The Velvet Cigar

Hey there everyone….Elvis here. It’s been awhile since I’ve blogged, but really I’ve been kind of bored with my current selection of cigars lately. I’ve been smoking a lot of stronger stuff and most of them get pretty hot at the end and fry my mouth a bit. So, when I walked into the local shop today and saw the new NUB Maduro, I thought it might be a nice medium bodied change of pace.

I have to say I’ve been annoyed with the NUBs I’ve had in the past. It was a great marketing idea and in an industry that’s been around for hundreds of years, it’s got to be hard to come up with a new cigar angle. But the reality is that the NUB is just too short and when you factor in the inch and a half you have to have just to hold onto it when you smoke, it doesn’t leave much to enjoy. If they have the good blend and the good tobacco to work with, why not take a page from the new Marco V line and make it five inches. It would serve the same purpose and would be a more enjoyable cigar smoking experience. And for the $9 price tag here in Minnesota, I don’t think most guys that I know have tried the NUB more than once.

But I am a sucker for a nice looking dark maduro wrapper, so I picked up a couple to try out.
Pre-light the NUB maduro smells very nice…a bit of leather and nice moist fresh soil. The wrapper is not shiny, but has a nice rich look to it meshing well with the chocolatey simple band. Made me want to grab a Snickers bar just looking at it. The taste didn’t disappoint. Thick plumes of smoke that smelled heavenly along with the chocolate notes it left on the palate. Again, the only problem is that I was left wanting more. Thankfully, the cigar didn’t burn too hot at the end as I tried to “nub” it the best I could until there was no more room left for my fat little finger to hold on to it. I also wish it was about a dollar or two less, or it could easily become my go-to smoke when I only have 45 minutes or so to light up a smooth satisfying stick.

I give the NUB Maduro a 4 out of 5. Pick one up today!

E

Share This

Elvis and I were at a local cigar shop this week, The Perfect Ash. Its a great lounge in Lilydale, MN just a few minutes South of Downtown St. Paul.We were there for a cigar event. At the end of the evening Diana the owner pulled us aside and give us each a AF Hemingway Work of Art Maduro. I was thankful for the generosity since I know this cigar is at times hard to come by.I’m not a big Fuente smoker. Its not that I dislike the brand our its lines, I guess i’m just part of that new generation of cigar smokers that smokes the new lines on the market, but I do dabble in the classic lines from time to time.  I almost didn’t want to cut the head of the cigar. Its really a beautiful cigar to look upon. The wrapper is a dark maduro with an even color tone. There are a few veins that stick out.The draw before I lit the cigar is quite easy, but the way the cigar actually feels in the hands, it feels like its a tightly packed cigar. I lit the cigar with my triple flame Colibri, but just for a few seconds. There is a small wick at the foot of the cigar to light. You just want to light it and let the wrapper do its job.My first impression is positive. It has a leather flavor with a strong wood note, almost like an oak barrel. I also note it is quite smokey, lots of great plumes of smoke emitting from this cigar.The 1/4 mark brings on a more robust leather taste. It started out medium bodied, but at this point its quite full. At the halfway point the ash is still holding strong. I don’t want to put it down!  The 3/4 mark the ash was still hanging on, but it eventually fell on to the patio. The cigar is so rich in flavor. Its quite a smooth smoke.  The AF Hemingway Work of Art Maduro is a delicious cigar. One of the best cigars i’ve had in a while. I give this cigar a 5 out of 5, anything less would be criminal.

Share This

This week Congress passed legislation that would put tobacco products under the authority of the FDA. Our faithful President has said he is more then happy to sign the legislation. What makes this whole thing weird is that Phillip Morris was all for the legislation. I’m not sure why, but from what I read, the smaller cigarette makers saw this as an attempt for the 800 pound gorilla (Phillip Morris) to snuff, pun intended, out the compitition.

What this honestly means for us as a cigar smoker is yet to be seen. The legislation looks to take control of what goes into a cigarette. Since most of the premium handmade cigars in the industry have no chemicals added, I would hope to see no interference from the Federal Government when it comes to enjoying new lines in the future.

I’ve been using this line a lot lately, “I wish I could be my current age, but live 20 years ago”. Everywhere I turn the government in some fashion are looking to stop us from smoking cigars or taxing us out of our hobby. I’m not sure of the quality of the cigars 20 years ago, but I would certainly trade the quanity of cigars on the market for less intrusion from the goverment in my life. If it meant not having Rocky Patel, Gurkha, CAO, Arganese, Perdomo to smoke, I would enjoy that cigar 20 years ago just that much more knowing I didn’t have Big Brother looking over my shoulder. Now at times I feel under the current administration that every cigar I smoke could be my last.

Camacho Habano

This cigar came this past winter in a Secret Santa package. I’ve tried looking this cigar up online, but couldn’t find anything on it. I’m calling it the ‘Habano’ since that was the only name on the label that let me know what I might be smoking. If anyone has a better description of what this cigar is, please pass it along.

The cigar is a robusto size and is boxed press. The band is shiny with primary colours of Orange, Yellow and highlights of Gold.

Tonight I’m smoking from my patio. It was a glorious warm day here in Minnesota and the evening is just as wonderful. Its a little more quiet then usual in the neighborhood. I have my trusty smoking cat Shnook and a bottle of Talisker Distillers Edition for later in the evening.

I punched the head of the cigar and lit it with my Colibri Triple Flame Lighter. The first puffs on the cigar were quite smooth, but the aftertaste left a slight bitterness in the back of my throat. There were hints of leather and vanilla.

At the 1/4 mark of the cigar it was still smooth with a rich overtone, with still a slight bitterness at end of the draw. The draw was tighter then what I usually get from a Camacho cigar.

The halfway point was pretty much the same, but I did slow down my smoking due to feeling a lot of heat coming from underneath the wrapper.

The 3/4 mark found the cigar adding a little twist, I started getting a pepper note on my tongue. It wasn’t strong, but it was noticable.

The Camacho ‘Habano’ was a nice medium bodied cigar. It was relaxing to smoke, anything longer then this robusto and I probably would become bored with cigar. I give this cigar a 3.5 out of 5.

Share This

Last night I watched with some friends Rocky IV. It had been probably 15 years since I’d seen the movie. As I watched the movie I thought about the patriotism that the movie displayed which I believe is lacking in movies these days. A movie like Red Dawn displayed how America can fight for what we believe. There wasn’t anything in these movies that led you to believe that America was in the wrong unlike the movies we see today where there is always something wrong with America and when we go to fight, we are supposed to me ashamed. Now i’m not saying we need propaganda movies, but something that shows the country and it’s fighting forces in a positive light.

La Flor Dominicana - Connecticut

The wrapper is a golden brown in color. A few minor veins but otherwise smooth in texture. You may notice in some of the pictures the wrapper is coming loose. This is my fault, when I brought it home from the shop, I was a little rough with the cigar and the wrapper tore slightly.

Punched the head of the cigar and lit it with my Colibri Triple Flame lighter. My first few puffs are quite bitter.  There is a slightly tight draw.

The 1/4 mark finds the cigar losing the bitterness slightly.  The draw is still a little tight. The flavors i’m getting are earthy with a light leather tone. It has a salty taste.

At the halfway point the salty flavor disappeared. It started to smooth out with the draw getting easier. I was tasting a more light woody and hay flavors.

A light coffee taste appears at the 3/4 mark. The cigar got a slightly fuller in flavor but overall this is a mild to almost medium in strength.

The La Flor Dominicana CT is a good cigar. If you like a CT with a little more taste then this is your cigar. I give it a 3.5

Share This

Elvis gave me this cigar sometime last year. I always meant to pull it out and smoke it, but I just never got around to it, also Elvis reviewed it sometime last year, you remember Elvis….don’t you? Here is what he had to say about the Camacho Liberty 2008.

I like Camacho cigars. They have been putting out some nice medium to fuller flavored cigars the last few years which I appreicate as a guy who enjoys those cigars. My one critique of Camacho cigars is how loose the tobacco is packed in some of their cigars. It just seems at times it takes so little air to draw through them, so then you don’t want to puff to hard which causes the leaf to burn faster and hotter.

The wrapper has the barber pole of Maduro and Corojo wrapper, its mostly smooth in apperence. The cigar has a slightly boxed pressed shape with an almost Figarado shape. The Binder and Filler consists of Honduran tobacco.  The cigar did come in it’s own coffin and was wrapped in tissue paper, but I threw that out long ago to age the cigar.

There are 2 bands on the cigar. The top one is gold and red with highlights of black. Its quite an eye catcher. The foot of the cigar has a smaller band proclaiming the edition of 2008.

I punched the head of the cigar and lit it with my Colibri Triple Flame lighter. The draw is even, its not too loose. I get a slight peppery note in the back of my throat and on my lips. There is a slight bitter flavor with cedar and paper notes.

At the 1/4 mark the cigar seems to burn a little fast. There isn’t much change to the cigar, but I still get a slight pepper note every few minutes.

At the halfway point the cigar seemed to burn uneven and it needed a slight touch up. The cigar started getting a fuller flavor.

The 3/4 mark found the cigar getting more complexity to the taste. A definate coffee flavor stood out. The bitterness I tasted throughout the beginning of the smoke seemd to fade. Again the pepper note was still hitting the back of my throat but it was getting stronger, my tongue started to catch fire. The uneven burn had corrected itself after the slight touch up earlier.

The Liberty finshed up strong. It has a nice balance at the end. If the Liberty started out as good at the end the cigar it would be wonderful. But if you look at this cigar as a novel, it started off with a decent story and ended up with a great twist at the end. I’m giving this cigar a 4 out 5.

Share This