3 Regular Guys Review: Cohiba Extra Vigoroso

Cohiba seems like it has been a staple on the scene even longer than it may have even existed. We all know the original origin of the brand, blended specifically for Castro, Fidel not Raul, to hand out as diplomatic gifts, but the Cohiba brand we’re concerned with is General Cigar’s Cohiba manufactured in la Republica Dominicana.

The standard Cohiba, sometimes called a red dot because of the red circle inside the “O”, entered the market in 1978. That specific cigar was the one that established the name and defended the mystique of a Cohiba brand cigar.
As seems to be the case with most things, tastes changed, and in response the Cohiba was re-blended in the 1990s to craft a slightly more rich and robust cigar.

The Red Dot was not destined to be alone for long though and now has three siblings: the Cohiba Black is wrapped in a Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro wrapper; the Cohiba Puro Dominicana is as it sounds, a purely Dominican cigar; and the cigar the 3 Regular Guys reviewed, the Cohiba XV.

The Cohiba XV gets its acronym name from eXtra Vigoroso, because cigar legend Daniel Nuñez blended the XV to be the fullest bodied Cohiba to date. So, we gave it a shot and found out for ourselves just how tough the XV can be.

Seemingly true to any cigar that has ever donned the Cohiba band, they are all visibly attractive cigars. The XV has a beautiful wrapper leaf that is well-cured and displays veining that reminds you this is a natural product made from the leaf of a tobacco plant. Colm debated with himself if it was a Spanish Rosado leaf or a Sumatra, and, allegedly without looking it up, settled on the Sumatra diagnosis. He is entirely correct, as this is an Ecuadoran grown Sumatra leaf and bears that leathery color and shading so typical of this plant. We all remarked on the good looks of this cigar.

Corona Chris enjoyed the pre-light aroma and Scott noted that the cigar seemed very well constructed with a clean cap. The cap held up well to the cut; or even two cuts. Colm thought the initial draw on this stick was a bit too tight so he re-cut and resumed smoking. The second cut did the trick and mostly alleviated the difficult draw. This is also a lesson that, while you don’t want to make a habit of it, it is safer to undercut a cigar and then touch it up with a sharp cutter than to cut too deep and be smoking through a straw.

Taste-wise we had some disagreements on our experiences. Corona Chris noted some surprise that the XV was as mellow and smooth as it was with an almost Maduro flavor, but a quick check of the ingredients list will identify that flavor as coming from the Connecticut Broadleaf binder. Scott’s and Colm’s take on it was a bit more trying. The XV started out quite strong. We were open to this since it has a Sumatra wrapper and Ligero filler. However there was a harshness to the otherwise citrusy taste. After the first half-inch the cigar mellowed and smoothed out considerably as the blend seemed to come together.

The 3 Regular Guys all found some issues with the consistency of the flavor to the XV being too variable. When the Cohiba XV is smoking steady through the middle ¾ of the stick it is a fairly bold cigar. Be mindful that there is a heavy flavor to the aftertaste, but having smoked these on the job we lacked the option of strong libations. When smoked with a heavy dose of Cuban coffee or something with a nice proof-rating, like Lagavulin, you might actually be grateful for that strength of finish to stand up to your drink.

Cohiba XV is definitely extra strong compared to the Red Dot you know so well. Just the contrast of a Sumatra wrapper compared to the old standby sweet and smooth Cameroon sets those two cigars apart. But, if you are a true Cohiba fan you have little option other than to buckle up and give this stick a try. An aggressive cigar might appeal to you quite nicely otherwise it’s not a bad thing to give your tastebuds some zesty variety. Go smoke it yourself!

Click Here To Order Cohiba XV!

3 Regular Guys Review: La Aurora

The La Aurora Cigar factory is the oldest continuously operating cigar factory in the Dominican Republic, with La Aurora cigars known as the first Dominican cigar. The reason they are still in business is because of the quality of their product and the integrity with which they run their enterprise. The León Jimenes Group, owner of La Aurora Cigars as well as Presidenté Beer and other ventures, began simply and honestly in 1903 when Eduardo León Jimenes founded his cigar factory. He was a young, ambitious man who was the son and grandson of tobacco growers. His singular purpose was to create a high quality cigar that would be well received by the market and which he could be proud to stand behind.
La Aurora has been in the business for over a century, lending cause to develop the Cien Años blend to commemorate this long history. For a cigar company with this many years under its belt, we think it is significant to point out the small amount of blends that they have developed and continue to produce. While many cigar brands out there seem to be introducing a new blend every other month, La Aurora hasn’t. They produce just 7 premium handmade long filler cigars. Among them is the cigar the 3 Regular Guys smoked, the La Aurora Robusto Cameroon.
This great little Robusto was very well made. It had a solid cap that cut great and held firmly. The wrapper is a Cameroon leaf that had subtle veins. Scott thought the wrapper color had a slight Rosado shade to it even. All in all, an attractive cigar from the outside from which Corona Chris noted a flavorful pre-light aroma.
Once lit, this cigar produced a lot of smoke with a bright, toasty aroma and a great draw. Colm, of course, enjoyed the medium bodied smoke of this La Aurora because it has nicely balanced filler, but most importantly it is wrapped in that Cameroon leaf that still feeds his current addiction.
Scott thought that the smoke was quite structured and dry overall but especially on the back of the palate. More subtly there was an intriguing flavor of vanilla coming through a woody, dry sweetness; likely more hints of the Cameroon wrapper shining through. Corona Chris gave high marks to this moderately spicy and enjoyable stick because of its excellent value, especially for a Cameroon wrapped cigar. He also has designs on hiding a couple of these in one of his humidors to see what a few months, or years, of extra aging will do to this blend.
This is the lower tier of the La Aurora cigar stable, but the 3 Regular Guys were definitely not let down. The cigar was well made and the blend was rather balanced. The Cameroon leaf is, of course, a favorite of all three of us. We’re pretty certain you cannot go wrong with anything coming from the La Aurora factory, but definitely positive that this cigar is well worth you checking it out too.

Click Here For La Aurora!

3 Regular Guys Review: Augusto Reyes Nativo

Reyes is Spanish for Kings, which seems fitting when you look at the Reyes’ family resume in the tobacco business. A century and a half working directly with tobacco creates a positive sense of obligation, as trustee of a craft handed you by generations before. So it is with Augusto Reyes, who is known as a veritable king by industry insiders but less so by John Q. Smoker. Reyes has been crafting exceptional cigars in his factories for countless top brands, but only now, with his blend Nativo, has he put his name on the band.
Nativo, Spanish for native, is also well named as this cigar is a Dominican puro. The filler is a blend of Olor, Criollo 98, and Piloto Cubano. The binder on our Corona size Nativos is Olor and the wrapper is Criollo 98, which is evident by its trademark hue. Colm expected to feel some oiliness to the wrapper, but didn’t. Scott did detect some oil, which made him anticipate the richer flavor when lit. Corona Chris thought the wrapper was actually a bit fragile. But, on the whole this was a well constructed cigar. The cap cut and held exactly as it should.
Once lit, the draw was optimal and scored high by everyone, having just enough even resistance. This stick produced plenty of mellow, cool smoke. Corona Chris thought the Nativo tasted rich and smooth, but noted that after the halfway point it began to lose some of its smoothness. Colm thought the A. Reyes Nativo tasted fantastic, and was medium to full in body. Corona Chris and Scott both thought that this tasty cigar was a lot closer to the low end of medium strength. The Nativo has plenty of structure though and is satisfyingly balanced. Our Nativos burned well and turned into dense, light gray ash. The finish was short and clean.
Overall, Colm thought that this was a great smoke and a bit stronger than he expected. He immediately requested more samples for further testing. Corona Chris enjoyed the aroma of Nativo and thought it’d be a solid choice for a late-morning through afternoon smoke. Scott enjoyed this Dominican puro’s consistency as he had smoked quite a number of them previously and each was predictably satisfying. Almost without a doubt, you have already smoked a cigar that was made by Augusto Reyes. Now, it’s time to really give his craftsmanship a shot by smoking this first cigar to have his name on it.

Click Here For A Killer Deal On Augusto Reyes Nativo!

3 Regular Guys Review: Gurkha G3

The 2 Regular Guys were happy to welcome Corona Chris as the new 3rd Regular Guy. See, Colm and Scott convened in a smoke-filled room, or possibly it was a tiki-bar for a Friday lunch, and determined getting Chris onboard would actually be best for us. While Corona Chris has the unfair advantage of choosing which cigar we smoke next, we have the fair advantage that by making him smoke the same cigars as us, we drastically reduce our exposure to crappy cigars. Thus far, our scheme is working nicely, and we’re not too proud to say we look forward to eventually reviewing ANY Padrón 1926 Serié cigar for our loyal blog subscribers! Soon maybe?

Next up in our rotation is the Gurkha G3. If you consult the Gurkha website, Kaizad Hansotia intones how Gurkha doesn’t make really strong cigars. We would agree. He then calls out the G3 as a possible exception. Well, the name G3 appears to come from Gurkha and triple-Ligero.

Ligero leaf comes from the top of the tobacco plant, so they get the most sun exposure and also are the newest leaves as the plant matures upward. They are noted to be oily and strong in flavor. Add to that a Nicaraguan wrapper and this cigar just may live up to Hansotia’s safety warning that the G3 is for experienced smokers only and you should be seated when smoking this cigar.

Despite not being for the amateur, none of us were blindsided by this cigar. Chris and Scott both pegged it as being mild to medium in strength. Colm failed to make note of strength for this stick; and, from much experience transcribing his cocktail-napkin cigar reviews, that indicates a medium bodied cigar. Maybe we’ve been enjoying sweating through too many 601’s lately but the G3 offered up a great smooth flavor with a nice aftertaste and lingering finish. The strength was nowhere near oppressive.

Scott noted what he thought was a sweet taste to the wrapper; but, after consulting Gurkha’s website, he opted to re-calibrate his conclusion to the Cameroon binder instead. Perhaps the Cameroon binder went a long way to rein in the zestiness of the triple-Ligero leaf in this stogie.

The aroma was woody and the burn wandered a little but posed no difficulty. None of us recorded this cigar as cranking out smoke. The smoke, while somewhat sparse, was cool and flavorful, with a pleasant tobacco undertone and a light to medium mouthfeel. That could be the culprit of the triple-Ligero filler as well since it tends to burn quite slowly. In defense of the quality of the G3, there were no instances of it turning hot or harsh no matter how steadily we puffed on them.

This is a rather complicated cigar with plenty of subtle nuances that are tough to pin down. That complexity definitely makes it enjoyable to ponder the G3. In conclusion, the Gurkha G3 wouldn’t quite earn a three-drawn-sword salute, but all of the 3 Regular Guys would be willing to offer Genghis Kahn one to smoke next time he drops by the Thompson Cigar yurt.

Click Here To Order The Gurkha G3!

3 Regular Guys Review: Oliveros Silver Eagle (Size: Gold Eagle)

We Two Regular Guys have admittedly been slacking. Let us qualify that: we’ve been extremely busy with our other job responsibilities, and have done a terrible job of smoking cigars and writing reviews. Not to worry: we’ve been smoking lots of cigars, we just haven’t blogged about any of them.
A few weeks back Corona Chris gave us each an Oliveros Silver Eagle Toro. We stashed them in our desk humidors. A week or so later he asked us if we had smoked them. Nope; still in the humidor. In an attempt to look less like slackers, Scott told Corona Chris maybe he should become the new Third Regular Guy and then he could find time to smoke the Oliveros and write about it. Figuring it should buy him some time, Colm agreed with the idea.
Sure enough, Corona Chris smoked his Silver Eagle first –at home on the weekend. Colm and Scott opted for the more convenient workplace afternoon tasting. What follows is our combined thoughts on this Honduran-made natural stick.
All three of us noted the good looking Ecuadorian-grown, Connecticut-seed wrapper, which was even in color and smooth. Scott thought the cap was less than pristine, but it held up very well to a punch cutter. Chris and Scott noted a very good draw, yielding a tremendous amount of cool smoke. Scott was happy to have opted for a punch cut as this Toro would have had a super easy draw with a full guillotine cut.
The burn wandered a little bit initially on each of our cigars, but never badly. After the first third, it evened out, and stayed steady for the duration. The ash was light gray and slightly flaky, but held on for a long time as good testament to the long filler within.
Corona Chris noted a consistent flavor from start to finish. He found the strength and body to be mild to medium, due to the strength of the Nicaraguan filler mellowed by the Dominican filler. Overall, the new Third Regular Guy felt the Silver Eagle was a well-made blend, with a nice aroma.
Scott tasted an initial sweetness, maybe from the wrapper, but perhaps more likely from the Indonesian Sumatra binder, which quickly merged into the filler, but remained discernible. Strength was just across the line into medium, with a medium body. Scott opted to call it medium strength because, after the initial creamy full smoke, it turned to a white pepper note on the back of your palate during the dry, clean, medium-length finish. Scott thought this cigar built in strength during the first third, and then, rather quickly mellowed and smoothed for the remainder of the stick.
Colm also noted the initial taste as having some strength and an edge to it, but mellowing out to a nice, mild flavor. He thought the Silver Eagle would make a good morning cigar or during the front nine of golf. He and Scott noted the oversized shiny band as making this stogie logistically optimal for yard work. You can pull weeds or dig up a tree and never have to touch the wrapper with your hands.
Consensus is this is a nice, mild cigar. It’s not going to knock you out. Neither is it going to break your budget. If you needed another reason why you should give this cigar a try, and dabble in other Oliveros’ lines, then you’ve got no excuse with the value this stogie represents. Pick some up, and see what you think.

Click Here To Order The Oliveros Silver Eagle (Size: Gold Eagle)!

2 Regular Guys Review: C.A.O. America Monument

The CAO America was officially released at RTDA in Houston this August. We 2 Regular Guys were not special enough (oh, we know we are special though) to get the invite this year to join the Thompson Cigar entourage headed to the tradeshow. Corona Chris and the venerable Al Remp did however, so they’ve got the stories. Needless to say our first question when those guys got back into the office was not “so, did you smoke the America?” but rather, “so, you brought some back for us right?”
Despite our youthful enthusiasm Corona Chris and Al were utterly un-phased. We would instead have to wait until our inventory of Americas arrived. When they arrived, we raided the shipment in a very timely manner and smoked several. Then Corona Chris told us around Veterans Day that we would patriotically get to smoke more Americas for our latest review. We smoked them in short order –Scott in the cigar city of Ybor with a Guinness; Colm in the Guinness city of Dublin with about eleven Guinness. What follows is what we recall.
Our America of choice was the Monument -6.25” x 54 torpedo. Poetically the America is a beautiful cigar. It is a barber-pole or pin-stripe cigar which means it is wrapped in two contrasting wrappers yielding a definitive stripe spiraling up the stick right to the cap. The darker wrapper is an American-grown Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro and the lighter one is smooth Connecticut Shade. The skill and some small measure of luck to this style of wrapper is in achieving an even consistent burn because the wrapper leaves are different thicknesses –the maduro being thicker. Selecting and pairing the wrapper leaves as well as exceptional care in rolling is required for a high quality result. CAO does this –very well.
So this cigar can win a beauty pageant and it’s exceedingly well constructed. Great, but how does it smoke? CAO, being the marketing demigods that they are, promoted and campaigned for this stick as being an amazing full bodied medium to full strength smoke. Here’s how we judged it.
Pre-light the wrapper impressed us yet again. Not only a pretty face but it also had an enticing mellow toasted aroma to it. The filler also smelled mellow with a subtle threat of liveliness. The cigar cut and lit perfectly. The draw was great. Neither too loose nor too strong and it produced tons of smoke.
Immediately apparent was that it had a clean finish and a lighter body than we expected. The smoke, bare with us, had a smoky taste. You know, like BBQ wood smoke. After dissecting cigars to identify flavor nuances like lemongrass or clove it’s always nice to find a really good tasting cigar that can best be described as smoke or tobacco flavor. It reminds Scott of why he drinks Scotch. Colm does too but he’s pretty sure he drinks it just because he really likes it.
Ok, let’s get obscure. There was a citrus note on the front of the draw and palate similar in character to another good friend of ours the Bolivar. The America has a truly wonderful aroma that is pleasant and gentle to the nose. While it leaves your palate very clean, and with a gin & tonic we’ve no doubt it’d leave no residual aftertaste, this cigar does build slightly in strength and body halfway through.
Most importantly for this multi-colored cigar is that it is consistent and rather well-balanced throughout. We didn’t find it to be the full bodied stick that CAO had psyched us up for but each time we smoke this medium strength medium bodied stick we like it even more than the last time. Both of us 2 Regular Guys have smoked several of these stogies and while we’ll often keep one around in the desktop humidor for a couple days because it’s so darn pretty invariably our cravings will successfully lobby for lighting it up and enjoying it. This cigar should probably be your first choice for any politically motivated holiday. Light one up on Presidents Day, Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day, or start right now with today.

Many thanks to our faithful blog subscriber AcidGurl for the great rendition of the 2 Regular Guys press-photo. Namaste!


Click Here To Order C.A.O. America!

3 Regular Guys Review: Macanudo Vintage 2000 VIII

So, if there were to be a Coca-Cola of cigars and it not to be Cohiba –madly popular because of the acclaimed reputation of its Cuban cousin being Fidel’s personal blend- what would it be? My vote goes for none other than Macanudo. You can buy them almost anywhere; you can ask anyone if they’ve heard of Macanudo and they’ll likely think it synonymous with the word “cigar” itself. Not only for its consistency and approachable mildness but also because its name is out there do 9 out of 10 cigar connoisseur newbies reference it when answering the venerable opening question of tobacconists “so, what do you smoke?”

There we have it…a mass market cigar known essentially the world over. Don’t get me wrong though. This is still a hand made creation and worthy of the myriad accolades that Mac has received over time –including the due praise from its corporate parent by gracing the name of General Cigar’s “Club Macanudo” cigar bars. It’s a good safe stick. Consistent in quality, at a fair value and it’s readily available. Let me give you one great reason to go back and smoke a Macanudo you veteran discerning cigar appreciator you- the Macanudo Vintage 2000.

What’s the Macanudo Vintage 2000? It’s a blend of tobacco rolled into a very limited supply cigar that is acclaimed for the virtues which it exemplifies- most notably a crop of wrapper leaf that cigar wizard Daniel Nunez proclaims as being beyond exceptional. That’s what makes it eligible to be dubbed Vintage for the 2000 crop and find its way surrounding the Vintage 2000 sticks.

Rather like how it works with Champagne –the real stuff from the valley of the same name- in that certain years are declared vintages due to exceptional growing conditions and the highest promise of the grapes, Macanudo has done this with tobacco only six times (1979 being the first). This Connecticut shade wrapper, combined with a San Andrean Mexican binder and filled with Dominican Piloto Cubano and Mexican San Andrean tobaccos yield the Macanudo Vintage 2000 (the year being certified as that of when the wrapper leaf was grown).

We 3 Regular Guys have of course smoked quite an assortment of the Macanudo line in our time and we really don’t mind them. They’re not a mainstay smoke for any of us though as we tend to branch out to whichever more obscure locales and tobaccos we can find. But, dutiful as we are, when Corona Chris bestowed upon each of us a No. VIII in a crystal tube we set about our work. Since we know Mac personally as a very balanced and even smoke we thought we knew what we’d be in for: something pleasant, likely not too noteworthy, and possibly less eventful than our palates aim for these days.

Unanimously we 3 Regular Guys enjoyed this stick. Colm, in almost standard form, settled in to smoking his and nearly forgot to scribble any useful notes. He did find it to be rather balanced and a gentle smoke. Dave conjured up a very vague initial taste of lemongrass and found the smoke to be slightly creamy. Scott touched on a subtle toastiness to the aroma, thought the taste was a little bitter initially and then mellowed after 1” becoming creamy but not too well developed. The finish had a white pepper note just before it falls off your palate.

This was a slow smoke with an even burn that converted itself into a dark brown layered ash that easily held to 2”. The risk of over-smoking it is present however and it can edge toward harsh. This wrapper leaf is still pretty lazy and has no interest in being rushed. To prevent over-smoking it and ensure you get the most from this Macanudo take your time –and you’ll need a while at the ring gauge we smoked. Delve around and try to pick apart the nuances of this cigar. They’re in there if you look.

If you’re a dedicated Macanudo smoker, then here’s your crème de la crème. If you used to be a Mac smoker, you still are. He or she is still in there, I promise, and this is a darn good stick to go back and catch up with an old friend. The Vintage 2000 is eternally approachable, worth a closer inspection, and more subtle than you realize. This is a humble cigar…a really good stick but it doesn’t feel the need to brag about itself.

And now for something completely different- the 2nd Regular Guy of the 3 Regular Guys has moved from the ranks of the purveyor of cigars to consumer of cigars camp. Dave has returned to the world of banking from which he originally hailed. We wish him tremendous professional fortune; good luck in compelling his new senior management to accept his lengthy afternoon cigar breaks; and are sure that some of our best discoveries of new favorite sticks will still be coming to us remaining 2 Regular Guys from Dave’s personal humidor. Best of luck Dave!

Click Here To Order The Macanudo Vintage 2000!

Good Information/Bad Comments

In reading several “Informational” blogs, it appears that some so-called experts have a difference of opinion with the use of “Vintage” as description of the wrapper or the cigar itself. Another would be “Clasico”, another could be “Original”, or any word as added to the brand name- any answer is- so what? To these “Experts” who have never grown a leaf, cured, fermented, had a poor crop due to weather, blue mold, or had a football field size warehouse of tobacco that was graded to be used at the exact time (sometimes 3-4 years). They have all the privilege to say vintage, classic, or any words they chose.

Secondly, if a cigar manufacturer prices his product to the trade, then must increase that price that happens for all factors considered- raw material, workers salaries, modest profit etc. If he does not, something suffers. It is simple economics!!

Each manufacturer, lets say has 300 employees from strippers, graders, color selectors, band and box affix personnel to the cigar tocedores to supervisors, whose life is the making of “A Cigar”- they would not make a cigar for one run and then close-shop.

If this type operation existed in another country- all costs considered- you as a smoker, would pay 5-10 times the now retail cost.

Cigars have never been better; tobaccos grown, cured and used are excellent.

So if you spend $1.00-$20.00 per cigar- that is your decision. It is your taste- not some “Behind the Scenes Expert”.

Do we like cigar testing comments- sure- and nothing else.

By Al Remp, product specialist and trainer, Thompson Cigar.

3 Regular Guys Cigar Review - Thompson Vintage Especiale

Super 8 Cigar Sampler Review Courtesy of the 3 Regular Guys at Thompson Cigar.

There’s really no need to start out the review on the Thompson Vintage Especiale with the same corporate biographical snippet or back story like each of the other cigars got because we’re all pretty well aware that Thompson Cigar began in Key West in 1915, later to move up here when Tampa was solidly established as the epicenter of the cigar world. Our company heritage is something we’re all very proud of here.

This company has been selling cigars for longer than any of us here have been smoking cigars or even been alive. Sometimes we’ll relic hunt on eBay and find things like our old postcards that we would use to sell cigars. Suffice it to say we’ve been in this game for a very long time. For ages and ages we only sold cigars with our band on them. Now we sell premium and super premium national brands alongside our Thompson private label stogies.

We 3 Regular Guys mostly smoke national brands. Probably because we can afford to buy Thompson cigars so whenever the Blogmaster appears as though he might throw us a bone out of the humidor we tend to mention the most expensive stick we think he might actually hook us up with.

In the Super 8 sampler appear two sticks of the Thompson Vintage Especiale. Now if you have been reading through the previous reviews from this sampler you know the Vintage Especiale has its work cut out for it as it is surrounded by some stiff competition. So, how did it fare up against Padron and Torano and Cusano? Well, even the 3 Regular Guys ended up quite pleasantly surprised –which is always a good thing when you’re the one smoking it.

We smoked the Churchill wrapped in Connecticut sun grown leaf. The one thing that each of us immediately commented on was that we thought the pig tail was a pretty cool feature. The one cigar that always comes to mind for Scott in regard to pig tail caps is the CAO Criollo so the Vintage Especiale already had at least some cosmetic similarity to the rest of this bunch.

While this box-pressed stick is not a show stopper in appearance –aside from the cap of course- it is slightly veiny and has a moderately alluring dull cocoa colored wrapper. Construction is consistent and solid. Our Xikars cleanly lopped off the cap and we were ready to try this cigar out. Scott and Dave found this cigar to have an even draw that offered plenty of smoke. The taste to them was a bit woody and mellow with a hint of sweet tanginess. Colm picked up on about the same experience but he opted for toasty instead. The burn was even and the ash was a light grayish-white in contrast to the wrapper.

Overall the taste was medium bodied with a bit of a lingering finish. There were only slight hints of edginess to the flavors of this cigar. We felt that the tastes hung right around toasty and woody but did drift in and out of being a little bit citrusy. Laying them up in your humidor for a few weeks or months will only serve to smooth this out and round out the tastes even more.

The Vintage Especiale might not fully stand out in a crowd but if you grabbed one from your humidor for yourself or passed one out to a buddy you’d both probably have the same thought. That thought would be something along the line of “I didn’t really know to ask for this, but now that I’m smoking it, this cigar is really quite alright. Now where was I?...” Truth be told, this is a really impressive cigar since it actually can hang with the rest of ‘em in the Super 8.

Get your Super 8 Sampler by clicking here >>.

Cigar Blog Special - Gurkha Signature 101

Cigar Review by Corona Chris, Thompson Cigar product specialist.

The Gurkha Signature 101 blend has been a limited production Gurkha since 2004. We have not been able to repeat this best selling offer until now. When you have the experience and patience of the Torano family creating a rare blend, the entire cigar industry takes notice. K. Hansotia the creator of Gurkha, had the Torano family craft a Maduro like no other. This Gurkha Signature 101 blend took 4 years to create, and is one of the smoothest, medium-bodied smokes that you will ever taste in a Maduro. Our limited supply of Gurkha Signature has been aged an extra three years, and will be in a 6 x 52 size.

During this limited time offer we are including a travel humidor complete with a hygrometer, humidifier, and a double bladed cigar cutter. Take advantage of this $100.00 value, for only $49.00 before they are gone for good!

Buy the Gurkha Signature 101 travel humidor deal today.

3 Regular Guys Cigar Review - CAO Brazilia Gol!

Super 8 Cigar Sampler Review Courtesy of the 3 Regular Guys at Thompson Cigar.

So the 3 Regular Guys have slacked off so much on our cigar reviews that we now have to share the stage with this Corona Chris guy. If the intention was to motivate us to get back to providing you guys with reviews of cigars, it worked.

But seriously, not only are we glad to have Corona Chris onboard, but he’s also a great resource for us. Another perq is that he works in our retail store so when we hang out there talking cigars with him it’s not too much of a stretch to call it research instead of skipping out on our other work.

Our next stop in our trek through the Super 8 Sampler (we promise we’ll wrap this one up and move on SOON) is the CAO Brazilia Gol! As mentioned in a prior post about the Criollo, this is Tim Ozgener’s breakaway cigar where, in addition to cooking up some flashy and rather non-traditional packaging, he also wanted to showcase Brazilian tobacco in its own right instead of being just a filler component. Well, the way he went about this couldn’t make us much happier!

The Brazilia is a great maduro cigar offered in a variety of sizes (we reviewed the Gol! 5 x 56 –a perfect robusto). The filler and binder are Nicaraguan tobacco and the wrapper is a stunning Brazilian leaf. This cigar is an ideal combination of ingredients and craftsmanship and it shows. While reviewing our tasting notes it became abundantly clear that this cigar could only have gotten more accolades from us if the Padron was not in the Super 8 mix. Colm probably summed it up when he waxed poetic and said, “The only thing that would make this cigar better would be to make it a Nicaraguan puro!”

We mostly agree, however this cigar cannot and should not be a Nicaraguan puro. It’s the Brazilia and what makes it the Brazilia is that incredible wrapper. Because of that wrapper, which mellows this smoke sort of like how the beach in Rio mellows the pace of life, this cigar has strength, full body and complexity but makes sure there’s no edginess at all. If you smoke a Brazilia that has a bit of an edge or bite to it that stick was the victim of abuse somewhere in its youth. Instead it should smoke smooth as silk and deep with hints of cocoa and dark chocolate. Should you detect any hint of bitterness it should only be as it relates to the tastes of dark chocolate.

Dave enjoyed every bit of this cigar. From the appearance and pre-light aroma of oiled leather to the medium to full bodied smoke which reminded him of a wood fire in a fireplace and tasting of black licorice and chocolate. His cigar burned evenly all the way to the band and produced a white ash that starkly contrasted with the dark wrapper. Basically this sounds like a contender to be his comfort cigar.

Colm brought up the consistency of CAO cigars and as such only cautioned the smoker to ensure she has enough time to sit down and properly smoke this cigar. Aside from that to him this cigar was very nice, smooth smoking, having hints of cocoa, with a good complexity and well-balanced. The construction was great; he took note of its great ash and even burn. Colm puts this cigar on his list of sticks that he would eagerly recommend to anyone –which we presume is also inclusive of people he likes.

Scott picked up on the same excellent construction characteristics of this stick and loved the cool full-bodied smoke that yielded a medium length clean and light finish. This is a big ring cigar and his favorite size because this cigar basically smokes itself. He also found the taste had a dark chocolate bitterness that rounds out to a woody coffee taste. The toasty smoke starts on the front and side of the palate and ends lingering over the center. This stogie is just all around pleasant and satisfying.

Our only peeve with the Brazilia that we could dig up is that it’s spelled with a “Z.” Take a look at the band –“handmade” is written in Portuguese but the English spelling of the nation is used. As a perfect robusto the Brazilia Gol! is named after the Brazilian Portuguese word for “goal!” In that regard even if it’s not spelled Brasilia this cigar definitely scores in our world! GOOOOOOOOOALLLLLLLL!

Get your Super 8 Sampler by clicking here >>.

Avo Legacy - Inventory Special

We just finished doing inventory, and every year we find hidden treasures that have been lost, mislabeled, or forgotten inside our massive humidor here in Tampa.

This year we found an amazing rare smoke, the Avo Legacy. It was released in 2004 as a limited edition Avo in one size. It was the only limited production Avo to be released that year, and can no longer be found. It is an extremely smooth, medium bodied Dominican, that is a must have for any “Collector” (Thanks Al).

The Avo Legacy box has 12 great looking Belicosos (5 ¾ x 48) inside, plus it comes with a limited edition CD (12 Tracks), composed and recorded by Avo himself! Since we have been aging these smokes for 3 years for free (our mistake), we decided to offer it as a Cigar Blog 101 special and give our readers the chance to grab one of the last 20 boxes in our inventory at the original 2004 price of $144.00! Click on the link below for a detailed look at this rare Avo before they are gone.

Avo Legacy

Cigar Review by Corona Chris, Thompson Cigar product specialist.

Cigar Reviews From 3 Regular Guys

Cigar Blog 101 is proud to announce a new weekly feature - accurate and honest cigar reviews from three regular guys that work in the Thompson Cigar Finance Department. This isn't going to be the catalog description. This is a real world review. It's not based on a rating system. It's not official and it's only meant for informational purposes.

These three guys take a morning or afternoon break and enjoy cigars on the patio outside our store here in Tampa. Every once in a while they test new national and house brands to see if the catalog will carry them in the future.

Based on this, we decided to put them to the test. Their first review - the Thompson Powerhouse 30. You've seen the offer. It's been in print ads and on the Internet for a while. You've probably bought one before. The handy dandy aluminum travel case is in your trunk. If you haven't bought one yet then watch our posts over the next few weeks and get to know the cigars we offer in the Powerhouse 30.



Introducing Scott, Colm and David. Otherwise known as the following:

• 3 Cigar Monkeys
• Kukla, Fran and Ollie (Al Remp calls them this)
• Larry, Moe and Curly
• Bean Counter 1, 2 and 3
• The writer, the director and the spitter

Reviews:
Thompson Powerhouse 30

• Powerhouse 30 - Empresario
• Powerhouse 30 - Don Lugo
• Powerhouse 30 - Cuban Delight
• Powerhouse 30 - Phoenix
• Powerhouse 30 - Corojo Cubano
• Powerhouse 30 - Socorro
• Powerhouse 30 Review Summary
  

Super Sampler 8 Introduction

• Super Sampler 8 - Padron Delicias
• Super Sampler 8 - Torano Exodus 1959 - Silver Edition
• Super Sampler 8 - CAO Criollo Mancha
• Super Sampler 8 - Rocky Patel Sun Grown
• Super Sampler 8 - CAO Brazilia
• Super Sampler 8 - Thompson Vintage Especiale
• Super Sampler 8 - Cusano 18