Scotch & Cigars

Unbelivable, but my wife stopped by my favorite store and asked for some recommended cigars in the $5 to $7 range. She came home with some Olivia Series O cigars, the double toro (6×60)

These are wonderful cigars. The size of course gave a lot of smoke and they were easy draw. Be careful with these if you’re a newbie.

They’re well worth the price ($6.50). Mild in flavor and not too spicy. They went great with the Highland Scotch I’ve been drinking lately.

Welcome back everyone. It’s been a long summer and I know I haven’t posted any reviews for a while. Finally had a cigar I had to write about, not matter what.

I purchased 3 of these cigars from the same box like I always do for testing. Again, Cigar Afficianado ranked this one with an 89, so I figured you would want to have an independent review.

This is one that CA got wrong. Of the 3 I tested, none of them burned correctly. All tasted like dog poo as a result.

I’m usually pretty easy on cigars, because I enjoy them. But all three of these I had to put out after less than half of the stick. If there was a ’spitting’ ranking, this one was high because I countinually had to get rid of the taste in my mouth. (Clear review huh?)

You can save yourself some money and go back to the Dominican and leave this one at your favorite cigar shop. It’s not worth your hard earned money.

This cigar was rated 91 in Cigar Afficiniando, so I thought I’d buy a couple of them and try. I know CA likes to rank their advertisers higher than other, that’s fairly obvious. In this case, they almost got it right. This cigar started of great. The draw left a lot of smoke to enjoy, easy to pull, and the taste was great.

Like most cigars, I took the label off when it got close. I’m not sure what the makers of Te-Amo did, but at bottom of the lable, about 1.5″ from the end, the cigar all of a sudden got really bitter. I’ve never had a cigar change from good to bad within 2-3 puffs. It was amazing. 3 puffs of the bitter stuff, and the cigar was done.

It is a ‘value’ priced cigar, so I suppose I got a good deal, but just remember to leave the label on and don’t smoke it past that point.

I saw this cigar listed in Cigar Afficiando as one of the best new cigars. Ted’s Tobacco in Lincoln had a couple of boxes available, so I decided to try a couple.

The first one had a great looking wrapper, had an easy draw, and a great taste. The strange thing about this cigar was the burn. Most cigars worth their weight are able to keep a tight light colored ash. Although this cigar started out pretty good, soon it appeared the filler tobacco was ‘exploding’ as it was being smoked. We couldn’t keep the ash on the cigar for much over 1/2 inch, and it kept falling off into the tray. With this issue, it was a challenge to keep the burn even down the shaft.

With the strange burn, the cigar didn’t get bitter, even with about 2″ left. At that point, the cigar simply went out and I decided not to re-light it.

I’d recommend this cigar if you find a good deal on it, probably in the $5 - $6 range.

What a find. This Lowland Scotch has as unique a bouquet as a Laphroig or a Highland. With the Triple Wood distilled process, this scotch is as smooth as any I’ve come across. I’ve always been an Aberlour fan, but this might take the cake.

Auchentoshan Triple Wood has a light fruity taste. It uses Highland waters, but is actually located in the Lowland district by boundry line.

Although a little more expensive than I’m used to buying, it’s well worth the money.

What a classic. Doug has always led me in the right direction. He was the first to embrace the CAO Brazillia and now he’s persuaded me to try the Italia. Yes, I know it’s been out for a couple of years and he’s been the one trying to get to me buy a couple.

At our weekly get together at Ron’s Pub, the Italia finally came out. It was a great smoke, reasonable cost, and great spicy taste. I’ll certainly have another.

Yeah, I know. The bottom of the barrel for this ’scotch’ drinker, huh? Well, the afternoon before the Super Bowl, sitting in a bar with your best friend, smoking a first class cigar, it just hit the spot. Straight up on the rocks is the only way to enjoy any scotch, even though this one happens to be a great blend.

Share one with a friend sometime, you’ll see what I mean.

Sitting around with a good friend relaxing with a great cigar is the name of the game. The Punch Gran Puro Pico (6″ x 50) is the perfect cigar to hash over good times.

This medium to full bodied cigar with a natural wrapper was a great smoke all the way to the bottom. Not a bitter section in the entire cigar, which makes it a great cigar in my opinion.

 The burn was perfect all the way and held a great white ’show off’ ash. At about $7.00, it was a great start to the Superbowl afternoon.

First of all, I bought this cigar because it was cheap. $2.55 for a 5.5″ x 42 ring stick. What I have learned is this; just because it has a famous maker’s name on the label doesn’t mean that it will be an average or above average cigar. This one was just probably one of the worst cigars I’ve had in a long time.

The cigar lit easily and burned evenly all the way down. But after the first half inch of burn, this cigar turned bitter. I once read an article in Cigar Aficianado that described a cigar having a ‘pencil lead’ taste. That’s what I thought of this one.

If you’re looking for a cheap smoke, bypass this one and go on to another one.

Looking for an everyday cigar that won’t break the bank? The Cusano M1 is your answer. The M1 is a sweet and creamy medium bodied cigar. Great for the golf course, great for that evening cigar while playing poker or surfing the Internet.

I’m all for a great tasting cigar that costs less. I’ve seen these as low as $2.50 each on-line. Your local cigar shop may charge around $4.00 each. In packs of 20, it’s a great buy either way.

Full Review