“Smoked Up” No.65
This installment of “Smoked Up” is a double installment. I didn’t smoke a whole lot of cigars over the last two weeks, so I decided to combine them all into one. I was enjoying the nice spring weather by playing with my daughter out in the yard, working in the garden, doing some much needed yard work and putting up an above ground pool for the family. Seemed like perfect times to enjoy a cigar, but I just didn’t get around to toasting one up. I did get 2 reviews out. One of the new Partagas 1845 Extra Oscuro Robusto Gordo last week. I was going to get another review out on this past Monday, but the weather got severe here and had a tornado in the area. So that kept me on the couch. Check out the review and give me some of your thoughts on it and the cigar if you have gotten your hands on it yet.
Cigar Views
CAO Flathead 554: I have had this cigar since a week or so prior to their release. I was planning on doing a full review and still think I will. I tried this cigar (previously) fresh off the truck and was a pretty tasty smoke. Its still the same today and has some unique flavors to it. There were herbal hints with some cocoa and a tad bit of some earthiness to it as well. The ashes were amazingly long as the rounded box press held them on nicely. Overall an interesting smoke I will be taking a detailed look at later on in the near future.
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Recluse Cigar Announces Amadeus
PRESS RELEASE:
We at Iconic Leaf Cigar are pleased to announce the newest addition to our Recluse family of cigars.
RECLUSE
AMADEUS
Blend specs:
Wrapper: Conn. Seed, Ecuadorian shade (Grade A)
Binder: MBC (Propriotary)
Filler: Dominican Ligero, Dominican Viso, Dominican Seco, Conn. Broadleaf
The Recluse Amadeus blend will be in keeping with our two year fermentation process and 100% Entubar rolling style. We have truly outdone ourselves with this new offering. The cigar is rich and flavorful with a smoothness that is undeniably Recluse. This new offering will be released IPCPR 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 19th, 2014. We will have an advance release to select retailers on June 15th, 2014..
The Amadeus will be available in the following six facings:
Robusto 5×52 msrp $7.50 (Box pressed)
Toro 6 1/4×50 msrp $8.50 (Box pressed)
Tarantula 6×60 msrp $9.50 (Box pressed)
Sidewinder 1 5×57 msrp $8.50 (Special Edition)
Sidewinder 2 6×57 msrp $9.50 (Special Edition)
Sidewinder 3 7×57 msrp $10.50 (Special Edition)
Follow us on:
Facebook at: Recluse Cigars
Twitter at: @RecluseCigars
Instagram at: reclusecigar
To find an authorized retailer near you please visit
Best regards,
Iconic Leaf Cigar Company
D’Crossier Golden Blend Aged 10 Years
The revolutionary D’Crossier Golden Blend Series was introduced in 2010, a mild to medium blend of select tobaccos aged for seven years, with a distinctive profile and profound aromas that quickly established a coveted place among the other D‘Crossier lines.
Now, three years later, we have taken this Series to the next level in an ambitious undertaking that started early in 2013. Using a blend of the best tobacco leaves in our possession, forty percent of which was harvested in 2004, D’Crossier Golden Blend Aged 10 Years features five traditional vitolas. These medium to full flavor cigars have now been properly aged and packaged in boxes of 25 cigars for more than a year, awaiting your smoking pleasure. We do hope you will savor the flavors and aromas these superbly aged tobaccos have to offer, and appreciate their craftsmanship which we are so proud to share. Enjoy with passion.
Country: Costa Rica | Flavor: Medium | Wrapper: Ecuador | Binder: Costa Rica | Filler: Nicaragua & Dominican Republic
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Partagas 1845 Extra Oscuro Robusto Gordo
General Cigar had a nice hit with the release of the Partagas 1845 in 2012. Extending the fame of the line comes two new versions of the 1845; the Extra Oscuro & Extra Fuerte. Today I will be taking a look at the Extra Oscuro. I don’t too many oscuro cigars, but when I tried my first sampling of this cigar, I really enjoyed it. I didn’t pay a whole lot o attention to any particular flavors, just wanted to get an overall feel for it.
Cigar Stats
Size: 5.5×52
Vitola: Robusto Gordo
Wrapper: Connecticut Havano Oscuro
Binder: Proprietary Dominican Leaf
Filler: Dominican Republic, Honduras and Nicaragua
Cost: $7.26SRP*
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La Palina debuts three sizes of the La Palina Collection Mr. Sam
Samuel Paley founded La Palina cigars in 1896, and Mr. Sam was the moniker bestowed upon him by the workers in his factory. The La Palina Collection Mr. Sam was initially released as an 850-box limited edition at the 2013 IPCPR Trade Show.
Due to the overwhelming positive response, this spring the La Palina Collection Mr. Sam will be added to our permanent portfolio. The Mr. Sam will be released in three sizes: Toro, Robusto, and Corona.
Mr. Sam is rolled at the El Titan de Bronze factory in Miami, FL. A dark Ecuadorian wrapper surrounds a Nicaraguan binder and Nicaraguan filler, creating a beautifully crafted blend that is rich with flavor.
Samuel Paley and his wife Goldie have been once again united, within the La Palina Collection
Country of Origin: USA
Wrapper: Ecuador Habano
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Factory: El Titan de Bronze
Toro: 6×50
Robusto: 4.75×54
Corona: 5.5×42
Crux Gets Going With Two New Cigars
TWO VIXENS AND A LITTLE PRICK WANT TO MAKE YOUR ACQUAINTANCE.
April 4, 2014 (Maple Grove, MN) — More than two decades of successfully selling cigars at retail teaches a person a few things. Hype doesn’t sell. A bad smoke fails immediately (as it should). Excellent quality wins friends who tell more friends. A community grows. Life is good.
Meet Jeff Haugen and Joel Rogers, co-owners of Crux Cigar Company, who have expanded beyond retail to production. In April 2014, Crux Cigar Company is releasing three different blends in two different vitolas after more than three years in development. Three more blends follow in May.
Get friendly with Ninfamaniac, Ninfamaniac Dark and the Skeeterz. Say good-bye to boring. The new best friends are hand-crafted at the Plasencia S.A. factory in Esteli, Nicaragua.
“We look forward to our next chapter as manufacturers,” said Crux Cigars co-owner Jeff Haugen. “We believe our ‘front line’ retailer experience gives us a huge advantage. It provides incredible insight into building new cigars of the highest quality, developing cigars for underserved markets and servicing retail partners with the greatest respect.”
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“Smoked Up” No.64
“Never judge a book (or cigar) by its cover.” I found that out this week as I had a few cigars sort of threw me off. I had a few predetermined notions of how the smoke was going to be and it turned out quite the opposite and it worked out for the better in these cases. One of my “Cigar New Years Resolutions” was to smoke as many different cigars as I could this year and go outside of my usual cigars. Basically, “going outside the box” as they say. A few times its done ok, a few times its been great and a few times I have wished I didn’t go outside the box! None the less, its my way of broadening my horizons and trying new things.
I got a review out this week of the new Puro Vida Maduro Toro out. Its a local based cigar company that I mentioned here a few months back about. I won’t go into too much detail with the review, you are going to have to check it out for your self.
Cigar Views
Ezra Zion Eminence Belicoso Gran Toro: Ezra Zion has some interesting blends and sizes on the market. The Eminence Belicoso Gran Toro is one of those. The size and shape is odd in itself as your don’t see too many short and stubby belicoso cigars on the shelves these days. This cigar had a good amount of spice along with some leather and hints of cocoa. Its not one of my favorites from Ezra Zion, but its not a bad smoke either.
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Puro Vida Maduro Toro
The Puro Vida cigar company is one that hails from the great state of Mississippi. It is a local company based out of Biloxi and is the brainchild of personal friend Eddie Rivers. Puro Vida was launched a few months ago. With the help of myself, Ben Lee of Stogiereview.com and a few other local cigar smokers, we helped Eddie with the prototype blends of his cigars. We made a few suggestions, the factory make the tweaks and the Puro Vida line of cigars was alive.
Puro Vida means “Pure Life” and pays homage to Eddie’s roots in Honduras. Some of his family is presently living in the area. Eddie goes there frequently to visit, check on cigar production and to bring back some awesome coffee that his family grows. Puro Vida has three lines to fit almost everyone’s likings; Connecticut (mild), Maduro (medium) and a Habano (full). The Habano line is my favorite, but today I am going to take a look at the Maduro line.
Cigar Stats
Size: 6×50
Vitola: Toro
Wrapper: Maduro
Filler: Undisclosed
Binder: Undisclosed
Country: Nicaragua
Price: $8.95*
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JR AVAILS THE ULTIMATE IN LUXURY BY WELCOMING DAVIDOFF CIGARS & ACCESSORIES
JR Cigar, the world’s largest cigar store, proudly announces it will now offer their vast, discerning customer base a diverse selection of highly regarded tobacco products and smoking accoutrements by Davidoff Cigars. The long-awaited collaboration between these two esteemed leaders in the premium-cigar landscape is exciting news for cigar enthusiasts.
The Davidoff name is synonymous with craftsmanship, sophistication and elegance. Every stage of the cigar making process is controlled by Davidoff, crop-to-shop. It’s a simple way of ensuring unparalleled quality, time after time. Zino Davidoff believed in the importance of time. How it should, at every opportunity, be filled beautifully. Time lies at the heart of the Davidoff philosophy. It is, after all the one thing everyone at Davidoff – then and now – has dedicated to cultivating, drying, curing, blending and tasting the very best tobacco in the single-minded pursuit of creating the very finest cigars.
Rob Norris, CEO of 800-JR Cigar, Inc., provided his company’s perspective on the Davidoff alliance, “Our aim at JR Cigar is to offer our loyal consumers the opportunity to taste and enjoy the best and widest variety of Premium cigars in the US. This new collaboration with our partners at Davidoff of Geneva is an exciting new step for us, and if initial sales are anything to go by, our consumers are also incredibly excited.”
To suit the needs of all cigar enthusiasts, J•R will offer the following Davidoff premium cigar lines:
Aniversario Series
Mille Series
Classic Series
Nicaragua Series
Grand Cru Series
Puro D’Oro Series
Maduro Series
Special Series
Millennium Blend Series
Cigarillos & Small Cigars
To order Davidoff cigars, please call 1-800-JR CIGAR or visit www.jrcigars.com
“Smoked Up” No.63
Now that my “cold of death” is pretty much gone after its two plus week stay in my body, I have enjoyed a few more smokes this past week. I am getting my strength back and more active than I was the last few weeks. I hate when something gets the best of me and that cold almost did. Now, my work is trying to get the best of me. My new supervisor has a large amount of unfinished work that wasn’t done by previous employees. Now he has recruited me to help him finish those jobs, plus my current jobs…. But like I told him “What ever pays the bills! If you want me to paint the parking lot purple, I’m going to go grab a brush.” I guess that type of attitude is why he just gave me a pretty substantial raise recently.
I got a review out on Monday of the new line from Nomad Cigars, the S-307 Toro. This was an interesting cigar and I was quite pleased with it. With Nomad being a fairly new company, I’d keep my eye out for some other good cigars in the near future. Check out the review and give me some thoughts on it and the cigar if you have had it before.
Cigar Views
1876 Maduro Toro: I was gifted this cigar by a buddy who grabbed them from CI for about $60 for 50. He got them to try them out for an every day type of smoke. For about $1 and pennies, you get what you pay for and a little bit more. The cigar was fairly one dimensional and the only change was with about 2″ left. Had light mocha and even lesser hints of coffee & chocolate. Not a bad smoke, but nothing empressive at all. For a dollar and pennies, its a so-so yard gar. I would suggest to get the toro as the last 2″ were pretty rough and the toro gives you a bit more smoke time before it gets too rough.
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