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
Illusione -hl- (Holy Lance)
Apr 24, 2009 Cigar
The concept behind Illusione Cigars was to re-create a specific taste profile from years past. Before the Sandinistas took over Nicaragua in 1979, Nicaragua was growing some of the best tobaccos in the world. The cigars made from these prized fields in the Jalapa Valley and Esteli region were strong, bold and clean. After years of neglect, these old Somoza fields have been re-cultiviated by the legendary master grower Arcenio Ramos of Cuba. Along with Fernano, Chandito and famed Cuban agronomist Jacinto, Arsenio has assembled the varitable “dream team” of tobacco production.
They have re-grown these humble acres to yield their fullest potential once again.
This premium, hand-made line of cigars is produced by Dion Giolito, who coined the term “small batch” to us in relation to making cigars that can maintain a level of quality and consistency deserving of the true connoisseur.
As Dion set out to re-create a cigar with a taste profile from long ago in Nicaragua, this line fits our mission of bringing you cigars that represent “The New Havana” in terms of bringing you the best cigars from every region. Using the flavors and strength of Nicaraguan cigars past, Dion blended the line using tobacco produced by a team of growers who took the fields of the Jalapa Valley and Esteli region of Nicaraguan and started producing tobacco that rivals the best of the Nicaraguan tradition.
Using tobacco from first generation Corojo ‘99 and Criollo ‘98 seeds and Cafe Colorado wrapper leaf, these cigars are beautifully constructed and are finished with a cuban style triple cap.
Made at the Raices Cubanas factory in Honduras from 100% Nicaraguan tobacco.
The -hl- is also known as the “Holy Lance” and it is the only lancero in the Illusione line.
Now on to the review.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Size: 7.5 x 40 (Lancero)
Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
APPEARANCE and CONSTRUCTION -
The hl is a pretty looking stick. The wrapper is a dark brown somewhere between milk chocolate and dark chocolate. It is clean and even and has no apparent blemishes. There is a cuban-style pigtail at the end of the triple cap and finishes off this pretty looking lancero nicely. The cigar felt firm to the touch with no soft spots at all.
SMOKING CHARACTERISTICS –
The hl gave off very little aroma from the wrapper, but the foot had a spicy aroma that actually tingled in the nose a bit. I decided to depart from my usual punch and I cut the hl with my Xikar Xi cutter. It cut perfectly and had a cedary flavor on the cold draw. There was also a bit of spice. The hl lit beautifully and evenly. About a third of the way through however, I began to have significant burn issues. The burn line became extremely wavy and I needed to perform several touch ups to maintain an even burn. The burn eventually worked itself out, but not until I was starting the final third. Tough call as to what might have caused this as I have not experienced this before with this smoke despite having several of them over the last year. The hl gave off a good volume of smoke. The smoke was light gray and had a nice woody aroma.
FLAVOR –
The hl had a little more spice than I remember in the past. The first third of the cigar had some nice leather notes and a strong sense of spice to it. The leather gave way to some woodier notes about halfway through but the spice remained fairly prominent. The spice turned a little black pepper in the final third, which I actually did not enjoy so much. Earlier it balanced well with the leather notes, but the spice started to become a little much as the cigar went on. It was medium to full bodied and had a good clean finish.
OVERALL IMPRESSION –
I enjoy most of the Illusione line and I think Dion makes some fantastic smokes. While this cigar was enjoyable, it didn’t distinguish itself so much. The flavors were fairly basic and not overly complex. I am probably unfairly comparing the hl to the other sticks in the Illusione line such as the cg4 and 888, both of which I adore. The hl was a good, but not great smoke.
TOTAL SCORE – 86
Tags: Dion Giolito, illusione, lancero, Nicaragua, Raices Cubanas
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
