Camacho Triple Maduro Robusto

It has been too long since I reviewed. Needless to say, working in cigars takes up time. So, I am starting this year off with the Camacho Triple Maduro.

This cigar is made of tobacco from Honduras. It is a puro, so wrapper, binder, and filler are from the same place. With this one though, it is also made of all maduro leaves.

The first third of this cigar hit me with pepper. After the first few puffs I had notes of espresso and dark roast coffee. Hints of charcoal began to come in, creating a nice mix. The next third kept with the espresso. The pepper and dark coffee disappeared. Some of the charcoal remained and some sweetness came into play. That is a good thing because without the other flavors, this cigar might become too bitter. Towards the end an earthy flavor arrived along with a little bit of straw. A light coffee flavor came into it, which mixed well with the other flavors.

This cigar had a slighty toothy and oily wrapper, but it felt brittle. There was a small split in the wrapper, but it did not get bigger and smoked past it just fine. The draw was pretty firm, but it still produced a good smoke. The burn was wavy, but did not need correction. It evened itself out, so all is well with that. Held a decent ash, but after an inch and a half it fell off.

This cigar was a gift from my friend Jeff, so I had to look up a price. It comes to around $15 in MN. That is pretty steep for a Robusto, but this cigar was pretty good. I wish the construction was better, and while it had good flavor, the transition could have been smoother. It took about 45-50 minutes to smoke, which is not a bad time at all. With this price, expectations are higher. The burn is not being counted against it since it evened out, but the construction flaw and the transition will be. All in all, I would give this smoke another go, if nothing else in a different vitola.

Final Grade: B+/A-

Thunder by Nimish Robusto

I had Thunder sitting in my humidor for awhile. I smoked one of them, and let the other one age. I thought it time to write up the review.

This Robusto (with a very nice spiral pigtail at the top) has an Ecuadorian habano wrapper, Nicaraguan and Honduran binders (yes, that is two binders), and Nicaraguan, Honduran and Costa Rican fillers.

Tight feel to it, and slightly oily.

This cigar started out with a blast of salt. It was very salty, but not to the level of being overpowering. That went down a little bit and hints of pepper, a little earthiness and nuttiness came through. During the second third the salt remained, but the the other flavored shifted to more of a coffee and leather mix (mainly coffee). The last third had the spice, nutty tones, and salt. The salt got less though, which let the nutty tones come out more. The aroma on this one was sweet and rich, which complemented the flavors.

This cigar was well made, only needed one correction. It produced a big smoke and the draw was not too bad (a little firm, but not much).

This Robusto (which is 4.5 x 54) will run around $7-$8 in Minnesota. All in all this was not a terrible smoke, but not great either. At the end when the salt went away some nice flavors came out, so that is redeeming. The price will not break your wallet, which is also a plus. This had decent construction as well which brings things up. The issue I see with this one is the one overpowering flavor, and the others in the background too much. This might be only for this vitola though. I would not say this was a bad smoke, it wasn't. This smoke is above average and I might give it another shot in another size. Unless I have a medium roast coffee, or a dark soda pop like Dr. Pepper, I would not pick this one up. You need something to accompany this cigar. Though, I think the blend has a lot of potential and I will possibly try it again in another size. With that, this cigar is on the boarder.

Final Grade: B-/C+

Aging Room M356 Rondo

It has been a good long while since I posted. I have been very busy, but during that time I have been smoking and taking notes. Let's get back to it.

The cigar I had was an Aging Room M356 Robusto. This cigar is a Dominican Puro, the wrapper being a habano.

The cigar was a little soft to the squeeze, but did not feel loose. The wrapper was very oily.

This cigar starts out with a spicy flavor. A few puffs in it becomes more nutty and is starting to give off hints of coffee. They did not just pop up either, but transitioned well into adding each flavor.In the second third of the cigar the coffee started to drift away, as well as the nutty flavors. These were replaced with more of a wood flavor and hints of roasted nuts. These flavors stuck in your mouth, but in a pleasant way. In the last third the spice changed to be a little bit more like a white pepper, and the flavor became more toasty. The roasted nut flavor fell off, but the wood remained the same.

This cigar had great construction. The burn was very good, the draw was smooth, and the ash was perfect. Held on about halfway before I knocked it off.

This cigar will run around $8-9 in Minnesota, maybe as high as $10 in some shops. Considering the complexity of this cigar, and the time it took to smoke it (about 50 minutes), it is a good buy. This cigar was well made, had great flavors, and was enjoyable the whole way through. I would buy these, easily. I might even be willing to pick up a box in the future. This cigar goes great with a dark roast coffee.

Final Grade: A+

Authors note: I am aware of the error in the numbers I wrote. I was typing faster than thinking. I apologize for the mistake.

Erez Cigars Habano

Next one in the Erez line is their Habano edition.

This cigar is wrapped in a Criollo 98, has a binder of Olor Dominicano, and has filler of Cubano San Vicente, Olor Dominicano and Criollo 98.

This cigar started off with a smokey oak flavor and just your average woody notes. A short while in hint of leather and bitter cream added to it, along with a very subtle spice similar to paprika. Getting closer to the end I got more leather and cream, with the spice getting less. At the final moments, the oak flavor came back and dominated the pallet. The aroma for this smoke was mildly sweet.

The construction on this smoke was pretty good. Produced a good smoke and had a fair draw. It burned uneven but corrected itself each time. I noticed to splitting a little, but it burn right past it with no problems and it did not get larger.

This Robusto will run around $7-$8, maybe as high as $9 depending on where you go, which is pretty good for something this complex. The only thing that brought this down was the splitting. Granted, it did not cause an issue, but it is still unpleasant when it happens. I would say this is a good smoke and it should be tried at least once, if not twice, by those who see it on the shelves. Thank you to Erez for sending this in for review.

Final Grade: A

Vegas de Santiago D8

I had one of these and decided to have another and write up a review for it.

This cigar is made with Habano 2000 wrapper from Ecuador, a bind from Ecuador, and filler from the Caribbean.

This cigar started out with a light chocolate flavor, mixed with some black pepper and a straw/leaf type flavor. After the first quarter the pepper dropped and notes of tea and pecans entered the mix, which blended very well with the chocolate. At the end there were notes of fruit, adding a little sweetness. The aroma was a sweeter aroma. I know those around me really liked it.

The construction on this was very good. Even feel and even wrap. The draw was a little firm, but the smoke was still good. The burn on this cigar was razor sharp.

I had this cigar in the Emperador size (6x60) and it would run around $10, probably closer to $13 here in Minnesota, which is still a great price for a smoke that lasts over an hour. I would say give this cigar a go. It is unique and there are flavors that I could not quite describe. This cigar has a great price point and is very well made.

Final Grade: A+

Di Fazio Connecticut Torpedo

I am doing another Di Fazio cigar, this time the Connecticut shade.

This cigar uses a Connecticut shade Ecuadorian wrapper, and Indonesian binder (from what I could find) and fillers from Nicaragua and Honduras. Little veins and smells like creamy and straw.

I got a creamy straw flavor out of this cigar on the first puff. The cream took over and started giving off hints of sweet butter, slight hint of nuts, and a touch of oak. The oak flavor goes away and a sweet nut flavor comes in. It is almost like a sweet peanut butter made from roasted nuts. The cream and sweet butter stay with this. The aftertaste is creamy and of light tobacco flavors. You get a hint of straw in the aftertaste as well.

The construction on this cigar was very good. The draw was a little loose, but not too loose. This cigar burned even, it only needed one correction thanks to wind, and produced a large amount of smoke.

This cigar, in Minnesota, would run aroun $8-$9, and that is for the torpedo vitola. I could not find much wrong with this cigar. If you want a mild smoke, this is a good one. Complex, smooth, and mild. I would suggest this smoke to anyone who likes them light. It goes great with a cup of coffee.

Final Grade: A+

From Connoisseur to Cremo

I have been honest with my reviews, being as straightforward as possible, and now I must be straightforward with you on something else. I now have a job within the cigar industry. There are many reasons I bring this up, and I want to go through them.

The main reason I bring this up is because I feel full disclosure is a good thing. People should know a little of the reviewer. That is something that comes with the territory. A reviewer that is distant and unknown is hard to connect with. Though doing that through the review site itself seems like a moot point thanks to social media.

Another thing is the potential conflict of interest. To avoid that, I will tell you I am Chief Marketing Officer for Cremo Cigars. I had come in contact with the owner, Walter Santiago, a couple months back. A new company brings new, and sometimes more interesting, smokes. So, I decided to give it a try.

Now, I have been offered to do sales for cigar companies, and have done some freelance work for others (usually involving writing and ads, but I tell them if they make crap, I will let them know). Half the time, if they had a good product, I would let them know and post it (if B- or above) on my site. If it was less, I would tell them. Believe me, I still got arguments on a B rating. I told them why and I would not back down. But, to work for a company, I have to be blown away. I needed a cigar that would be worthy of an A+, and I would want a box, which is rare. So, I gave Walt some advice, helping things flow, giving my take on some pictures. Nothing big. Nothing I hadn't done for others. Companies like feedback and I figure to want me to review their smoke, it is the least I could do. I tried the cigar and I wanted a box,and I wanted one right after I finished that one, which is even more rare. I offered to work for him, not vice versa. I tell you this because there is a review of the Cremo cigar on this site, and I do not want to seem bias. I reviewed that smoke first. I have not put that review on the Cremo website, nor anywhere else since it was official I was working for the company.

Now, since then, I have posted reviews and not mentioned this. Several reasons are because things were started up, and I was very busy. Another was timing. I did not feel it was time to bring this up yet. I did not even bring it up after I reviewed the Cremo cigar. I did not know how to word all of this. I had to think about it for a long time.

I still have reviews to come too. I might work for a company, but I love the cigar. I know there will be cigars better and worse than what Cremo makes. What I want is for people to enjoy a great cigar. My cigar will please many, I am sure of that, but not everyone. Maybe there is something else they look for and in a review of mine they might find it. I review because I love new things all the time and I love sharing that with you. I am not going to give low ratings because the cigar is not one I work for, or a company I do not like, but because the cigar is bad. The standard has not changed. Construction, draw, burn, taste, and price point will always dictate ratings.

I thank you again for reading the reviews I post, and I hope you keep reading them. More will follow, I promise that.

Thank you again.

- Josh