Cigar Review - Tatiana Mocha

Val Here -

So continuing our enjoyment of cigars given out during the Lone Star Cigar Bash, we decided to try the Tatiana Mocha flavored cigar.

My feelings on this cigar are mixed - Thomas and I overall are not the biggest fans of flavored cigars, so do keep this in mind as you read the review.

Before I lit it, it had a good draw and appeared to be well made. The pre-light draw had nothing that remided me much of mocha coffee, tasting more like chocolate milk.

After being lit, the cigar had a clear draw and a dark grey, brittle ash.

I kept going through love/hate bouts with the cigar - at times it tasted like a bolder cigar, with the tobacco flavor apparent, and other times I was overwhelmed with perfumed smoke. You can taste the tobacco more clearly than in other flavored cigars, but not in a way that is overwhelming. At other times the perfume flavor gets so strong it is just unpleasant. In the end I had to put the cigar down after the perfume flavor/note wouldn't die down.

This is not a cigar I would choose to smoke again. If I had to smoke a flavored cigar, I would try the CAO Caramello Joe

Cigar Review - Villager Talanga

Val here,

Since we got a lot of wonderful cigars from the Lone Star Cigar Bash, we are trying to review several of them as we go along this summer.

One of the first that we smoked was the Villager Talanga.

Wrapper: Talanga (Connecticut seed) Honduras
Binder: Jalapa (Seco Habana) Nicaragua
Filler: a blend of 3 Nicaraguan tobaccos



In looking at it, though there were a couple soft spots, the cigar appeared to be fairly well rolled and had a light, pleasant scent. The pre-light draw reminded me of cream and tea.

At first light, I got flavors of cream and spices, and something that was reminding me of white pepper or the taste you get at the tip of your tongue when you smoke something containing heather.

The cigar burned really cleanly, did not need much in the way of a touch up.

The second third of the cigar increased in spice, but not a pepper spice, something that reminded me of cardamom at the back of my tongue. It reminded me oddly of a chai latte.

Towards the last third the cream flavor mostly disappears and the astringent bitterness of the Connecticut wrapper comes to the fore. There are flavors that remind me more of tea and tannins, with an increased in perfume-notes, giving an almost wine-like taste to the cigar.

I was surprised at how cool-burning it was, I did not feel any heat until the cherry was quite close to my fingers.

Overall, I enjoyed this cigar, and it has a definite place in my morning cigar lineup. I was drinking this with coffee, but I remarked to Thomas that I thought it would be very good with either a chai latte or with some yerba mate tea with cream and honey.

CAO Concert Event at Finck's Cigar Factory Outlet

Val here!

We had a wonderful time tonight at Finck's Cigar Factory Outlet on West Ave. They hosted Ricky Rodriguez of CAO cigars, promoting the release of the CAO Concert.






The place was PACKED!
I forgot to get some pictures outside while it was still light...
 I was too happy enjoying the brisket and goat.
Thomas seemed to enjoy the Shiner they had on tap.
 I have never had much of a taste for beer,
but lucky for me Finck's sells soda, so I was a happy girl.






CAO was generously giving customers samples of the new cigar, and once I ate, I sat down with some good friends to enjoy it. The wrapper was smooth, with fine veins, no obvious flaws. The wrapper is a Ecuadorian Habano Rosado, with Connecticut broadleaf binder and Nicaraguan and Honduran fillers. The Concert is an homage to CAO's roots in Nashville, TN.

The pre-light draw was mildly sweet, and when I lit the cigar, which lit easily, it had a nice draw.  The flavor was interesting. It started out mildly spicy and earthy, with an odd flavor coming up towards the end of the first third. It turns out, I had never tried a cigar with a hay-like flavor before.  During the 2nd third, the hay-like flavor came and went, weaving under and around the strong earthy flavor.  I was not sure how I felt about it all, until I got to the last third. The last third was just fabulous. The flavors all came together just right and the Nicaraguan earth and leather flavors came to the fore.

Pros: The last third had an incredible flavor, the first two thirds were pleasant and a bit different from my every day cigar. This is smack in the middle of the medium range in strength and flavor, so it should please a wide audience.

Cons: Note - I believe most of these cons will disappear once the cigar is aged for a while in our humidors. We will try another one in a couple of weeks and give more information then. The cigar was a bit moist, as it is very new, and towards the last third mine split a bit.  It didn't split so much that I couldn't finish the cigar, but it might have been an issue if it was further up the cigar. Also because of the moistness, I had to relight it a few times, and others in the room seemed to need to do the same.

Overall: Overall I feel that the flavors in the last third show the promise in this cigar, and I look forward to trying it again. This needs some time in a humidor to age a bit, not uncommon with newly released cigars I have tried. Out of all of the non-flavored CAO cigars, I like this one the best.





We had a wonderful time, thanks again for hosting a fine event!  If you want to know what is going on at your local Finck's, check out their site at: http://www.finckscigarfactoryoutlet.com/












Thomas: Trying to catch up...

I was running late getting to the event because things had been busy at work.

By the time I arrived the parking for Finck's was full and I had to park in the lot behind theirs. Be aware if you go, don't park on the street to the side of the shop. The Castle Hills PD will ticket you.

Once inside it was like a family reunion. Old friends and new friends, free food (BBQ brisket and slow roasted goat), free beer on tap (Shiner Bock) or can (Budweiser) and plenty of deals to be had.

The Guys and Gal from CAO were uber friendly and ready to talk details about their new cigar, the CAO Concert. Ricky was very outgoing and ready with cigar knowledge and quips. THE give away was a Concert table top amp that was iPod/MP3 player ready. Way cool!







The cigar itself was interesting. Had some earthy notes with a bit of grassiness or hay notes that kept it interesting. Flavour and strength were smack dab in the middle of medium while flirting with mild for a few puffs and then Full a little later. The Concert would be great with a little age on it and with a strong coffee I think.

Thank You to the fine folks of Finck's and CAO for pulling off a great party!

San Cristobal Elegancia - Cigar Review

Val here: At some point we got a couple of these cigars to try.  Our first attempt did not go so well, something was off with the sticks.  They were bitter in a way that didn't make any sense based on friends' description of how these cigars taste. However, a few words with the Ashton Rep had things as right as rain. 

We got the new cigars, took some drinks outside and sat down with some Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin, one of our favorite ways to enjoy a smoke.

Felt the cigar - no flaws, nice wrapper with no large veins.  

Punch cut cleanly through the cap, and the pre-light draw was mild, but pleasant. 

The cigar lit and burned smoothly.  Not quite what I would call "razor edge" but very cleanly and did not need any adjustment. 

The cigar started off somewhat light, but built in strength from a mild to a medium cigar, with the flavor profile rising up into a nutty, earthy flavor with a touch of leather to it.  

Overall my enjoyment of the cigar increased as I continued smoking it, and this one makes it to my list of cigars to enjoy in the morning.  Smoking it made me think of sitting in my herf tent or an outdoor cafe with croissants and a cafe au lait.  Coffee pairs well with this cigar but I would recommend a well-rounded low acid roast, or a German coffee with cream and sugar. 

Thomas enjoyed it too.

I am not sure what was up with the first one I tried, but this is one cigar that I would heartily recommend giving another chance.  


Thomas here: We initially got these in and had both gotten bad cigars. So, we asked about and word got to the Ashton Rep for our area and he left us 2ea of 2 different sizes to make it up. (Ashton BTW, are always interested in customer service. Had some nice interactions with them before we started blogging)

So, Val and I head back to the Herf Tent after a rough day and fire these up. I tried to be open minded, but the memory of a bad cigar is hard to erase.

Frank and Dean were playing and the drinks were nice.  I was expecting a light cigar. The Elegencia lived up to its name. It was a finely balanced, truly pleasant smoke.

All in all it was one I could smoke down to a nub.

First off was the light Connecticut-ie taste of pre-draw with hints of something mildly sweet and aromatic. The first draws after lighting it were very mild and, okay. However, as the cigar progressed there were notes of "toastiness" and nuts with hints of leather that stayed predominant throughout the cigar.

After the first half the flavor and body started ramping up to the middle of medium almost reaching the bottom of "full".

Simply put this is a truly well tailored cigar and will be a regular for when I want something a little lighter. 

Camacho Diploma - Scorpion an amazing Father's Day smoke

The Camacho Diploma Series
Vitola: Scorpion
Size: 6" x 54
Origin: Honduras
Color: Natural
Wrapper: Corojo Quinto Corte -
Binder: Corojo
Filler: Corojo
Shape: Perfecto

Drinks: Val had coffee and kahlua and Thomas had some Dalmore Scotch

She said:
Thomas had been telling me that he loves these cigars.  So, as a treat I picked up a couple, because I wanted to try his favorite cigar.

The appearance was very smooth, no prominent veins, slight bumpiness at the foot.  I don't usually smoke perfectos, so it always throws me off a little. The cigar was firm, no soft spots or inconsistencies, in all respects a well-rolled cigar. 

I used a cutter, and just barely took off the end of the cap.  I don't like using cutters, as I hate getting shreds of tobacco in my mouth.  The draw was a little on the light side, which worried me.  The dominant flavor I was getting was mocha.  I love cigars with this flavor, so had high hopes, and wasn't disappointed.

First third: The cigar had a strong flavor of coffee and mocha, with slight hints of earth and leather.  The draw was firm, but not too firm. I had some issues burning it evenly, but I am realizing it has more to do with how I light/smoke it than the cigar or the humidor.  I am still a relative rookie to cigar smoking.

Second third: The mocha and coffee faded into the background and a leathery sweetness came to the foreground of the flavor profile.  All in all very enjoyable and still well accompanied by my coffee drink.  The cigar was producing a thick viscous (in a pleasant way) smoke.  The wrapper was somewhat oily, you can see the dark ring and sheen at the burn line, but not so oily you feel the need to sand blast your mouth afterwards. I had no problem keeping this lit, and though the outer layer of ash is somewhat flaky looking, the ash held on for quite a while. I was impressed with how long it maintained its shape.

 Last third:  The mocha and coffee flavors have come back up, and the cigar is at full strength.  The mocha and coffee is now balancing with the leather nicely, the three flavors coming together very pleasantly.  It tasted like drinking the best cafe mocha from my favorite coffee shop in the North End of Boston, if the ring around the cup that protects your hands were replaced with fresh cut leather.  The ash finally fell at about the end of the 2nd third of the cigar.  I found myself disappointed that the cigar was coming to an end, though usually I only have the patience for robustos, and this was longer than that, I wanted more.  Unfortunately I had to give up smoking it after Thomas did not have a cigar holder the right size/shape for me to keep smoking it as it was getting too hot to hold in the last inch or so.

 Overall I found it to be an excellent cigar, and would rate it 5/5.  I want a whole box of these, but that will have to wait a while.

It burned well aside from my own issues with it, the ash was white and grey, and though flaky on the outside, held on well.  This cigar goes well with coffee and scotch, and next time I want to try it with a good 10 year port.






He Said:
I've had a couple of these before and they are in the "cloud" of my favourite cigars. I can't name any one. So Val asked my fave one day and this stick came to mind.
   Low and behold she orders us a pair as a surprise. So, after a rough Sat. we settle in after dinner for a Father's Day smoke on Sunday. I Decided to air it with another of my favourites: The Dalmore 12 yr scotch.
   Construction of the cigar was as perfect as I remember, good symmetry to the two tapered ends, very few veins in the wrapper, and a wonderful "toasty" golden color. My ceramic cutter left a clean sharp cut. The prelight draw was warm and with slight hints of spice.
   After a quick toast the end lit easily and neatly. The slightly tight draw opening up as the cherry moved beyond the cap on the foot.
   One of the things I love about this cigar is the obvious, controlled power to the blend. One friend likened it to driving a Jaguar XJ12. The contrast being a Rocky Edge and a Full Blown Hemi Charger. Similar power but with a more controlled edge..
  The spice wasn't present after lighting it. But a beautiful balance of leather, coffee, and oak-ish flavours. After about the first couple of inches it settled into strong earth and leather with just the barest hints of a sweetness that could be described as strong tea with a hint of sugar. which it maintained throughout the balance of the cigar. I'd feel the strength of this puppy start to sneak up and then I'd slow down on smoking it. Which is hard since it tastes so good.
   The only thing I regret about this cigar is that I currently don't have a holder the right size o finish it all the way down. At least I have the advantage of callouses and hands used to hot metal so I was able to smoke most of it. The flavor in the last 1/2 inch was robust and intense and I wanted to see how it would finally finish, nearly burning myself. "The good thing about callouses is you don't feel the heat till its too late. The bad thing is you don't feel the heat till its too late..."

Toraño Exodus 1959

She said:

Val here, tonight was stressful, so I went to Finck's by myself to have a cigar.  I decided to check out the new Bandera Rd store, and it is very nice.  I love the ventilation in the smoking lounge, the air stayed clear.

Trey helped me out, and I picked out several cigars, and the one I chose to smoke tonight was the Toraño Exodus 1959, and it was outstanding!  Now this is what I was expecting out of all of the times my friends recommended the Toraño line of cigars.

The cigar was superbly constructed, firm with a nice dark wrapper.  I couldn't get much flavor on the pre light draw, but it lit quickly and burned well.

The ash held on very well and was about 3-4" before it dropped.  I didn't have to touch it up at all and stayed lit.  


The flavor started out somewhat mild and not very distinctive, but about 1" into the cigar the rich earth and coffee notes and a woody element to it as well and the flavor just got better and better as the cigar burned.  All in all it made my day, thank you Toraño!

Joya de Nicaragua Antaño el Martillo Cigar Review

CIGAR REVIEW -

She Says:

Pre-draw - the wrapper is dark with visible veining.  The leaves had a rich smell, and a slightly oily sheen.  The construction seemed to be sound and the draw was firm without being too firm.

Thomas enjoying his cigar.

The cigar surprised me.  I normally don't like spicy cigars, and this one starts off peppery with an odd almost floral note.  After about an inch it mellowed into a very complex and rich blend of earthy flavors. There was a woody/earth flavor, a wisp of paper, hints of coffee and spices and the barest suggestion of a floral sweetness in the middle of the tongue. It was a gorgeous day to be outdoors, the shade made it nice and cool, with a pleasant breeze.  It took about 1.5 hours to smoke, and left an oily residue on the fingers (note - don't rub your eye after smoking...you will regret it.)

Overall it was a fantastic smoke, and makes it to my favorites list.  At this rate I am going to have to start putting gold stars on the journal pages of the ones I like :)

He Says:
These were beautiful cigars! The Top Notch construction and appearance of these stogies had me itching to try them. So, after a picnic lunch to prepare for the trip home, Val and I fired them up.

The pre-light draw had hints of toasty goodness with slight hints of spice and wood. The foot toasted easily and lit without any need to finagle or work. This started off a little peppery and spicy but settled into a rich, warm, richness. Very complex layers of wood, coffee, leather with a slight floral hint that maintained throughout the rest of the cigar. Sharing sips of coffee we were joyed at how it almost tasted like a creme brule.

Draw, construction, and appearance were all top notch producing a long firm ash that dropped at about the 1/3 mark and retained its shape after hitting the pavement.

I will hunt these down and get more. Because, alas, Finck's doesn't carry it. (Hopefully they will soon...?)

Casa Magna Colorado Sancho review

At the Lone Star Cigar Bash, I picked up a tin of 3 sanchos from Casa Magna - it looked like a great size for a short smoke, and smelled really good. Made in Nicaragua, which is a fair indication so far that I will like it.

Dark wrapper, firm draw with a rich mocha flavor (pre-lighting)

The flavor was earthy and rich with a touch of mocha.  It burned a lot longer than I was expecting, as it has a very tight draw and I ended up needing to double punch it to be able to smoke it.  It easily lasted as long as the full sized cigar Thomas smoked that night.

Overall I am very fond of these and am likely to continue purchasing them, however, don't be fooled by the short length, this is a full sized smoke, time-wise.

Toraño Vault Blend A-008

At Finck's Lone Star Cigar Bash, the Toraño Vault Blend A-008 was one of the cigars that they gave out.

Many people have recommended this cigar maker to me, and I was excited to try it.

She said:
In the end I was a little disappointed. It started off very spicy, right at the edge of my tolerance.  I am not fond of peppery flavors. Though the flavor is very strong, the overall strength of the cigar is medium.  The flavor smooths out as you smoke it, with a somewhat pleasantly bitter flavor, like coffee grounds and dark cocoa.  While the cigar is enjoyable, it is more of an occasional change of pace than something I would want on a regular basis.  I would give it a 3/5.

He Said:
This was something I had been looking forward to. It came highly recommended by some of the guys at the lounge and finally a pain-free way to try it, as it had come in the grab bag for the Lone Star Cigar Bash.
Started off really peppery and spicy and just as I was about to put it down as to over the top it mellowed into a complex mix of earth, leather, and just a faint hint of spices. It was well constructed but and pleasant to smoke, just didn't seem to fit the hype I had heard. May try it again, but at the price point of this guy, there are others I prefer. 

Joya de Nicaragua Antaño Cigars

June 6th Finck's hosted an event for Drew Estate Cigars and Joya de Nicaragua. 

Naturally Thomas and I went, as we are both fond of some of the Drew Estate lines such as the Undercrown.

I got there early, as Thomas had work. I ended up being rather anxious, as the rep had brought a couple cigars that Finck's didn't carry, and I had never tried before, and one of them looked GOOD. They were being given away with purchase, and I knew I wanted to try one.  I would have purchased one, but they weren't for sale.

The representative and Finck's offered some good deals.  Buy 3 cigars, get 1 free.  Buy 5 cigars, get 2 free. Buy a box of cigars, get a baseball cap and 8 free cigars. Hmmm. Buy a box?  Could be good, the only other box we have bought was of fairly strong cigars. I called Thomas and was asking him about Joya de Nicaragua, as the Undercrowns are also strong flavored, and if he was going to buy us a box I would prefer it be something that was more of a day to day smoke.



Eventually we settled on a box of Joya de Nicaragua Antaño cigars with a criollo wrapper in the Grand Robusto size.  They are a size we both like, and smelled really good.  Thomas has had this blend before in the Grand Perfecto size and liked them a lot. We decided to try the Criollo wrapped ones that day because we had a whole box and the room was rather smokey, so decided it was best not to try something we only had a few of. 

All the hats are belong to me.

Ok - I must admit - one of the hats was really cool and I wanted it - a cute green box cap.  For the bonus cigars we chose 4 Undercrown since Thomas likes them and then 4 of the other cigars - the Joya de Nicaragua Antaño el Martillo with dark corojo wrapper.Oh! They had a raffle and I won!  I don't think I have ever won anything at a raffle before so I was excited.  It was just a cigar ashtray, but it was a cool ashtray and in my favorite colors.



She says:

The cigar had a nice light brown wrapper, and the pre-draw was firm. It burned fairly evenly, and was a very pleasant smoke.  The cigar was on the milder side of medium, with a mellow blend of coffee, earth and leather flavors, nothing was really dominant.  I imagine it would go well with coffee as an any time of day smoke.







Overall, this is going to become a regular in our collection, as I think it is complex enough for experienced smokers to enjoy and mild enough for new smokers.

My prize. 

Our purchase

He Says:

Finck's pulls off another Well Done Event...
Drew estates and Joyo de Nicaragua, and as Val says above, great deals and hard decisions.

I love the Undercrowns but had never had the  Antaño el Martillos. So was overjoyed (at the time) that she had made the call to split the freebies between the two. After this Saturday, though, I wish we'd had made the call to make all of them the  Antaño el Martillos. See blog review for the whys.

At the lounge we wanted to enjoy the cigars from our new box, the Joya de Nicaragua Antaño. They are as good as I remember. Upper end of mild to medium body and strength with a really great toastie flavor. Perfect cigar if you have to drive home.

Thank You to Finck's and all for another great time.

Cigar Review: Finck's - Travis Club Family Blend

We got this cigar at the Lone Star Cigar Bash, and smoked it at a friend's house later that evening.

Finck's describes the cigar as " full-bodied, rich combination of Cuban-seed Nicaraguan long filler, Broadleaf binder and exquisite, silky-smooth Ecuadorian Shade wrapper."

She said:
The Travis Club Family Blend is a very well rolled cigar, the ash held on a long time before dropping.  It had a good draw, and was a pleasure to smoke.  The flavor was very earthy with strong mushroom notes, overall a somewhat complex flavor that is unique to any cigar I have ever tried.  I would say the strength was on the lower end of medium, but the flavor really stands out.

This is not on my list of all time favorites, but it is high on my buy for the occasional change of pace list.

He said:
This was kind of a surprise. Travis Club's are a decent cigar but are usually on the really mild side and I prefer a little bit stronger cigar. The Family Blend it a great addition to the Brand. It has a fuller flavor and just enough strength to make it a very enjoyable smoke. There was some hints of mushroom and earth, almost like a Padilla Miami, but not quite as strong.

This was a well constructed cigar and needed touching up only a couple time during the evening.

This is a solid addition to the Finck's Family stable of labels.

Cigar Review: Oliva Serie G Figurado

The Oliva Serie G Figurado:
From the website: Serie G is a medium body blend made with authentic African-Cameroon wrapper. The unique flavor notes of this wrapper are complimented by the natural richness of Nicaraguan Habano fillers. Blending notes: Medium body with notes of cedar and coffee.
Wrapper: Cameroon (African) Binder: Cuban-Seed Habano Filler: Nicaraguan Habano
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We were visiting with Thomas' son this weekend, and decided to bring along some cigars.  We thought it would be fun to review this one as it would make a nice short smoke, while we hung out after breakfast.

She says:
The figurado shape is a little odd for me, I tend to smoke robusto.  The cigar smelled nice before lighting it.

We were enjoying it with a morning cup of coffee out in the breeze, not a bad way to spend a late morning.

My first impression was the draw itself.  It was like trying to drink a milkshake that is too cold.  A pin would have loosened it up, but I didn't have one on hand.  The flavor was a nice medium, it is excellent for day time, not sure it would be my first choice in the evening.  The flavor for me was mostly leather, which is that Nicaraguan filler tobacco for you (I love Nicaraguan tobacco). Behind the leather was a subtle earthiness with hints of coffee.  At point it had the slightest hint of spice/peppery flavor, but it was very faint.  I did not notice much cedar to the flavor, despite the description.

I rate it as an enjoyable smoke.  The figurado shape was a bit strange for me, and it took some getting used to.  The wrapper flavor intensified as the cigar narrowed towards the end, and I found that it just got too hot to smoke and had to stop smoking it a little earlier than I would have liked. It was beautifully made, no unraveling or getting bits of tobacco in my mouth. It burned very well with a fairly solid ash, and rarely needed a touch up.

Overall I would give the blend a solid 4 stars out of five.  I would probably prefer the robusto version of this cigar and will try that one next time.  I will definitely buy this cigar again, the tobacco blend is fantastic, it makes for a good every day cigar.


He Says:
We went up to see O for his birthday and to see my Father-in-law, too.

It was kind of a breezy morning but the temperature was just right for hanging out on the porch after breakfast.

These are a nice little figurados from Oliva. The cameroon wrapper had nice hints of earth and leather before lighting and the pre-light draw was nice and leathery with just the right amount of hardness on mine, Val's was kinda hard.

One of the things I like about ths shape is the ease of lighting. Just get the little tip evenly lit and it burns even up the swell of the cigar and is usually maintenance free and these were no exception.

The flavor stayed leathery with just an occasional mild hint of spice.

The construction of my cigar was perfect. Solid white ash with very little flaking and it didn't ash till I was about 1/3 of the way through it.

These were a nice short smoke that went well with good company and coffee.

CAO Earth Nectar

This one is just from Val's point of view.  Thomas does not often smoke flavored cigars.

I tried the Earth Nectar from CAO the other day, it was a gift from a friend.  I love their Caramelo Joe, it is wonderful for in the morning with coffee.

I was unfortunately not very happy with the Earth Nectar.

Positives: It burned well and is very well constructed. The ash held together really well.  Normally I love tobacco from Nicaragua.

If you really like the Kuba Kuba by Acid (Drew Estates) you might like the Earth Nectar, as there were some similarities in the flavor profile.

Negatives: The wrapper was overly sweet, a very syrupy sweetness that was cloying and did not blend well with the rich Nicaraguan tobacco.  The flavor of "Earth Nectar" is not something that I could identify.  It tasted very artificial to me, and generally I prefer to have a flavor with a definition, such as coffee - I know what coffee tastes like, so I can judge how well I can taste coffee.

I think I have just moved on to liking a more earthy cigar, so I can't blame it on the cigar itself.   I think it just doesn't fit the profile of cigars I enjoy anymore.