“Smoked Up” No.94
Still going off of last year’s cigar plan, I am trying to smoke more newer cigars. This past week was full of new (to me) cigar; I had a total of seven new cigars. Some where hits and a few were a miss. I don’t usually like to buy my cigars online and like support the locals. But with only a hand full of local shops, their selection of some of the newer cigars is limited. I will be placing a few orders for some newer cigars in the upcoming weeks for personal pleasure and for reviews. I have a handful of reviews lined up as well, so I will be getting back into the swing of a new review each week.
Cigar Views
Drew Estate Nica Rustica: This cigar, from the looks of a few Cigar Safari Videos, was just a fun side project of the guys at Drew Estate that was never thought to go full production on. The production of this cigar is in swing, but not too sure of a full swing or just a check swing. They can be found, but at times last year, they were quite scarce in some areas. This cigar is a “meat and potatoes” type of cigar for me. One that’s enjoyed after a good hearty meal with a glass of whiskey or bourbon. My choice was Bulleit Bourbon and paired pretty well. I like the looks of a pig tailed closed foot cigar, but they can be tricky. The closed foot does pose a problem at times when toasting it up. A good torch flame is almost a must. And then you still aren’t guaranteed an even toasting. Over all a great smoke for seven dollars and change that I didn’t smoke enough of in 2014.
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MIAMI CIGAR & CO. CELEBRATES A MILESTONE 25 YEARS IN BUSINESS BY “PAYING IT FORWARDâ€
(Miami, Florida) January 20, 2015— On the heels of coming out with their new image, Miami Cigar & Company closed out an amazing 2014. The company celebrated the end of their milestone 25 years in business with an exclusive Holiday Toy Drive. The function served as the company’s last soiree. It also marked a successful year which boasted a rebrand of the Nestor Miranda Collection.
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Miami Cigar & Company worked together with Miami based non for profit Neat Stuff for kids to create a Holiday Toy drive to underprivileged children at the exclusive Grove Isle Hotel & Spa. Featuring cigars from the Nestor Miranda Collection, Tatiana Flavored Cigars, La Aurora Untamed, and Propaganda by Viva Republica the event was a hit as guests paired their favorite cigar with cocktails courtesy of Zafra Rum. Over 400 guests attended who included industry professionals as well as local celebrities to include Roxanne Vargas of NBC 6, TV personality Adriana Catano, Marybel Rodriguez of Telemundo 51.
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Miami Cigar & Company Vice President, Jason Wood said: “The 25 year anniversary of Miami Cigar & Co. has been an amazing year as we unveiled the new look Nestor Miranda Collection to rave reviews. Without our local community we never would have achieved this milestone. It is only correct that we celebrate this year with a Holiday Toy drive to benefit local non for profit Neat Stuff which provides new clothing for underprivileged, abused, and neglected children in Miami-Dade. We wanted to thank our partners in this event to include Cigar Snob Magazine, Zafra Rum, Grove Isle Hotel & Spa, NBC 6, and Telemundo 51.†What better way to show appreciation then paying it forward and making the holidays special for children less fortunate?
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Miami Cigar & Co. ended the year on a high note as the Nestor Miranda Collection Habano was included in the Cigar Snob Magazine top 25 of 2014. The Nestor Miranda Collection garnered strong ratings as the Connecticut and Maduro received a 91 and 92 ratings respectively from Cigar Snob Magazine. The Nestor Miranda Collection also received strong ratings from Cigar & Spirits Magazine: NMC Maduro 94, NMC Habano 93, and the NMC Connecticut 93.
MLB Imperia Pita
When you hear the name Mike Bellody, most likely you say “Who?” One would think Mike is a newcomer to the cigar industry, but that is far from true. Mike originally got his hands in the cigar business with the Tiante cigar company. Mike Bellody and Dan Tiant where the brains behind the Tiante cigar company which is currently not producing cigars.
The first line from MLB Cigar Adventures is the Imperia. It is produced by the famed Quesada factory (formally MATASA)Â in the Dominican Republic. The cigar is a mix of Dominican and Nicaraguan tobaccos with the wrapper being a high priming Dominican leaf; giving it a bit more body and flavor than most Dominican tobaccos used in cigars.
Cigar Stats
Size: 5 1/2×43
Vitola: Corona
Wrapper: Dominican HVA (high priming)
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican & Nicaraguan
Cost*: $7.90
 
First Looks
The main thing that stands out with this cigar is its baby blue band offset by the dark reddish brown wrapper leaf. This cigar reminds me of one of those “It’s a Boy” cigars. But we don’t smoke the bands.Â
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CMA Cigar Industry Award Winners
The Cigar Media Association has announced their 2014 Cigar Industry Awards and they are as follows:
Cigar of the Year: Illusione Fume D’Amour
Brand of the Year: Crowned Heads
CMA Member of the Year: Cigar DojoÂ
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Cigar of the Year
When the votes came in, there were cigars here and there that were receiving the Cigar of the Year vote by members of the association, but the one cigar that was consistently ranking well, if not first, by the members of the Cigar Media Association was Fume D’Amour. It gives me great pleasure to announce that the 2014 Cigar Media Association Award for Cigar of the Year goes to Illusione Cigars for Fume D’Amour. Released at the 2014 IPCPR, Fume D’Amour is the newest regular production release from Illusione Cigars, and is a cigar that is ground breaking on many levels. It is translated as “to love smoke,” and is offered in a variety of more traditional vitolas. Crafted of entirely Nicaraguan tobacco, none of which from the ligero primings, the cigar delivers a wonderful amount of body while having a tremendous complexity level. No matter the vitola being smoked, Fume D ‘Amour delivers everything that a great cigar should while remaining balanced and refined. We can all agree that Dion has tremendous blending skills, and his work with Casa Fernandez and AGANORSA tobacco have created magnificent blends in the past, but this is possibly one of the best he has created, and is a regular production cigar at that. Congratulations to Dion Giolito and Illusione Cigars for a terrific cigar and a successful 2014 year. As always, we look forward to future projects!  Â
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Ezra Zion Tantrum PA
In 2013, Ezra Zion released the Tantrum with very high accolades from a broad spectrum of people. I really enjoyed the Tantrum and I gave it high rankings in 2013. The only drawback to the Tantrum was it was too short for me as it left me wanting more! Following the original Tantrum comes the Tantrum PA. The Tantrum PA is similar to the original Tantrum, yet composed of completely different tobaccos. The PA stands for “Passive Aggressive”. Available in only one size and limited to only 700 boxes of 28.
 
Cigar Stats
Size: 6.5×44
Wrapper: Cuban Seed Corojo ’99
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Factory: TABSA
Country: Nicaraguan
MSRP: $9.95/ea $278.60/box  Â
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Headlines Cigar, a Dominican Puro, is Re-Launched for 2015 from Sosa
Photo via thecigarsmokingman.com
Miami, Florida – January 9, 2015 – Headlines Cigar has been re-blended and re-branded for a new launch in 2015. Arby Sosa from Antillian Cigar Corporation, as the exclusive distributor for Headlines Cigar, collaborated with Dee from Fusion Cigar and the Master Blender, Don Amadiz, in creating these two amazing Dominican Puro blends.
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Headlines Cigar is being made out of the Tabacalera Real factory in Tamboril, Dominican Republic. Headlines First Edition is made with a Pennsylvania seed wrapper grown in the Dominican Republic and a Dominican Olor binder. Dominican Criollo 98 and Dominican Piloto Cubano are used for the ligero and Dominican Criollo 98 and Dominican Olor are used for the seco. The strength of Headlines First Edition is full-bodied and will MSRP between $7.50-8.50.  |
Jordan Alexander III Corojo Announced
DALTON, PA. Jordan Alexander III Premium Cigar Company’s newest release, the Jordan Alexander III Corojo will begin shipping to retailers on February 2, 2015. Originally announced as a mid-Fall 2014 release, the release will instead now mark the first release of 2015 for JA3 Cigars.
The new blend is manufactured by the Quesada Cigar Factory and will largely replace JA3’s current corojo blend (See August Press Release for details on rebranding/release). The Jordan Alexander III Corojo is constructed with a Dominican Corojo wrapper, Dominican binder, with Dominican and Nicaraguan filler. This release is available in four vitolas; robusto (5 1â„2 x 54), toro (6 x 52), double toro (6×60), and belicoso (6 x 52). The three parejo vitolas feature a pigtail cap and closed foot.
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“Smoked Up” No.93
2015 has started out with the utmost of crappiness. Tuesday morning I was heading into work and was greeted with a broken window and one of my pistols was stolen from the truck. I was cold, tired and now severely aggravated. I usually conceal my pistol in the truck when I leave it for the day, but failed to do so Monday afternoon. I had to wait (in the cold) for the police as I called during the middle of their shift change. After everything was reported and such I found out they hit a few other vehicles in the area. So I got a unexpected day off from work to get a new window put in. While waiting for the glass company, I did get to enjoy a Ortega No8 Natural with a cup of coffee. Then ended the day with a well aged Viaje Oro Edicion Limitada DT. So the day wasn’t such a loss.
Let’s hope the rest of the year gets better!
Cigar Views
Perdomo Grand Cru Sungrown: I don’t smoke too many Perdomo cigars. The ones I do like are their stronger blends and my favorite is the 20th Anniversary Sungrown. I haven’t had too many of the Gran Cru, but it reminds me somewhat of the 20th. I liked the little bit of spiciness and oak of the blend, but in a smooth package. Not as strong as the 20th, but almost as good.
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Cigar Media Association Announces Nominees for 1st Cigar Industry Awards
The Cigar Media Association is pleased to announce the 1st Cigar Industry Awards. With the establishment of the Cigar Media Association in 2014, the 14 members involved in the association wanted to create an award ceremony where they could honor and celebrate the companies and individuals in the cigar industry. This marks the first time a collaborative effort among various brands of the cigar media have come together for such a process.
As this is the first year, the 14 members have created three categories, but they plan to add more categories in the coming years. There are so many wonderful individuals and companies in the industry, that it is only appropriate that more categories be added over time to honor them. As this is the first year though, there are three categories and those categories are:
- Cigar of the Year: Our first category, Cigar of the Year, was an easy and practical category to come up with. Everyone always talks about Cigar of the Year, but we wanted to have 14 members come together to decide what cigar is truly Cigar of the Year. To quality was simple, the cigar needed to be released in the 2014 year and nominated by a Cigar Media Association member. Each member was asked to nominate five cigars for this category, and that left the association with a maximum of 70 cigars to vote on. Of course, multiple members votes on similar cigars, so it was easy to determine which cigars led the pack. From there, we took the five cigars with the highest votes and submitted them back to the members where there will be a final vote.  The winner of Cigar of the Year will be announced January 16th, 2015.
- Brand of the Year: Our second category, Brand of the Year, was a category that was created to recognize all brands on the market. This was a category that did not look at a specific cigar and that cigar’s accomplishments that year, but rather looked at a brand as a whole and how well received it was that year and the impact it had. In some ways, this is the big picture award, but at the same time, does not take into account a brand new release. You can look at a company that re-branded itself, a company that re-blended some past releases, or nothing at all. This company could go to that brand that did not have a huge victory, but a lot of subtle ones throughout the year. Like Cigar of the Year, we asked all the members to think of the five brands that the biggest impact on the cigar industry that year. From there, we took the five brands with the highest votes and submitted them back to members for a final vote. Like Cigar of the Year, the winner of Brand of the Year will be announced January 16th, 2015.
- Online Media Member of the Year: Our third and final category, Online Media Member of the Year, was a category that was created to recognize the media site that delivered terrific content throughout the year. This award is given to the media member who best exemplifies what the Cigar Media Association is about, and provides the industry with a reliable and enjoyable source of content. This is an award given to the member that constantly delivered content to his or her readers throughout the year. All members of the association in good standings were able to qualify for the award, and each member was asked to vote for three members for the award. Once we had the three with the highest votes, we submitted them back for members for a final vote.  The Online Media Member of the Year will be announced January 16th, 2015.  Â
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Shawn’s 2014 Cigars of the Year
2014 has been quite a year and has moved on by in leaps and bounds. This year has had its ups and downs with the family, friends and cigars. My focus over the last months have been on my family and trying to spend more time with them. My daughter will be four in February and is a handful, but one well behaved toddler and I enjoy every minute I can have with her. I’ve had friends and family pass away or injured seriously this year that really made it sink in that I was needing to spend more time with those close to me. With that being said, NTA has somewhat suffered in the lack of reviews and news that I wanted to get out. I apologize, but hope you all understand. Thanks for sticking with NTA and not giving up on our love for cigars.
Over the last few years, the making of my Cigars Of The Year list was quite a task and usually took a week or better of thinking and trying to remember the cigars that stood out that year. My camera on my phone was a handy tool for this scrolling through numerous cigar pictures but there was no way to remember how good or great they were. This year I started a spreadsheet on my computer with the names of the cigars I smoked with a 0-5 rating in .25 increments. I don’t use ratings in my reviews as I just describe the flavors and experiences of the cigar and whether I like it or not. There were quite a few cigars with 4s and a handfull with 2s and below. A few cigars that came out this year I didn’t care for, but they saw a lot of rage for them on social media. This just shows you that taste is very subjective and what I like, you or another cigar reviewer may totally hate.
I wish I could do a list composed with all 2014 new releases, but there are quite a few that I couldn’t or didn’t get ahold of that I wanted to. Many were not sold locally or sold only online. I like to support the local shops, but next year I will have to venture more into online ordering to be able to try more new cigars. My list is composed from all the cigars I smoked in 2014. I made a plan to try to smoke as many new or cigars that I would normally pass up this year. I was fairly successful at the plan, but there are still quite a few I wished I would have tried. My “variety plan” worked out so-so. There were a few cigars that I usually pass up that I tried that were fairly tasty and a few I know why I passed them up in the past.
All that rambling over with here are my favorite cigars I smoked from 2014. The list is in no particular order, except with my Cigar Of The Year.
Runner Ups
My Father La Antiquedad – I found this cigar at a B&M some 30+ miles from my house. I really didn’t have too high of hopes for it, but wanted to give it a shot seeing it was new, so I only grabbed one. One the way home, I toasted it up and was amazed by how good this cigar was! A lot of My Father Cigars are bold and strong with good flavors. This cigar hit me superbly that morning as it had great flavors in a package that wasn’t too strong. I wished I would have grabbed more when I was there the first time, but didn’t think twice to grab a few more the next time I was there. Â
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