“Smoked Up” No.70

Posted by Shawn

May 28, 2014

Of all the weeks of the spring, I think these last two cuts the cake as being the busiest. I rounded up the men and we got together bright and early last Saturday to erect the mother of all swing set/play houses. My daughter just turned three , loves the outdoors and really enjoys going to the park to sing and slide. But not all the time do we have time to take her there. So, a swing and playhouse was in order. We worked almost 11 hours to build it and it really turned out nicely. We were hoping to enjoy a few cigars while working on it, but we didn’t sit still long enough as we were in a fast pace to get it completed as much as we could.Â Its not 100% done, working on the finishing touches this week. The following Sunday I went to one of my buddy’s daughter’s first birthday party. It was an hour trip there and lasted a while. The party was out “in the sticks” and the kids had a blast. Left there, went grocery shopping then finally made it home. That wasn’t enough, Satori wanted to play on her swing! Eventually it wore her out and I wasn’t too far behind. Lets put it this way… it was rough going into work on Monday!

This past weekend, I made it to the local Cigar Shop and had the new Quesada 40th and Tatuaje Black Corona Gorda. Both were good smokes, and was nice to smoke in the AC for once. I did have a bad experience where a regular customer at the B&M thought my Terrapin Side Project “Pineapple Express” beer was his for the taking from the cooler. It would have been different had it not been a regular who knew nothing about beer, but he wasn’t and did. I kept my composure on the situation, but he owes me $15!

Â I got in a review of the Drew Estate Undercrown DogmaÂ on Monday. Check it out and give me your thoughts on the cigar and/or review.

Cigar Views

Dunhill 1907: This is the brand new line from Dunhill of which I haven’t had too many cigars from their lines. Was a pretty good smoke that had an awesome room note and nice flavors. Nice woodsy notes with tid-bits of a muddled black pepper. Had a decent draw as I tried to enjoy this on a rainy/humid day. Overall a good smoke that I will do a full on review once the weather acts right.Â Â Â

Herrera Esteli 2014 Edicion Limitada (Lancero): This brand new cigar was one that I was really looking forward to trying. I really liked the Herrera Esteli line as well as the Bonita Smoke Shop Time Warp (review here) that Willy Herrera did prior to coming to Drew Estate. The draw was spot-on good, nice burn and good flavors. Will be doing a full review of this cigar in the next week or two. But, I can say this, it was a bit different than the Lonsdale Deluxe which is my go-to Herrera Esteli.

OpusX Power Ranger: I acquired a few of these cigars about three years ago and figured why not try one. I am not a big fan of fresh Opus, so I thought this one would be better. It wasn’t all great in my opinion. There were no construction issues or foul flavors, it just didn’t meet my flavor criteria. It had smooth mellowed flavors, but just wasn’t enough, the strength was ok, just not enough in the flavor department. I have a few more resting in the humidor and won’t be getting too many more Opus to age in the future.

Ortega Serie D No.8 Natural: This is and will always be a go-to cigar. It has never truly let me down. This cigar has nice flavors and strengthÂ that aren’t overpowering. Nice chocolate and cocoa notes with a hint of a leather note this time. The draw was awesome as well as the burn. Definetly worth the price. I only have a few left in my box, so another box is on my list of cigars to get soon.

Davidoff Special R: My Sunday Davidoff this week was the Special R. I have had one or two of these before and they are a pretty good smoke. The draw and burn was impeccable, the flavors were a little stronger than the “core” Davidoffs I have smoked previously. It had flavors of a creamy wood, a slight black pepper and a hint of a citrus zest as well. If I was to buy any more Davidoff cigars, it would be the Special R, Special T or the Puro de Oro. All of those are my favorite (non LE) Â Davidoffs.

Quesada 40th Anniversary Box Pressed Salamone: I really likeÂ most, if not all cigars that Quesda makes. They all have and interesting kick to them that keeps me coming back for more. The 40th was one of those cigars that I really wanted to try. It being an Anniversary cigar, I was sure it would “wow” me. To be quite honest, I was not overly impressed with it. There were no construction or flavor issues, the flavors were just lacking in my book. I did like how the flavors changed when it went from round to box pressed. I did get a tasty blavk licorice note that I enjoyed. But that was about it. I will try another vitola of it, but for $12, I was not too impressed.

Tatuaje Black Corona Gorda: I really enjoy the Black line from Tatuaje and they have never let me down. This was the case with the Corona Gorda. It reminded me of the petite lancero, yet more rounded and smoother. It did seem to have a little lesser strength than the Tubo or PL. Although it was a little pricey for the size, it wasÂ a great smoke that I will definitely smoke and enjoy again and again.

Oliva V Maduro 2013: I got a box of these for a steal off of Cigar.com. They were on their weekend sale foe $70 with a free Bugatti triple flame lighter. I hadn’t made an online purchase in some time as I have been supporting my local B&Ms. But at the B&M this box is well over $100. ( and no free lighter). I got it and a few other sticks I can’t get locally and they were worth the few days wait for shipping. Now, I usually grab a few of these when they come out; one or two to smoke and the rest to age. I like to age these for at least two years as they smooth off nicely over time. I tried this one and it was good, with notes of rich cocoa and chocolate. But over time, they will only get even better.

Cigar News

Drew Estate Undercrown â€œDogmaâ€Â – NTA Review

MOYA RUIZ ANNOUNCES THE LA JUGADA NUNCHUCK

Drew Estate Names Willy Herrera as â€œMaster Blenderâ€

â€œSmoked Upâ€ No.69

Juan Lopez Line To Include 7 x 70Â – A Cigar Smoker

Viaje Zombie Antidote ShippingÂ – Cigar-Coop

Nestor Miranda Collection Debuts This WeekÂ – halfwheel

Avo Celebrates his 88th (Video)Â – A Cigar Smoker

Nat Sherman Host Selection Maduro AnnouncedÂ – Cigar-Coop

New Casa de Montecristo Lounge Exclusive Coming in JuneÂ – halfwheel

La Sirena Original to be Reblended; La Sirena Oceano Coming SoonÂ – Cigar-Coop