Cigar Review: Casa Magna

Casa Magna

One of the hold backs on me not doing reviews is I smoke the cigar, and I don’t have a camera to take the photo, so I upgraded my cell phone to a blackberry curve which has a 2.0 mega-pixel camera on it. Well today I once again did not have my camera on me, but I was able to snap a photo anyway. While the quality is not the best, you can still make out the cigar and label.

On Black Friday some guys from cigaroutcast.com (if your not a member and need an invite, drop me a line) got together to smoke for charity. We raised money for underprivileged kids for the holiday season. So thanks to us puffing away we were able to donate some money raised from raffles. Once again a big thank you you goes out to Steve from CAO, John from Altadis, Jim From Arganese, Xikar, and host by Goodfella’s Cigars in Long Island, NY. If you have not tried any of these products I suggest you do so. Not just because they were so kind to donate, but because they have some truly good smokes and stuff! During the event Scott who is a great Brother Of The Leaf hit me up with a Casa Magna which I smoked at the event and truly enjoyed. He gave me a second one to smoke this morning for me to formulate my review.

Cigar: Casa Magna
Origin: Nicaragua
Size: 4.75 x 60 (Torito)
Wrapper: Nicaragua (Colorado)
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Strength: Medium

Appearance & Construction (19/20): This cigar features a gorgeous Colorado wrapper which visually is one of my favorites due to the brindle effect many of them have. The cigar featured a triple cap which was slightly off center on both of my cigars. The wrapper was glistening with oil and was very firm to the touch. The cigar had a lot of veins but none of them were too big for my liking. The Casa Magna is very well packed and has a nice weight to it as well.

Flavor & Notes (27/30): On the pre-light this cigar seems like it might be heavy on pepper notes but once you light this stick up it is totally not the case. The cigar offers some nice notes of caramel/toffee with a hint of coffee during the first third. As we approached the middle of the stick the Toffee remains with a touch of mocha. The Casa Magna concludes with Coffee, slight mocha and a little bit of earth.

Burn/Ash/Draw (20/25): I will admit I am an ash man. I like a nice firm ash that holds on and this stick did not disappoint. One draw back might be the fact it was a tad difficult to get it started properly due to the girth of the smoke. But once you did the burn line was pretty good. At times I thought I might be having a canoe in the making but it never got out of hand and it corrected itself on its own. Another potential issue is the draw, while it bordered on tough, it was doable. A little more and I might not have smoked the stick.

Overall (23/25): The positives of this cigar out weigh the negatives and it was a very nice smoke I could see becoming a staple in my repertoire. The cigar is made in the Nestor Plascencia factory which is located in Esteli, Nicaragua. I also read on the net while researching the make up of the cigar that is meant to serve as a replacement for the Joya De Nicaragua which I can’t confirm. The next time I run into the Drew Estate rep I will ask him, since they are distributing the Joya.

Rating: 89
Price: 6.00

Cigar Review: Joya De Nicaragua Antano 1970

Joya De Nicaragua Antano 1970

As the winter approaches my smoking habits begin to change. I smoke a little less often and I tend to smoke cigars that are stronger then the ones I smoke in the summer. I am not really sure why I do this, but perhaps subconsciously I hope a stronger cigar will warm me up as I smoke. You see I never smoke in my house, and I shy away from doing reviews in a crowded smoke shop when other people smoking can contaminate what I am smoking.

Today’s cigar has a distinct history as it is the first cigar ever produced in Nicaragua. In 1964 when the first cigar factory opened in Nicaragua this cigar hit the market. In 1970 the cigar began to gain popularity in the United States and it was smoked by many politicians.

However as the region became unstable the production of the Joya De Nicaragua ground to a halt. It disappeared from the market until 2002 when the cigar was resurrected. Todays Joya De Nicaragua Anatno 1970 is a tribute to that original cigar which put Nicaragua on the cigar making map.

Cigar: Joya De Nicaragua Antano 1970
Origin: Nicaragua
Size: 4.75 x 60 (Gran Consul)
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Strength: Full

Pre-Smoke: While the Joya comes in many sizes the cigar I smoked has a huge ring gauge but its tapered tip allows you to cut it to a ring gauge of your preference. With my idiot proof cutter back in hand I cut the cigar which had some sweet molasses notes on the foot. The cigar itself is a very oily sticky with some toothy characteristics. The pre-light draw offered a lot of spice.

Smoke: While I normally break down a cigar in thirds this cigar has two distinct regions. The first half of the cigar has a lot of leather and spice in the notes. The leather notes can be overpowering at first but as you smoke the cigar it smooths out some. In the second half while the notes of leather and spice remain it is offset by notes of nuts which help ease the strength some.

Overall: This is one knock you on your ass cigar. The flavor of the cigar though makes it an enjoyable full bodied smoke that I visit from time to time, especially in the winter months as stated above.However its leathery finish requires you keep water handy when smoking this stick.

Rating: 87
Price: $7.00

In my previous blog entry one of the readers asked me to show what the package I received from Smoke magazine looked like. Below is the package I received from smoke magazine. They want my reviews of the smokes (5 cigars, 3 of each to sample) by November 15th.

Cigars from Cigar Magazine to Review for Publication

Cigar Review: Carlos Torano Tribute 2008

I have been blessed with having the local CAO International Rep as a fan of my website. I shall leave him without a name at his request, but when I first started the blog, he was very supportive of my endeavor. Recently, I reviewed the Carlos Torano Noventa which was a stick I obtained from friends. When the local CAO International rep saw the review, he let his bosses know over at Carlos Torano and they contacted me offering to send me today’s cigar for review.

The Skinny:

Cigar: Carlos Torano Tribute 2008
Size: 5 x 48
Wrapper: Brazilian Mata Fina Triple Fermented
Binder: Nicaragua (Pueblo Nuevo)
Filler: Nicaragua (Esteli & Jalapa)

The Tribute is not due to hit shelves for about a month, so I consider myself very lucky to have obtained one to smoke. The cigar is limited to 72,000 sticks and will be available in 3 sizes in which 1,200 boxes of 20 cigars each will be released. Each box of this release is individually numbered.

Pre-Smoke: The wrapper on this cigar looked like chocolate candy which was visually pleasing to me since I am on a diet. The cigar had some veins but none of them were more than surface veins so they did not detract from the beauty. The roll was seamless, and I cut the cap with my idiot proof hippotech cutter. The wrapper offered very faint notes of mocha, while the foot was a strong mocha note with some pepper. The cigar itself was very firm to the touch, with the exception of one soft spot/pocket about 1/4 inch from the foot.  The pre-light draw was great with notes of mocha and some spices.

Smoke: It was a beautiful morning to light this cigar up. There was a gentle breeze coming in off the water which was looking very rough with white caps as far as the eye can see. The sky was sprinkled with clouds, and visibility was endless. I found myself thinking, that I could realize how they thought the world was flat at one time. As I lit the cigar I took my first pull I verbally said out loud, “Wow!” The strength of flavors that came off this cigar was incredible. In the initial third I picked up notes of mocha, with some nuttiness and coffee that was occasionally joined with some raspberries. As the middle third arrived the raspberries were gone and I had strong coffee notes with some mocha and nuts. The final third of the cigar became a little bitter for me; however this bitterness was an enjoyable mix of coffee, nuts and leather.

Overall: This is yet another great Torano cigar which I am enjoying more and more as a company. The burn line was great, the ash was tight and light while the draw was perfection defined. I look forward to smoking some more Torano cigars as the year winds down including the new sizes they offered at the trade show for existing lines. The Exodus 1959 has added an Exodus Churchill (6.75 x 47). The regular Carlos Torano line has added the Virtuoso Baton (7.5 x 38) and finally the Exodus 1959 Silver Edition has added a Toro Elegante (5.5 x 55).

Rating: 91
Price: $Unknown

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

Cigar Review: Carlos Torano Noventa

The other day I was out with a friend of mine at Sushi Samba in the city and we began to talk about of all things, fireflies aka lightening bugs. While I am more than 10 years older then her we both remember there being an abundance of them around when we were little. We reminisced about how we would catch them in cups or in our hands and watch them light up. We also commented on how you never see these bugs anymore. I think of all the bugs one has to deal with in their backyard these were the most welcomed. They were an essential part of the summer, and are nowhere to be found anymore. I found it ironic that Fox News had a story about this on their website last night, if you want to read it you can do so here.

The Skinny:

Cigar: Carlos Torano Noventa
Origin: Nicaragua
Size: 5 x 50 (Robusto)
Wrapper: Habano Nicaragua
Binder: Habano Nicaragua
Filler: Pueblo Nuevo, Esteli, Jalapa and Condega (Nicaraguan Regions)

Pre-Smoke: I actually smoked this cigar 24 hours before posting the review. It was an overcast morning, and the beach on this Labor Day weekend was desolate. There was a strong breeze coming in off the water and it made it very comfortable to smoke. The scent of the wrapper was a very feint caramel while the foot revealed some notes of raisins and vanilla. The wrapper itself was very oily and virtually without veins. This was one classy looking cigar. On the pre-light draw I got notes of cedar and vanilla.

Smoke: Upon lighting this cigar the first drops of rain began to fall and I had to move inside my car to smoke. Luckily the rain was a drizzle so I was able to keep the windows open. The first third of the cigar had notes of cedar and caramel. As the second third began I picked up a few citrus notes that were very quick, a hit and run so to speak. The notes of caramel remained and we joined by some spice in the final third of the cigar.

Overall: I had a very hard time putting it down and smoked it til I burned my lips and fingers. The cigar was very enjoyable, and the best Carlos Torano I ever had. It has some similarities to that of a Padron 1964 but at the same time it’s identity was its own. This was truly a wonderful smoke, albeit a bit pricey.

Rating: 90
Price: 13.00

Cigar Review: Nub Habano 358

The Skinny:

Cigar: Nub Habano 358
Origin: Nicaragua
Length/Ring: 3.75″ x 58
Shape: Nub
Wrapper: Habano

I had a little conversation with the Rocky Patel rep the other day while over at Barrister Cigars during the launch event for the Rocky Patel summer series and they were moved to follow the same game plan that Sam Leccia was following for the Nub. They felt the hype created by the Nub was unmatched by any other cigar in a long time.

Fast forward to the other day when I was sitting around the table at Barrister Cigars and we were discussing the potential staying power of the Nub. Because let’s face it, at first appearance it looks like a novelty. Will the cigar last, I think it has potential, but not at the current hype the cigar is getting. The cigar has a few issues that will have to be addressed, one of which is the wrapper tends to crack or split during smoking from time to time. More so then other cigars.

Pre-Light:
The cigars had some oils visible on the wrapper as well as some glue from the label. There was a lot of glue to be precise, but I sniffed glue in the past, so why not smoke it. The cigar was spongy to the touch, and my humidor has been perfection all summer long with a 68 % humidity and 65-68 degrees. On the pre-light the draw was smooth and had hints of tea and it reminded me of freshly cut grass. Meanwhile to the tongue I managed to get the sense of tea and pepper.

Smoke: What amazaes me about the Nub is the cigar does not get hot this includes smoking it all the way down til you can’t hold it no more. It remains cool to the touch and to the palate. The cigar was full-bodied and I had zero problems with the draw. The taste was true to the scent for the most part. I was able to taste Tea, Grass/Hay/Earthy notes, and some cedar. My one problem is that about half way though I developed a 1/2 inch split in the wrapper.  These production issues have to be fixed in my eyes for the cigar to remain popular.

Overall, I am a big fan of the Nub. For me the cigar isn’t as good as the Cameroon version, but they are very close. For now the Nub has me as something I enjoy smoking. However, I could see my patience running thin if the cracks continue to happen. For now I will just chalk it up to the demand.

Price: $4.75
Rating: 88 (Out of 100)