Trinadad Fundadores - A Dictator's Delight

There are few Cuban Stogies that truly hold up the great tobacco being grown and rolled in the freelands. This is one of the best Cubans.
These cigars are the preferred type of Fidel "El Caballo" Castro. And you can taste the suberp quality and attention to detail from the very first puff. These cigars are rolled in Pinar del Rio, in one of the only factories not in Havana. Accordingly stogies rolled here have a reputation of being significantly better.


The cigar is everything you want in a Cuban Cigar. Full flavored, smooth, creamy, with a small amount of the world famous Cuban spice. The cigar stays lit, draws like a toothless hooker blows, and creates a satisfying amount of smoke.


The delicious flavor changes throughout the course of the Cigar adding much desired complexity to the cigar. With each new puff you regret not having a puff like the last, but are excited and surprised with the new flavor which gives you hope of further happiness in every future second of your life.


While Fidel may be the worlds biggest still living douchenozzle, he put the resources of an entire country's tobacco industry to foster the creation of these wonderful Trinidads. It shows.


4.5/5


Oil Baron

As you puff away, ponder this ....

HARD TO FIND...HARD TO FORGET: Flores y Rodriguez 10th Anniversary Reserva Limitada

The Back Story:

This limited edition cigar was unveiled as a one-shot at the 2014 IPCPR, but is being brought back by a groundswell of demand from fans who want more and more and more. Abe Flores and Luis Rodriguez have been quietly making their presence felt in the premium cigar world with consistently high quality stogies and a great price. Now they are full-fledged rock stars.

The Facts: 

Golden brown Habano Ecuador wrapper, Dominican Olor binder, and filler that includes Piloto and Jalapa tobaccos. It should retail from $7-$8, depending on the vitola. I have tried them all and prefer the Robusto, although the Grand Toro and Wide Churchill are also terrific. 

The Truth: 

As with all PDRs, the draw is generous and satisfying--quite a contrast to the plugged and semi-plugged over-priced, over-hyped Cubans being distributed by the Commies. If you love spicy cigars, this is a real treat. But there's much more. Layers and layers of sweet, creamy  tobacco underlie this complex smoke right down to the nub. Without a doubt, we have a keeper!

Epilogue: 

Some of Flores and Rodriguez'  best cigars, most notably the Don Leoncio line, can only be obtained at the Rodriguez Brothers' iconic shop at the foot of Canal Street in New Orleans. The good news is that this 10th Anniversary stick will soon be generally available at your local tobacconist--- it's about time!

CS Rating = 4.5

Mamey

Davidoff Maduro (mini-robusto) "C" = RipMeOff Maduro"C"

My first venture with a Davidoff cigar was a bad experience.  This brand of cigar always intrigued me because it was touted as an exclusive (expensive) cigar with excellent taste.  I picked this small size as a test case because it was a maduro, which I seem to enjoy.

The chosen place of the test was sitting at an Elvis slot machine listening to some good music in a wrap around seat with speakers.  I purposefully inserted enough money in the slot machine to provide staying power, allowing me to sit back and smoke a great cigar and enjoy my free rum & coke while hitting the minimum bid button.  Although I was winning, this cigar acted as a kill joy.

At one time, I sat back and was looking at this thing, and an older gentleman walked by and said "those things taste like crap after a while don't they?"  I responded by saying "the good ones don't" and he asked, "is that a good one", I responded by saying"no", to which he stated "I can tell by the disgusted look on your face".

Burned ok for a third of it (all I could take), drew well, but the taste awful.

Diamond E CS rank = 1.0

Romeo and Julieta Churchill Habana - Two for One

The two for one really stands for two cigar reviews under one heading.  I was given this cigar (Heading) and it was advertised as being a Cuban.  The label does give that indication as the Hupman that I was also given.  I have the same opinion about both:

Flavor is OK, both were somewhat earthy, but not particularly good.  These cigars stay lit, draw well, burn evenly and has a relatively constant taste throughout the smoke.

Diamond E CS rank = 3.0 (barely)

Monte Cristo Fer De Lance - Deep Fried Maduro

Before smoking this cigar, I was told that it had a bold maduro taste which I seem to enjoy.  The cigar taste was bold, but I really could not pin it down to maduro.  So if it is maduro, then I would liken it to the difference between a baked potato and a french fry...if you try hard enough with a french fry you can detect the potato.  This cigar stays lit, draws well, burns evenly and has a relatively constant taste throughout the smoke.  Because it is well constructed and unique taste I will give it a..... 

Diamond E CS rank = 3.5

THE DIESEL UNHOLY COCKTAIL UNCHAINED

The Diesel Unholy Cocktail Torpedo is a 5 x 56 stick with the label on the foot. It is made with a Pennsylvania Maduro wrapper and Nicaraguan filler. It's genesis is a mystery to me. I've read that it's the creation of Rocky Patel and Augusto Reyes, but it's also been "credited" to AJ Fernandez.

This cigar is harsh, with flavors of day-old burnt toast and rank "earthy" flavors that pound you into submission. This puppy has as much right to be called a "cocktail" as a glass of sour milk. And those are its good points. Maybe it will get better with another 100 years of aging, but I'm glad that I won't be around to find out.

I find it hard to believe that it's made by AJ Fernandez, who makes the terrific San Lotanos and Man O' Wars, but even the great Bob Dylan wrote "If Dogs Run Free," so who knows?--Mamey

CS Rating 2.0