Oliva Special S Torpedo

I really like the Oliva Master Blend II's. So lately I've been sampling cigars from all the repackaged Oliva lines. They are reasonably priced cigars that all look well produced.

The most recent stick from this line that I smoked was the Oliva Special S Torpedo. It has an Ecuadorian wrapper, with Nicaraguan binder and filler. It was a very well rolled cigar, with a dark, slightly lumpy wrapper. It started out with a grassy taste. The wrapper tasted slightly spicy to the lips.

The aroma smelled of burnt tobacco (I know, that's what it is). It developed a balsa wood taste in the second half. Towards the end it started to burn hot.

This was a light, one dimensional smoke. It was easy to put down and forget. I probably will not purchase any more of these again.

Macanudo Vintage 1997 Churchill

I've smoked a few different sizes of the Macanudo Vintage 1997 cigars. This latest size, the churchill, was a gift from my brother. It was a very well rolled cigar, with a medium brown, oily wrapper, with a single vein running it's length. It was easy to light, and burned well throughout. It started out with a grassy tobacco taste.

The second third of the cigar was very rich, with a thick aroma, an almost musty tobacco smell (in a good way). It increased in complexity throughout the smoke. There was also notes of sweet wood. It was a full bodied, medium strength smoke.

I don't know if I would purchase a whole box of these, but it was a very enjoyable gift to smoke!

Oliva Serie O Robusto

The Oliva Serie O Robusto is a very well constructed cigar. It had a great looking, medium brown, oily wrapper. It had a few small veins running the length of the stick. It was easy to light, and produced a fair amount of smoke. It a subtle coffee taste at first, and was slightly spicy, that back of the mouth peppery taste.

It was a medium strenght cigar. It would be an okay everyday cigar, it wasn't very special in any regard. It was a very one dimensional smoke. The best thing about Oliva cigars is their price!

Diamond Crown Maximus Stanford's 90th

I was excited to see this cigar in my local cigar shop. I enjoy the Diamond Crown Maximus cigar line, especially the #4 and #5. It was expensive, but I thought what the heck, I'm only ordering one. It was a very well rolled cigar, with a dark brown, oily wrapper. The wrapper tasted slightly sweet and had few veins. It burned well, and produced a nice white-grey ash.

It was slightly peppery, with a light cedar wood taste. It produced a nice tobacco aroma. Overall it was a light to medium strength cigar. However, it was not very complex, and the flavor profile was linear throughout the smoke.

I will not purchase any more of these cigars. It was okay, but for the money paid it was just not worth it.

Cuba after Castro

What do you think is going on in Cuba? Does it matter who takes the reins of the government over there? Some sources report that Castro will recover (eventually) and return to power. If he doesn't, will his brother Raul change things or will it be status quo?

Will the U.S. ever lift the embargo? What will the new Democratically controlled Congress do?

I also wonder what will happen when the embargo does end. Will the Fuentes, Padrons, and everyone else run back to produce cigars? They currently claim that Dominican, Honduran, and Nicaraguan tobacco is just as good as Cuban tobacco. Will their tune change when Cuban tobacco becomes available again?

There will undoubtedly be a spike in the price of Cuban cigars, but I believe it will be short lived and prices will return to normal shortly.

There are a lot of unanswered questions. I don't think much will change in the near future. I'm sure the experts will fill us with information though.

Garo Anniversary Salomon

I had the chance to smoke a Garo 10th Anniversary cigar the other night. It was a large "Salomon" sized cigar. It was well rolled, with a reddish colorado wrapper. The wrapper had a few veins showing but overall construction was good. The cigar was very easy to light, and produced lots of smoke. It produced a sweet smelling aroma at first. However, after a few puffs the cigar had a slight taste of lighter fluid. It was not as strong and flavorful as I had anticipated. This cigar had been highly rated in Smoke magazine.

The lighter fluid taste went away after a few minutes, which was welcomed. The aroma turned to a nice tobacco smell which was accompanied by a nice tobacco taste during the last third of the smoke.

Again, this cigar was much lighter bodied and milder than I expected from such a large smoke.

Padron Executive

I smoked a Padron Executive the other afternoon. I have read some glowing reviews about this cigar, and was anticipating a great smoke. I should have known better. I do not agree with a lot of ratings in Cigar Aficionado. I really enjoy the Padron 1926's and 1964's. However, I found this cigar to be a very one-dimensional smoke. It burned ok, but was rolled a litle tight. It had light tobacco flavors, with a grassy aftertaste. It was a mild smoke that was very unexciting. It didn't really smoke like a big cigar. No robust flavors. Didn't produce volumes of smoke, and it was very easy to put it to rest.

I think I will stick to the '64's. I heard a limited run cigar is coming out for Padron's 80th birthday. How much will that cost?

Ashton Estate VSG Tres Petit Corona

I smoked one of these Ashton cigars the other day. I'm currently looking for a smaller sized cigar that I can smoke in the afternoon or early evening that won't consume too much time. I'd like a 30-minute smoke to enjoy without the guilt associated with smoking a fat 2-hour cigar away from the family duties.

This cigar was very well rolled, as most cigars from this line are. The wrapper was dark, oily, and slightly veiny. It burned well, and produced a lot of smoke for a small cigar. It had a charry tobacco taste, and was a medium to strong smoke. Towards the end it started to taste a bit bitter. For me this cigar was too strong to smoke before dinner (which I figured before I lit it).

I have been somewhat disappointed with this line of Ashton cigars. For all the hype surrounding them, I must say I'm not too interested in them. But that is the beauty of cigars, there is always another one waiting to be smoked!