Nestor Miranda Special Selection Lancero Monday, Jul 26 2010 

Cigar Reviews and CigarsDirect.com and Misc and Pepin Garcia , , , , , , Matt 8:54 am

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Country: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan and Costa Rican
Size: Lancero 7.0″ x 38 ring
Courtesy of CigarsDirect.com

The fact that this line of cigars was re-blended by Don Pepin Garcia should leave it as no surprise that a Lancero was eventually added to the card.  Pepin has a reputation for being partial the old-school Cuban way of doing things and he seems to have a love of the traditional connoisseur vitolas  like the Lancero.  Not only that, but he seems to have a special talent for masterfully blending for the Lancero as his Lanceros tend to be the best on the market in my opinion.  That said I have been looking forward to trying this cigar given how much I have enjoyed the other larger sizes in the line.

Like a lot of Lanceros it isn’t the prettiest cigar.  It is a bit bumpy and lumpy looking but the draw is excellent and the burn is razor sharp.   It starts off a little peppery before falling into a woody/nutty core complimented with leather and occasional subtly sweet caramel notes.  There weren’t any dramatic changes in flavors but rather shifts in intensity between the present flavors and a build up of black pepper near the end of the smoke.  Watchout for the ash on this one.  It is a little flaky and falls off easily.  If you don’t pay attention you’ll be wearing it.  All in all the Nestor Miranda Special Selection Lancero is an excellent cigar that I will smoke again.

 

Smoke a DPG Series JJ Today Thursday, Jul 22 2010 

Cigar News and Fundraisers Matt 2:12 pm

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ACigarSmoker.com is doing a wonderful thing.  If you smoke a Series JJ today and take a picture and then submit that picture to their email address they will make a donation of $20 to the American SIDS Institute in honor and support of a fellow BOTL who lost his little boy to SIDS three years ago.  Please click this link to get all the details and find out where to send your photo.

 

Ashton VSG Wizard Tuesday, Jul 20 2010 

Ashton and Cigar Reviews and CigarsDirect.com , , , , , , , , Matt 3:40 pm

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Country: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sun Grown
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican
Size: Toro 6.0″ x 56 ring
Courtesy of CigarsDirect.com

There isn’t much left that hasn’t been said about the Ashton VSG.  It is an extremely popular line of cigars made for Ashton by the Fuentes.  If you are new to the VSG, then surf on over to my review of the VSG Sorcerer and read the background info on this smoke there.

The Wizard is the largest of the VSG family at least as far as the ring gauge goes. It is also one of the very few vitolas that does not sport a box press.  It uses the same dark and leathery Ecuadorian Sun Grown wrapper as the rest of the line.  Long time readers of my blog already know that I am not a fan of this large of a ring gauge on a cigar.  I feel that the Wizard is a prime example of why that is.  All the wonderful flavors that you’d expect from a VSG are muted and muddled in this format.  There are still notes of earth and leather and sweet spice but they are not as sharp or intense.  The cigar overall is milder and weaker than the other vitolas in the line.  It is a good cigar in a line of great cigars which makes it a bit of a disappointment for me.  Of course, YMMV.

 

My Father No.3 Cremas Friday, Jul 2 2010 

Cigar Reviews and CigarsDirect.com and Pepin Garcia , , , , , , , Matt 2:21 pm

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Country: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: Cremas 6.0″ x 49 ring
Courtesy of CigarsDirect.com

So as the story goes, Pepin’s son Jamie had a secret project he was working on.  He was creating a cigar in tribute to his father and he was doing it behind Pepin’s back.  He managed to keep it a secret up until he was nearly finished with it and when Pepin found out about it he told his son to give him three cigars which he promptly smoked and loved.  That is the Birth Story of My Father Cigars.  The cigar is made up up of tobacco from the Garcia’s own farms for the binder and filler, and the wrapper is a lovely and oily Habano leaf grown in Ecuador by the Oliva Tobacco family.

The My Father line of cigars is available in four sizes:

  • No.1 Robusto 5.2″ x 52
  • No.2 Belicoso 5.2″ x 54
  • No.3 Cremas 6.0″ x 49
  • No.4 Lancero 7.5″ x 38

In addition to these cigars there have been a couple of line extensions added to the brand including the My Father Cedros Deluxe and Le Bijou 1922.  The original My Father is an beautiful looking cigar with a large ornate band and a smooth and oily colorado claro wrapper.   The No. 3 Cremas is an interesting vitola to be because of the unique style of the head of the cigar.  It comes to a very short taper, almost like it was going to be a belicoso and then someone just stopped the taper and completed the cap.  The result is reminiscent of the fumas style nipple but in truth this is quite different from that.  I found I really like this style from both a look and feel perspective.  The slight taper was comfortable when smoking and it thought it was unique and pleasant looking.

I found the cigar to be very pleasant and more mild than just about any other DPG smoke I’ve tried.  There was lots of coffee bean and dry wood on the palate and the flavors had a creamy texture to them.  The aroma produced by the smoke was elegant, and floral.  The last third of the cigar was more robust with a mild spice and some leather and occasional flashes of black pepper.  The burn was impeccable and the draw perfect.  The ash was a little loose and flaky so I had to ash often, but otherwise I had no complaints for this excellent cigar.

 

Anti-Tobacco Zealots; We told you so! Thursday, Jul 1 2010 

Cigar News Matt 2:40 pm

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Today a new Federal Tax on Tanning went into effect. The new tax is part of a health care reform bill that put a 10% tax on the use of tanning beds. Tanning beds have now been lumped in with tobacco, alcohol, gambling and the other sin taxes. All you anti-tobacco zealots and all the apathetic people who didn’t see the prohibitive taxation of tobacco as a big deal; for those you that fall into those categories and love to go to the salon to get your “base tan” started for the beach season… WE TOLD YOU SO!

When the latest wave of tax attacks came after tobacco and in particular cigars, lots of cigar enthusiasts including myself railed against the injustice of it and warned everyone that once you open the door for this kind of regulation and taxation it won’t be long before the government starts to come after the luxuries you like to enjoy. Today just proves us right. Now the nanny state has declared your tanning habit as unhealthy and it starts with this 10% tax. Now the door has been opened and the spot light has been shone on the tanning industry. Next the states will join in with the taxes and then it won’t be long before some health care advocacy group starts calling for regulation of the tanning industry and then all the fake bake lovers out there will be singing the same song we cigar smokers have been singing for the past few years.

Come on over and take a seat on the couch with us. There is plenty of room and we will be joined by more groups still. It is easy to see what’s next. All you fitness fanatics who love your dietary supplements. Get ready. You are probably next to get hit by increased taxes and then someone will have the bright idea to expand the FDA to regulate all those supplements. Then all your protein shakes and thermogenic pills will disappear from the shelves under the weight of government regulation.

Welcome to the club….

 

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