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Cigar Review | La Flor Dominicana 25th Anniversary

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It’s Stog o’Clock, and this time, I check out the new La Flor Dominicana 25th Anniversary. This cigar was made to commemorate the company’s 25th anniversary in business. It features an Ecuadorian Corojo wrapper atop all Dominican tobaccos. The cigar retails for $18 and comes in one size – a 7 x 52 Churchill.

La Flor Dominicana 25th Anniversary

Pre-Light

The wrapper produces a rich perfume and grass aroma while I smell dried fruit out of the foot. On the cold draw, the draw is snug with dried fruit flavor. Once lit, the draw gives me distinct leather and salt notes. Through the nose, I pick up cedar. The finish is spicier with black pepper and leather.

La Flor Dominicana 25th Anniversary

First Third

The first third comes to a close at forty minutes. On the draw, I pick up toast with molasses. Through the nose, black pepper blends with a saltiness. The finish offers rich dried fruit notes alongside leather. Strength and body settle in at medium-to-full.

La Flor Dominicana 25th Anniversary

Second Third

One hours and fifteen minutes in, the second third wraps up. My tongue find a lot of oak with black pepper and more molasses. On the retro-hale, black pepper now mixes with cinnamon. More leather and dried fruit continue to take over the finish. There is no change to strength or body.

La Flor Dominicana 25th Anniversary

Final Third

The final third ends at two hours. Molasses lightens up with rich coffee and oak coming up front. Through the nose, a smooth, sweet bread and light caramel delight my sinuses. On the finish, I pick up black pepper, leather, and mossy earth. Strength and body finish out at medium-to-full.

La Flor Dominicana 25th Anniversary

Conclusion

La Flor Dominicana 25th Anniversary is an excellent cigar. It has a solid amount of complexity, and the flavors worked exceptionally well together. There were subtle notes of the “Dominican twang” I typically dislike, but they played nice, and the experience was wonderful. Draw was a bit snug here and there, but construction was solid overall causing no problems. This is one of the best Dominican cigars I’ve had in a long time, and I highly recommend it.

Smoke on!

-Noah (CutLightSmoke)

Cigar Review | Cornelius & Anthony Meridian Robusto

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It’s Stog o’Clock, and this time, I check out the Cornelius & Anthony Meridian. For this review, I smoke the Robusto, a 5×52 stick with a very oily Ecuadorian wrapper. Inside is a Nicaraguan binder and fillers from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. It retails for $8.75.

Cornelius & Anthony Meridian

The wrapper produces a leathery manure aroma while I smell raisin out of the foot. The cold draw gives me damp earth flavor. Once lit, I find salty leather with cinnamon. Through the nose, rich leather mixes with sweet dough. The finish offers saltiness with black pepper and cinnamon.

Twenty minutes in, the first third closes out. On the draw, I pick up vegetal earth with leather and black pepper. Through the nose, I find sweet bread dough alongside cinnamon and what I would describe as potpourri. The finish offers cinnamon with leather and earth. Strength and body settle in at medium-to-full

Cornelius & Anthony Meridian

The second third ends after fifty minutes. More vegetal earth hits me on the draw with graham cracker and black pepper. There is no change to the retro-hale. On the finish, I get more cinnamon with damp oak and leather. Strength and body remain at medium-to-full.

Cornelius & Anthony Meridian

One hour and fifteen minutes in, the final third wraps up. I pick up more vegetal earth on the draw with leather and a distinct saltiness. Through the nose, nutty toast blends with black pepper. I find floral coffee notes on the finish mixed with smoky oak. Strength and body finish out at medium-to-full.

Cornelius & Anthony Meridian

The Cornelius & Anthony Meridian is an excellent cigar with great flavors. It’s a complex blend with a lot of depth. Construction is good even though I did have some hiccups with the burn in the second third. The price is reasonable, and it’s an overall enjoyable smoke that I highly recommend!

Smoke on!
-Noah (CutLightSmoke)

Cigar Review | Montecristo No. 1

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It’s Stog o’Clock, and this time, I check out a well-aged Cuban cigar. The Montecristo No. 1 is a 6.5×42 Lonsdale. This No. 1 is from 2005, which puts it at 11 years old. As with any Cuban cigar, the tobacco contained in this blend is entirely from Cuba. It appears to be well rolled with a very smooth, seamless wrapper.

Montecristo No. 1

The wrapper gives off an earthy chocolate aroma, while I smell pepper and earth out of the foot. The cold draw is very snug with just a grassy flavor. Once lit, the cigar continues to be tight. On the draw, I pick up woody leather with a salty quality to it. The retro-hale offers almost no flavor with just a slight wood. The finish gives me light leather and black pepper.

After twenty-five minutes, the first third comes to a close. Smoke production is extremely low. On the draw, I pick up some salty grass with chocolate and earth. I cannot give an assessment of the retro-hale due to the low smoke output and tight draw. The finish offers some fruity cedar, hints of caramel, and mild black pepper. Strength and body settle in at the mild-to-medium mark.

Montecristo No. 1

The second third closes out at forty-five minutes. I find more salty grass on the finish with toast and roasted almond. There is finally enough smoke to pick up some sweet coffee through the nose. The finish gives me a jump in black pepper with leather and spicy cedar. Both strength and body are up to a steady medium.

Montecristo No. 1

The final third ends at an hour and a half. On the draw, I’m treated to cinnamon, cedar, and toast. The retro-hale becomes more complex with spicy leather and black pepper. On the finish, there is more black pepper with dark coffee. Strength and body finish at the medium mark.

Montecristo No. 1

The Montecristo No. 1 is a great cigar. Age gives it refined elegance and balance. Though this cigar had a very snug draw during the initial half, the delicious flavors it offered made up for that. Construction is always a gamble with Cuban cigars, but they are made of some of the most unique, flavorful tobacco in the world. This is certainly a cigar I recommend, especially with significant age.

Smoke on!
-Noah (CutLightSmoke)

Cigar Review | La Gloria Cubana Hermoso

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Today we will be smoking and reviewing the La Gloria Cubana Hermoso. Hermoso translated from Spanish means beautiful. And what a beautiful cigar she is. She is a 4.5 inches long with a 48 ring gauge and sells for about $5.

I am thankful for Famous Smoke Shop for sending over several samples of La Gloria Cubana cigars. Gloria is a good friend of mine; therefore, we going to see how she treats us today.

La Gloria Cubana Hermoso Notes

Strength: Medium
Shape: Robusto
Size: 4 1/2 x 48
Country: Dominican Republic
Wrapper Color: Natural
Wrapper Origin: Ecuadorian
Wrapper Leaf: Sumatra

La Gloria Cubana Hermoso
La Gloria Cubana Hermoso

The aroma off the foot is dried fruit and nothing else. After carefully cutting the tip, and doing a cold draw, the only flavor I detect is tobacco. Reminds me of what I think my grandfather would smoke if he smoked cigars. Today’s pairing is a Belgian lambic ale named Cuvee Rene. The Cuvee Rene has a pale golden color and smells like an American pilsner. The taste however is one of a fermented lemon drink with the addition of hops. Reminds me of a champagne that has started to turn to vinegar. It is an interesting flavor.

La Gloria Cubana Hermoso
La Gloria Cubana Hermoso

During the first third, I will call the La Gloria Cubana Hermoso a right down middle cigar. She is still on the mild side. The flavor which tastes like ash and tobacco is better than medium body. I start getting a mix of cinnamon and cedar which transitions to chocolate and coffee and then back to tobacco. The retrohale exudes slight black pepper. It continues to be a mild cigar with medium plus flavors.

La Gloria Cubana Hermoso:
An Interesting Cigar

This is an interesting cigar. Still mild in strength and transitioning to a musty earth and salt flavor. Its almost like with every puff you experience something different. The cigar then transitions into a toasty coffee phase with about 5 flakes of black pepper. This bad boy is complex without being overwhelming in the strength. The complexity keeps shifting. Man this is an amazingly complex cigar. I pick up salt with increasing levels of black pepper.

The Hermoso by La Gloria Cubana is a very good cigar. It is smooth, complex and very well balanced. The construction is spot on. For the $5 price point, it is definitely worth a try.

La Gloria Cubana Hermoso
La Gloria Cubana Hermoso

Famous Smoke Shop Exclusive

Find these cigars and more at Famous Smoke Shop: La Gloria Cubana Cigars.

Cigar Review | Gurkha Ghost Angel Torpedo Tubo

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The Gurkha Ghost is a highly rated cigar that was released in 2012. I have heard a lot about how people either love this cigar or just simple hate Gurkha Cigars in general. Having heard all of the hype and all of the hate, I had to give the Gurkha Ghost a try.

Kaizad Hansotia, the owner of Gurkha Cigars, stated that, “The Ghost is so popular, that I made a 7 X 70”.

I have had my share of big ring gauge cigars and I haven’t been overly impressed. The cigar I reviewed, the Gurkha Ghost Angel Torpedo Tubo, is in the following size and construction:

Gurkha Ghost Angel Torpedo Tubo

Size: 6 X 52
Vitola: Torpedo
Wrapper: Brazilian Arapiraca Maduro
Binder: Criollo
Filler: Dominican/Nicaraguan
Price: $8.00

Gurkha Ghost Angel Cigar Review

Dimensions, Zest & Flavours

What are the flavours? The Gurkha Ghost has a zesty black pepper spice on the tip of my tongue and a long finish in the back of my mouth. The Brazilian wrapper provides more earthiness and the salty licorice. I described the flavour in the video as Egyptian Absinthe as from what I know it’s a salty licorice type spice and can be used to create the alcoholic drink of the same name.

Transition Alert

There was an unexpected transition to flour and earth. It was a welcoming chalky taste that really accentuated the dry feeling in the mouth.

Draw, Smoke Output & Finish

The cigar has dry smoke with little smoke output. The draw is medium and became tighter right after the cold draw. The finish is long and medium body.

Strength, Vim & Vigor

This cigar is medium+ in strength and I wouldn’t recommend it to a beginner. I did get a slight buzz from the cigar before I put it down. But I really smoked this cigar passed its flavour wheelhouse as I just felt like puffing it welled passed its beautiful band.

Time of Smoke & Value

I ended the video review at 90 minutes, the cigar went on for another 35 to 40 minutes down to the nub.

Final Thoughts

Gurkha Ghost Flavour WheelThis is not a cigar taste that I expected from Gurkha after having the Royal Challenge Maduro. The cigar didn’t burn well the whole time and I had to do a touch up. I admit, after the touch up and the halfway point the smoke picked up and the cigar leaned more towards full body with the flavours noted above picking up in strength.

Did I enjoy?

Yes and No. I don’t know if I like the flavour profile. Though I did enjoy trying something in a different profile. Overall the cigar worked for me, I think I enjoyed. The burn issues were not pleasant and the lack of sweetness is not something I expected so I think that confused me. Why not ask me and find out more. You never know if I changed my mind.

You can watch the Gurkha Cigars Official Release Cask Blend on YouTube as well as many other iROBUSTO cigar reviews there too.

Cigar Review | Entrada Toro

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The Entrada Toro is a blend of Nicaraguan criollo, viso, and corojo with a San Andreas wrapper.

Entrada Toro Cigars

Price Paid: $9.30

Paired with Starbucks Caramel Frappucino

Manufactured by Casa Fernandez a vertical integration company in Nicaragua that handles all aspects of the production from seed to final product for Casa de Entrada.

All of the following sizes are boxed pressed

  • Toro – 6 x54
  • Robusto – 5 x 52
  • Gordo – 6 x 60
  • Corona – 5.5 x 44

Wrapper: San Andres Maduro
Filler: Nicaraguan Criollo, Viso & Corojo
Weather: Rainy, 80 degrees

Entrada Cigars

The cigar has a satin finish, slightly wrinkled, well packed firm roll and features a footband with the name Cigarcia. The main band is a marriage between a stamp and a traditional cigar band.

Aroma: Tobacco
Cold Draw: Well aged tobacco, hints of sweetness with a touch of spice on the tongue
First Light: Huge plumes of smoke, mouthful of flavor, smooth wonderful smelling smoke in the air
Tastes: Well-aged maduro, tobacco, sweetness, dried fruit and spice on the back of mouth

This is a very complex medium-bodied cigar. This cigar picks up a nice mix of salt and pepper that combines with the sweet chocolate, dried fruit that I find common in maduro tobacco. The flavors fleet in and out offering several very interesting flavor combinations as follows:

  • Hot chocolate
  • Pepper cream
  • Salt & pepper
  • Dried fruit & pepper
  • Floral & pepper

The Entrada Toro is a very smooth and well-balanced cigar with no unwanted ammonia or bitterness.

LeeMack912 Rating

Price – 4/5
Flavor – 4/5
Complexity – 4/5
Construction – 4/5

Total – 8.5/10

Entrada Cigars

Cigar Review | Curivari Buenaventura BV560

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The Curivari Buenaventura cigar review touches on the facets of a finely constructed cigar. The Curivari Buenaventura is a relative newcomer in the industry as it has only been in the US market for about two years. Sporting a Nicaraguan binder, wrapper and filler and a triple-cap head this cigar has a tranquil look and feel.

This stick’s name reminded me of European car manufacturers like Ferrari for example. As you’ll see in the cigar review this cigar has an understated elegance and an interesting flavour profile. It has great aromas right from the start and an ash that will impress anyone.

Right away when I did an inspection of the essence of this cigar I was impressed by its chocolatey, creamy, citrus-like smell. The cigar band/label is stark and “old skool” unlike other cigars that flaunt a more intricate, angelic or dramatic label. It’s a touch of class and that’s what I think, Andreas Throuvalas, the owner of the company was going for.

Curivari Buenaventura BV560

The pre-light checkup shows that we have a light to medium draw and some salt where I expected it to be very sweet. A very interesting, defining feature of this cigar. Upon further review, the wrapper is one of the thinnest, most smooth cigar wrappers I have ever seen.

It’s very glossy and the girth of the cigar at a 56 ring gauge is perfectly tempered by box-pressing as to not make it feel as thick when performing the pre-light draw. I find that I like the feel of box-pressed cigars when they’re a bit thicker.

On the first draw, it has a long finish with tastes of salty Cuban-like musty, hay, grass tastes and flavours. I’m sure, the manufacturer, Curivari, intended this as they wanted to pay homage to Cuba. Most of the flavours sparked up some nostalgia of playing a good round of golf with a special treat of having that first perfect shot on the first hole. What a great feeling and that’s what cigar enjoyment is all about.

Cigar Coastline

At 20 minutes in, the burn is superb and the finish is short only lasting about a second. I would describe the feel of the smoke in the mouth as dry and tingling notes of spice on the lips. Its very impressive ash is something awe inspiring. Once a person gets into the cigar they will notice that when the spice finish subsides their palate will sense some mild sweetness similar to dry cinnamon.

In retrospect, it’s a welcoming and innovative approach to cigars.

I commend Curivari on being able to produce a cigar in a flavour profile that is not currently popular amongst the masses. At about half way in 35 minutes or so, the cigar burned with a perfectly salient coastline and the flavour profile remained exactly the same with no transitions whatsoever. I noticed the flavour intensity picked up and it remained smooth as the tobacco blended together and the volume of smoke went up very much. It’s a smooth, light to medium body cigar with white pepper spice.

Cigar Review Haywire?

At about 14 minutes into the video cigar review, I was having a bit of fun and was enjoying myself, so take it for what it is, this cigar does some things in flavour that I’m not used to. In retrospect, it’s a welcoming and innovative approach to cigars. As an advocate of cigars and expression of all tastes for cigars, this is a very bold taste to put to the public especially when you’re a newcomer.

As seen in the cigar review, Curivari has accomplished what it set out to do, which is stand out from the crowd while retailing for under $5.50. Have a try and enjoy a round with the BV560.

Watch this Cigar Review on YouTube.

In Germany in the Düsseldorf region? Visit Cigar World for an excellent selection of New World cigars as well as classic Cubans.