Hammer & Sickle

Hammer and Sickle cigars were introduced at IPCPR last year but just started making their way into shops in the last couple of months.  They’re distributed by The Cigar Agency / Victor Vitale who also distribute the Ortsac 1962 and Escencia cigars. Spirit drinkers may be familiar with the Hammer & Sickle brand from their vodka.  I’d like to thank The Cigar Agency for sending me some samples of the Hammer & Sickle robusto for review.  One of my local B&M’s has started carrying these and the presentation is an unusual and impressive crystal box, hard to miss these on the shelf.

Hammer & Sickle Robusto
Size: 5” x 50
Wrapper: Connecticut (Aged 5 years)
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic (Aged 3 years)
Origin: Santiago, Dominican Republic
Price: ~ $160.00/20

APPEARANCE
A smooth and silky, medium brown wrapper.  There were no visible flaws in any of the cigars I smoke and veins were minimal.  It’s a great looking cigar.

CONSTRUCTION, BURN AND DRAW
Construction was very good and the burn was excellent.  Cigar is quite firm along the entire length but cold draw was perfect for me with just some moderate resistance.  The draw remained perfect through the entire smoke.

FLAVORS AND AROMA
The smoke had a very earthy aroma and the dominant flavors were spice and cream.  The spice flavor was tricky to describe, quite a mixture of sweet spice – cinnamon and nutmeg with the cream coming through.  Not a lot of change in flavor profile throughout but that was not an issue with the Hammer & Sickle as the flavors it did offer up were quite enjoyable.

OVERALL
I really enjoyed each of the cigars I smoked.  I tried them at different times of the day and with different beverages (rum, water, mojito) and each time they played very well together.  I’ll definitely pick some more of these up and could easily recommend them to a friend that enjoys a medium-bodied cigar.

INFO AND LINKS
The Cigar Agency Website – www.victorvitale.com
Available at several online retailers.
In metro Atlanta the Hammer & Sickle can be purchased at Truly Cigars in Marietta. - www.trulycigars.com

I received the following information today with details on the official launch of the Nestor Miranda Dominicano.

“NESTOR MIRANDA COLLECTION DOMINICANO ARRIVES!”

Miami, FL…3 March…The long anticipated Nestor Miranda Collection Dominicano has arrived!

A new line under the Nestor Miranda Collection label from Miami Cigar & Company brings to fruition a collaboration that began almost nine months ago, between Nestor Miranda, Pepin Garcia and his My Father Cigar Company and Guillermo Leon’s La Aurora S. A.

It was Miranda’s desire that the next cigar in the very successful line pay tribute to the tobacco and cigar heritage of the Dominican Republic. The collaboration brought together the tobacco growing expertise of La Aurora, the blending and manufacturing talents of Garcia and the unequalled marketing talents of Miranda and his associate Rene J. Castaneda

The result is a cigar of elegance, complexity and nuance capable of carrying the NMC banner alongside the already respected Special Selection line.

The launch of the Dominicano will take place with three significant in-store events. The first will be held in San Diego, CA, and is, actually, two consecutive events. It begins with a dinner, on Thursday, 11 March, from 6 to 10 PM, at  The 94^th Aero Squadron (8885 Balboa Avenue, San Diego, CA 92123 – Contact Greg Stenzel at 619.822.0167 or smokeclub@rocketmail.com) followed by a store event on Friday, 12 March,  from 2 – 6 PM at Racine & Laramie (2737 San Diego Avenue, San Diego, CA – 619.291.7883). It is worth noting that Racine & Laramie, located in Old Town San Diego Historic State Park has been in business since 1869.

On 19 March the Dominicano will be launched in New York City at The Grand Havana Room (666 Fifth Avenue, New York City 10019 – 212.245.1600).

The New York City event is a ticketed dinner arranged by Boris Grossman of Matador Cigars (38 Lincoln Avenue, Roslyn Heights, NY 11577 – 561.626.4966 – www.matadorcigars.com). On a visit to Matador by Miranda and Castaneda, Grossman volunteered to organize the event as soon as he heard about the much awaited release of the Dominicano. According to Grossman, “The event was sold out within four days of it being announced.”

The last of the events will take place on Nestor’s home turf on 20 March at Sabor Havana (2600 N.W. 87^th Avenue, Doral, FL 33172 – 305.436.8860 – www.saborhavana.com).

The cigar is being packaged in boxes of 20 and produced in 5 vitolas:

Lancero                       7.5 X 40
Coffee Break               4.5 X 50
Robusto Grande         5.5 X 54
Belicoso                      6-1/8 X 52
Ruky                            5-5/8 X 48 X 52

Like the rest of the Nestor Miranda Collection they will be available in both a Rosado and Oscuro wrapper.

Davidoff Classic #2 Tubo

I’m breaking my rules here by reviewing a cigar after smoking just one.  However, it’s not likely I’ll smoke several of these so I’m going to write this one up as it was a ’special’ cigar for me.  This was my first Davidoff, seems any other time I go to pick one up at a shop I always talk myself into buying something else as I can get two great sticks for the price of one Davidoff.  However, thanks to the Twitter Cigar Pass – started by @nyisles and @TheCigarChick!

Davidoff Classic Series #2 Tubo
Size: 6’ x 38
Wrapper: Connecticut
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican blend
Origin: Dominican Republic

APPEARANCE

The #2 has a flawless, velvet smooth wrapper.  Coloration is impeccably even and light to medium brown.  The pigtail cap was barely noticeable is it was pushed down in the tube – but it is there.  The wrapper has a slight sheen, but is not oily.  Overall this is a great looking cigar.

CONSTRUCTION, BURN AND DRAW

Construction is very good, the burn is excellent – clean and straight the whole time.  Draw was a bit on the tight side for my liking but still offered good amounts of smoke.  One major complaint was that the cigar dropped the ash several times, it didn’t seem long enough to require ashing but fell off when I went to take a draw.

FLAVORS AND AROMA

The cold aroma of the Davidoff is of cedar and sweet tobacco, this makes sense as it does come in a cedar-lined tubo.  I’ve always heard how mild the Davidoff cigars are and really expected very little noticeable flavor, I was pleasantly surprised that this was not the case.  Although this may be mild in terms of nicotine content it gave a mouth full of cedar, nuts, cream and sweet tobacco.  I didn’t not a lot of complexity as I smoked through the cigar but the flavors that were there were very enjoyable.

OVERALL

I really enjoyed my first Davidoff, the flavors were fantastic and the cigar burned perfectly.  I may not reach for one that often but I’ll definitely smoke another.  I paired this with some light roast coffee and the two mingled together perfectly.  If you’re one of those that looks for a blast of pepper and a ton of nic-kick then this won’t be for you, but if you can appreciate a well-made, mild cigar do yourself a favor and try a Davidoff sometime.

Capadura 898 Extra Ligero Robusto

I first heard about these cigars from Labman who heard them discussed on DogWatch Cigar Radio.  Labman started a dialog with the distributor, Luba Cigar Corporation, and they were nice enough to send us out some samples to try.  I’ve had these for a few months now and I have smoked several as well as sharing some.  In addition to the 898 Extra Ligero cigars they also offer a regular 898 line (full-bodied with long filler), 848 line (medium-bodied CT with medium filler) and an 808 line (mild-bodied CT wrapper with long filler).  All lines come in 4 sizes; Robusto (5″ x 50), Churchill (7″ x 48), Torpedo (6 1/2″ x 52) and Jumbo (5 1/2″ x 60).

Capadura 898 Extra Ligero Robusto
Size: Robusto (5″ x 50)
Origin: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Arapiraca Campesino’s 1st Choice / Brazil
Binder: Cubano, La Canela / Dominican Republic
Filler: 4 Tobaccos Piloto Cubano from Navarete, Dominican Republic and Esteli, Nicaragua
Price: Around $5.25 – $6.50

APPEARANCE
This is a really nice looking cigar with a small amount of veining and some slight color variations on the wrapper.  The wrapper is very slick and shiny with lots of tooth.  I love the look of this wrapper because it looks very natural.  The cap seems very solid but is applies slightly askew.

CONSTRUCTION
Excellent feel to this cigar, just the right amount of give.  As mentioned the cap is very solid but a little crooked.  Wrapper feels very supple and smooth under the toothiness.  Initial inspection showed this to be a very well made cigar and that is confirmed as the cigar was smoked – this is an extremely well constructed cigar.

BURN AND DRAW
When I first cut the cigar ant tested the draw I was worried that it was going to be too open and I would just be sucking air. Fortunately once it was lit it tightened up a bit to perfect for me with a very nice full-mouth of smoke on each puff but with enough resistance to avoid dead wind.  The burn stayed razor shape during the entire smoke, as you can see in the pics, and it never required a touch-up or relight.  This is definitely one of the best burning/smoking cigars I’ve ever had.

FLAVORS AND AROMA
So I’ve talked the cigar up a lot in the appearance and construction department but now let’s see how it delivers in the most important area.  Cold draw produced no noticeable flavors and the aroma of simple sweet tobacco.   Once lit there is a peppery zing to this that grabs the side of the tongue, followed with some mild sweetness.  As I worked into the 2nd Third of the cigar I noticed some flavors of leather and oak with the continued pepper.  Flavors are very pronounced and full, you don’t have to dig deep to get the flavors in this one.  A phenomenal profile on this one.

OVERALL
I need to order more of these cigars now, it had been a little while since I smoked one and when I fired another up last week it was even better than I remembered.  These aren’t available in many places yet so if you’re interested check with Fuller’s Pullers or Famous Smoke Shop, no Extra Ligero at Famous.

I’d easily put this in my Top 5, it seems every time I smoke a cigar and think I’ve found a new favorite then I smoke something else that wows me.  Then I’ll smoke another one of my old favorites and it floors me as well, either way… I know that I really enjoyed this cigar and will definitely enjoy it again.

LINKS
Luba Cigar Corporation ~ http://www.lubacigars.com
DogWatch Cigar Radio ~ http://www.cigarmedia.tv
Fuller’s Pullers ~ http://fullerspullers.us/catalog/index.php
Famous Smoke Shop ~ http://www.famous-smoke.com/

Founder's Breakfast Stout

It’s official, Founder’s Beer will hit store shelves in Georgia today!  The announcement was made just a few minutes ago by Savannah Distributing via their Twitter account @gabeer.

gabeer: Finally official. Got the signed paperwork yesterday. Founders Brewing is hitting Georgia shelves today! #craftbeer

If you’re a fan of craft beer then you’ve heard of Founder’s.  The brewery is based in Grand Rapids, MI and their brews are very highly sought after.  Three of their beers are on the Top 25 list at BeerAdvocate.com; including Canadian Breakfast Stout (#6), Kentucky Breakfast Stout (#7) and Founder’s Breakfast Stout (#22).

To see some of the other year-round and seasonal offers from Founder’s check out their website at http://www.foundersbrewing.com.