Cuba Aliados Miami Edition Toro
Dec 3, 2009 Cigar
From Rolando Reyes Sr. and the Reyes Family, comes a cigar made at their Miami factory in such small batches that only a small number of retailers in the country have them. A Nicaraguan blend wrapped in a Habano wrapper, meticulously rolled in Cuban fashion and individually wrapped in cedar.
The cigar is currently offered in 3 sizes:
Robusto 5 x 50 | Toro Viejo 6 x 53 | Valentino 7 x 49
SPECIFICATIONS:
Size: 6 x 52 (Toro)
Origin: Miami
Wrapper: Habano
Binder: Ecuadorian Sumatra
Filler: Nicaraguan
APPEARANCE and CONSTRUCTION – (16 of 20 pts.)
The Miami Edition has a medium brown colored wrapper. There are several small veins and one or two large ones running along the length of the cigar. Double cap is a little sloppy, slightly miscut. Well packed. A rustic looking stick.
SMOKING CHARACTERISTICS – (22 of 25 pts.)
The wrapper has an aroma of chocolate and some sweet tobacco. There was also a blast of black pepper as I inhaled towards the foot of the stick. Cut with my usual punch cut. Draw was slightly loose, but nothing too bad. Again, I prefer loose draw to stiff draw as I can control a loose draw. Lots of smoke on each puff. Miami Edition was a solid medium to full in body. There was a distinct creaminess to the smoke that was enjoyable. The Miami Edition burned relatively well for most of the stick up until the final third where the burn got a little out of control and needed several touchups.
FLAVOR – (26 of 30 pts.)
The Miami Edition had initial heavy wood flavors. There was also a quick shot of black pepper early on that faded fairly quickly. Second third introduced some cut hay flavors as well as nice nuttiness. Final third was another wave of wood all the way to the end.
OVERALL IMPRESSION – (21 of 25 pts.)
This stick really had me flip-flopping. At first, the rough construction and initial simple wood flavors made me think this was a decent, simple stick. Then the flavors changed up nicely and the creaminess came through in the body. As it got more complex, I began liking it more. Overall I would say this is a pretty good stick and one that I’m glad I tried. I don’t know if I would necessarily buy more than a couple of these, but I’m glad I tried one and I would encourage you to try one as well.
TOTAL SCORE – 85
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Tags: Cuba Aliados, Limited Edition, Miami, Rolando Reyes
Don Pepin JJ Series (White Label) Lancero
Apr 26, 2009 Cigar
Don (Jose) Pepin Garcia is arguably making the best cigars on the market. His secret family recipe for blending and fermentation has been handed down generation to generation since his family’s beginnings in old Cuba. Today Pepin is using this time honored process to make cigars which many aficionados consider to very reminiscent of the best Cuban cigars available today.
The Don Pepin Series JJ is the top shelf blend made at Pepin’s El Rey de Los Habanos factory in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami. Each Series JJ is rolled using only the top tobacco available at the factory. The blend is very full bodied and full flavored with a spicy aroma that is well balanced with notes of leather on the palate and a long finish. The Series JJ, also known as the White Label, is a blend of talent and tobacco. Don Pepin and his son, Jaime, created this full-bodied Nicaraguan puro featuring a Corojo wrapper, a Criollo binder and a mixture of Corojo and Criollo filler tobaccos. Deep and rich with a spicy aroma and notes of leather on the palate, these cigars are manufactured in limited quantities. This lancero was part of a Don Pepin Lancero Sampler box that was made available about a year ago. It is still available in limited quantities.
And now, on to the review.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Size: 7.5 x 40 (Lancero)
Origin: Miami
Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
APPEARANCE and CONSTRUCTION -
The Series JJ Lancero had about a year of age on it before I lit it up this week. The wrapper is a chocolate brown with a rough bumpy appearance. There is a toothy feel to it and you can actually see some small dimples throughout the wrapper. The lancero is finished with a nice triple cap and pigtail. All in all a nice looking cigar.
SMOKING CHARACTERISTICS -
I used my punch cut on this and immediately discovered it had a tight draw. While not uncommon for some lanceros, still disappointing. I went to my Xikar to take a little more off the head. It helped the draw slightly, but it was still to firm for my liking. the cold draw had a spice to it and a faint flavor of charred wood. It lit evenly and burned very nicely throughout. No touch ups required. The ash was very white and remained firm. A very nice burn despite the draw problems. Because of the firm draw, the volume of smoke was not what it should have been. I had to pull hard to get a decent amount of smoke and that definitely detracted from the overall enjoyment. Smoke was white/gray and was fairly dense.
FLAVOR -
The flavors coming off the Don Pepin JJ Series Lancero were typical Pepin profile. It started with a sweet spice. The spice was just enough to leave a tingle in the back of the throat. I also picked up a green herb flavor on the first third. Around the midway point the spice gave way to some cream coffee flavors. While the smoke was a solid medium to full body, the body definitely started out strong and diminished as I went on. I also picked up a little red pepper on the finish.
OVERALL IMPRESSION -
Overall this was a good smoke. Having smoked many of Don Pepin’s projects, I wasn’t overwhelmed with the JJ lancero. Considering how difficult it is to find, I doubt I would seek it out again. Again, a good smoke, but considering the man making it, he’s got a lot better out there to choose from.
TOTAL SCORE – 84
Tatuaje Noella Reserva
Apr 18, 2009 Cigar
These Tatuaje Noellas cigars are a special release, marked with the “Reserva” seal on the box. They are the same size and blend as regular release Tatuaje Noellas, but they use a specially selected oscuro (dark/black) aged ligero wrapper normally reserved for the Cojonu 2003/2006 cigars.
Even though the wrapper is the same aged ligero leaf as the normal Cojonu 2003/2006 wrapper, it was fermented a bit longer than normal, and selected for its color to be especially dark. The leaves that were used for the Noellas Oscuros was too small to be used as a wrapper for the Cojonu 2003/2006, so a special limited release of ~200 boxes of these Noellas cigars was created. The “Reserva” label is meant to make it clear that this is not how Noellas normally come.
This special production should be available through most Tatuaje vendors.
Pete Johnson has said that the Noella Reserva is “like a little Frank” meaning the blend and wrapper are similar to his 2008 Monster release “The Frank”. All the Tobacco used in the Tatuaje Cigars are 1st Generation Cuban Seed, Grown in Nicaragua. The Cigars are rolled in classic Cuban Tradition by Eight Master Rollers in Little Havana Miami, FL U.S.A. Headed by Maestro Tobaquero Jose Garcia the cigars are rolled with a beautiful Cuban Triple Cap and are Medium to Full in flavor.
On to the review.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Size: 5 1/8″ x 42
Origin: Miami, FL
Wrapper: Nicaraguan aged ligero oscuro
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
APPEARANCE and CONSTRUCTION -
The wrapper is a dark chocolate color. Several shades darker than the original release Noella and noticably different when the two are placed side by side. The triple cap on mine was a bit uneven, but nothing to worry too much about. In fact, the entire cigar has a very rustic look to it. Wrapper is very toothy.
SMOKING CHARACTERISTICS -
There was some faint earth aromas coming off the wrapper, but the foot had an intense nose of sweet spice. Even with the thin ring gauge, I decided to use a punch cut on this beauty. I had a great draw with just enough resistance. The cold draw had flavors of earth and sweet tobacco. The Tat Noella Reserva lit beautifully and evenly. I had no burn problems at any point during the smoke. It gave off a good amount of smoke on the draw and kept a thin, even burn line throughout. No complains at all in that department.
FLAVOR -
Wow is the first thing that came to mind. I’ve had the regular Noella release many times and I like that cigar very much. This is a different ballgame. Right from the onset, there are full flavors of dark chocolate, earth and a light spice that all marry together beautifully. The dark chocolate flavor actually intensified at about the halfway point and turned into an interesting bittersweet, burnt chocolate flavor. Hard to pinpoint, but it reminded me of something like a burnt caramel or burnt sugar taste. Sweet with a slight bitterness at the end. The smoke finished with a very pleasant espresso flavor that lingered on the palate for quite a while. Amazing flavors for this little guy.
OVERALL IMPRESSION -
This was quite a surprise. I really enjoy Pete Johnson’s smokes and I’ve had many Noella’s in the past. This was a different animal however. The Reserva has a richness and a spectrum of interesting flavors that really took me by surprise. I also enjoyed the fact that the cigar was medium-full bodied and remained so throughout. The body didn’t overwhelm the amazing flavors at any point. I know these are limited, but if you have your chance to grab some, do so. I got mine from a great guy named Kurt at Twins Smoke Shop in NH. He has them by the box only on the site, but if you call, tell him Tony from LeafandGrape.com sent you and he’ll sell you a fiver or less. Don’t pass this one up.
TOTAL SCORE – 96
Tags: Broadleaf, Frank, Miami, Nicaragua, Noella, Pepin Garcia, Pete Johnson, Tatuaje
