com. So on a typical fall morning, with overcast skies, and the sea a color of steel I dove right into this one straight from the store.

Cigar: La Aroma De Cuba Edicion Especial
Origin: Nicaragua
Size: 5.5 x 52 (No. 5)
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sun Grown
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua

Pre-Smoke: This cigar is blended by Jose Pepin Garcia and is handcrafted in small batch fashion by a group of master rollers. The wrapper of this cigar has a beautiful color to it although it has some veins that stand out. The wrapper appears a little brittle, but it has a nice amount of oils showing as well. The scent of the wrapper was cedar and the foot offered notes of spices and wood. The pre-light draw was perfect and it too was woody.  I was pretty stoked because this did not seem like a typical Pepin smoke.

Smoke: Upon lighting the cigar up, I was happy to see this cigar did not have the signature pepper blast that Pepin cigars seem to have. To be honest I am getting rather tired of a lot of the Pepin blends being similar. The first third of the cigar offered heavy wood with some cinnamon notes that became stronger as I reached the 2nd third. In the final third, the wood which remained dominant throughout was joined by some earth and leather.

Overall: This medium to full bodied smoke was totally different then the regular La Aroma De Cuba which was very welcomed by this reviewer in fact the only thing similar was the band. The finish was woody with some spices that lasted long after the smoke that left me very content. It also managed to rekindle my interest in Pepin cigars. If you see this cigar on the shelf I suggest you pick up a handful, as you will not be disappointed.

Rating: 92
Price: $8.50

Ed. Note: I forgot to take a picture as I was smoking the cigar, and the photo is compliments of the Ashton Website… When I smoke another one this week I will replace the photo.

Cigar Review: Oliveros XL For Men

Starting next week our reviews will be posted 3 days a week, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Today’s review came to me as a gift from a member of cigarlive.com.

The Skinny:

Cigar: Oliveros XL For Men
Size: 5 x 52 (XL/52)
Wrapper: Brazilian Maduro
Binder: Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro
Filler: Nicaragua, Honduras, Dominican

Pre-Smoke: At first look the cigar is a nice looking toothy cigar. However, upon closer inspection the cigar reveals an ugly amateur cap that is lopsided with horrible leaf cuts. Continuing the inspection of the cigar there are crooked leaf cuts on the wrapper making this one amateur looking stick. The prelight wrapper offered notes of sweet spices and the foot offered wood and pepper that put me in a sneezing fit. The prelight draw was woody and spicy and it was a little tight.

Smoke: Upon first lighting the cigar I was taken aback by some notes of ammonia that made me angry. I realize a lot of cigar companies don’t have the space to properly age a cigar, but why they release a cigar to the market that is not yet ready is beyond me. Mixed in with the ammonia there was some pepper and earth, but the ammonia took away from the cigar.

Overall: I wonder if this cigar came from the same factory as Cusano, because it was very similar to almost every horrible experience I have had with them. For a cigar to be put on the market not yet ready to smoke is deplorable and embarrassing for the manufacturer. Stay away from the XL For Men. A lot of people think that cigar companies buy rating from major magazines and this cigar might back up that notion as Cigar Insider/Cigar Aficionado gave it a 90.

Rating: 65
Price: $5.00

Cigar Review: 5 Vegas Miami

With the New York Jets, my team in the NFL coming out of Miami with a win I decided to pull this stick out of my humidor as a victory cigar. As a fan of Gang Green, I have high hopes this season with the addition of Brett Favre. According to the 5 Vegas website they say the following about the 5 Vegas Miami cigar,

Miami represents the most elusive blend in the celebrated portfolio of 5 Vegas. Carefully handcrafted with a blend of 1st generation Cuban-seed Nicaraguan long-leaf tobaccos that have been patiently aged and expertly fermented, the Miami caters to the most discerning of palates.

Miami features six standard shapes. Five from Nicaragua, and one from America’s little Cuba: Miami, Florida. This vitola, a shaggy-foot toro, is produced in extremely limited quantities by only our top echelon cigar artisans.

The Skinny:

Cigar: 5 Vegas Miami
Origin: Nicaragua
Size: 6 x 48 (Toro)
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Corojo
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Cuban seed Nicaragua & Dominican

Pre-Smoke: Looking at this cigar it a fairly ugly looking stick, or a stick with a lot of character. Do you look at a glass half empty or half full? The cigar had a lot of veins and was very bumpy. The scent of the wrapper was woody, while the scent of the foot was full out pepper. The pre-light draw was that of pepper and earth. Pretty much making these cigars a typical Don Pepin Garcia blend.

Smoke: The cigar is full bodied cigar with notes of pepper, leather and earth. Occasionally I picked up some wood notes as well. The draw on the cigar was tight and became a little annoying after a while. The highlight of this cigar was the burn. If you can envision in your mind what the perfect burn is, that is what the 5 Vegas Miami offered.  The finish was leather.

Overall: I was talking the other day with an owner of a well known tobacco farm in Ecuador and I told him I was getting a little tired of Don Pepin Garcia as all his blends while good are getting a bit repetitive. He informed me that Don Pepin Garcia just obtained a large amount of Ecuadorian grown wrapper for a future blend. This is something I am looking forward to, but more and more I feel like the cigar I am smoking that was blended by DPG is a rerun.

Rating: 87
Price: $8.00

Cigar Review: Cabaiguan Guapos

Over the next week or so the updates to this website will be sparse as my schedule will not allow me to update. It is the primary reason updates have been slow over the last 2 weeks. For this I apologize.

Today’s review is yet another Pete Johnson cigar. The Cabaiguan cigar is created in Miami in the tradition of Cuban cigars, the label of the cigar has the word Cuba to the left of the logo and Miami to the right of the logo. Cabaiguan is named for a city in the northern Sancti Spintus province that is home to some of the most knowledgeable cigar men in Cuba.

The Skinny:

Cigar: Cabaiguan
Origin: Miami
Size: 5.58 x 54 (Guapos)
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sungrown
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua

Pre-Smoke: As with all Pete Johnson creations the cigar appears to be perfect. From the pigtail to the foot the cigar is flawless. It is firm to the touch being very well packed with tobacco. The scent of the cigar is spices with slight wood notes on the wrapper and the foot. The pre-light draw is perfect and offers notes of tobacco and wood.

Smoke: I lit this baby up at 8:30am or a dismal cloudy day. The beach had red warning flags up warning people of the dangerous surf as Tropical Storm Hanna approached. Despite this as I smoked my cigar people kept making their way on to the beach this morning. The cigar had a great draw and was mild despite an initial burst of pepper on the light. The cigar required some serious concentration to pick up the notes. Perhaps this is a sign of fall allergies setting in on my part. The notes of the cigar consisted of subtle spices, coffee and wood with each taking turns in the limelight so to speak.

Overall: This well packed, well blended cigar smoked nice and slow, taking me just under two hours to smoke. It is the 4th cigar I had of this line and each cigar was identical which was a nice. As with all Pete Johnson cigars it is hard to find, but you can order them from silocigars.com

Rating: 90
Price: $10.00