Review: Felipe Gregorio Felipe II Salomon

Brand: Felipe Gregorio
Name: Felipe II Salomon
Vitola: 7 x 58 Salomon
Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Sumatra
Filler: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Body: Medium
Time of Smoke: 1:45 min
MSRP: 2.50 to $4
Price: Box of 20 for $31
Purchased: http://www.cigarbid.com/

I decided to have a smoke during a game of Bocce Ball with a couple buddies, and this cigar just stuck out to me in my humidor. I bought a box of these, and they'd been sitting in my humidor for at least two weeks now, so i figured i might as well give this stick a try.

Appearance & Construction: 24/25

Right out of the gate, I'll tell you this cigar is huge! By huge, i mean it's the biggest cigar I've ever smoked for sure, and my first Salomon cigar as well. This stick was wrapped in a very sleek looking darker brown Sumatra wrapper, and was very oily to the touch. The cap was well constructed and matched the wrapper, while the foot of the cigar flowed nicely into a small "nipple" for an easy light. It's firm touch only enhanced my belief this cigar was very well put together.

Smoking Experience: 20/25

This cigar lit up with ease, but then gave me problems the rest of the way through. I could not detect any serious notes of flavor expect for an earthiness and some slight cocoa through the entire smoke. The first third burned completely unevenly, and needed touched up severely. After about the midway point, it burned wavy at best, and the draw improved to a small degree. I still didn't get much flavor from it, which was disappointing because from the look and construction i had high hopes. It's ash was a light gray coloration, and although I've heard the ashes on these sticks can get very, very large, this one only managed to go about an inch and a half.

Price: 18/20

At 31 dollars for a box of twenty, that is $1.55 per stick, so not bad at all. I got these on cigarbid, so i paid there shipping prices which in turn increased the per stick price some, but still near 2 dollars per smoke. Your getting your money's worth in terms of tobacco that's for sure.

Overall: 23/25

Overall, i was left disappointed with a great looking and wonderfully constructed Felipe Gregorio cigar. I never really found any dominate notes of flavor, nor did this stick burn well at all. I have nine more of these beasts, so eventually I'll be giving it another try. Hopefully with a little aging, it will improve.

Rating: 85

Review: Bahia Trinidad Pancho

Brand of Cigar: Bahia
Name of Cigar: Trinidad
Vitola: Robusto 5 1/2 x 52
Wrapper: Ecuador
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Body: Medium
Time of Smoke: 1 hour
MSRP Price: $2-2.25 per stick $104 per box
Purchase Price: $40
Place of Purchase: Cigarbid.com

Intro:

I've had the Bahia Trinidad's before and for a cheap smoke i remembered them being fairly good, so i decided to buy a 5 pack on cigarbid and try them out again. So here i am, with my friend whose smoking a Felipe Gregorio, in our breezeway.

                                              

 Appearance/Construction: 22/25

I tore through the plastic on this stick like it was Christmas. I’ve been busy the last few days, so I’m going through stogie withdrawal. This cigar had been sitting in my humidor for about a month so it was firm, with just a little bounce to it. The wrapper was a light brown shade, with no veins or imperfections. The cap was solid, but left a little tobacco on the tip even with my best cutter. After the cut, I noticed that the cigar wasn’t very tightly wrapped, as evidence in this picture.

Smoking Experience: 22/30

Lighting this stogie up with excitement, I found the first third to be very peppery, with a small leathery note, as well as a woodsy note as well. It had a wavy burn through this third, but still pulled a good amount of smoke. Once it reached the second third, most of the notes had faded and left me with the peppery taste. At this point it was already started to leave the tip of my tongue hot each time I drew smoke. The ash was a dark grey, and ran about an inch long each time.



 Value: 18/20

The Bahia Trinidad Pancho isn’t a very expensive cigar, running at an MSRP of around 2 dollars. I got a bundle on Cigarbid for $40, or 2 dollars per stick. So I really didn’t buy them at much of a discount, but still cheap is cheap!

Overall Rating: 23/25

Overall, this cigar had no real flaws, but then again had nothing really going for it either. The construction and appearance, while it wasn’t bad at all, didn’t leave my wowed. Its taste wasn’t bad either, but yet again nothing special. If you want a cigar to smoke while you’re doing something, then I suggest this one. This cigar is one I’d be smoking while I’m fishing, or grilling out. Not one I’d plan my day around.

Rating: 85

Review: CAO Cameroon Toro

Brand: CAO
Name: Cameroon

Vitola: 5 ½ x 55 Toro

Origin: Nicaragua

Wrapper: Cameroon

Filler: Nicaraguan

Binder: Nicaraguan

Body: Full

Time of Smoke: 1:20

MSRP: $6-7

Price: $3.06+

Purchased: Tobacco Village

Intro:

I bought this stick right before I came back to school, so it’s been just about a month. When I bought it, the stick was very soft, and after a month in my humidor I was able to get it back to a respectable feel. Now I’m very partial to two cigars, Montecristo and CAO, I absolutely love them. The Montecristo is my favorite brand, and the CAO brand was one of the first cigars that I started smoking. So I’ll be as unbiased as a can with this one! Unfortunately i don't have any pictures for this smoke, my camera died on me just as i was lighting this one up.

Appearance & Construction: 23/25

The Cameroon wrapper was as close to flawless as I’ve seen in a good while, the veins were no problem here, nor were there any raised spots at all. The cap was solid, with very little difference in color from the wrapper. The only flaw in this cigar was the fact that it was still a little too soft for my liking, and even with my best cutter it left me with some tobacco in my mouth. The initial draw was good, and i could tell this smoke was going to be a solid stick.

Smoking Experience: 27/30

This stick lit up without problems, and the smoke drew with ease from this stogie. The first third was very smoky which I was pleased with, and I got heavy notes of chocolate and undertones of some spices I couldn’t quite identify. The second third continued to smoke well, and left me with a chocolate note, as well as coffee, and those same undertones of spices. From the midway point on this stick had a lot strength and the notes were very prevalent. The burn throughout was very solid and the ash lasted well over an inch both times.

Price: 19/20

By far the best discount I’ve gotten in a while, and although this cigar store always lets me down in terms of condition, they have the dirt cheap prices. At 3 bucks, I’ll keep buying them all day! Even at MSRP they are worth it.

Overall: 23/25

Overall, this smoke is a keeper! I found no real flaws, except for the softness of the stogie, but with a little more aging that wouldn’t have been a problem. The flavors were strong, the smoke was thick, draw easy, and the burn very good. I have nothing bad to say about the Cameroon, and I would recommend this one to any cigarnivore!

Rating: 92

Review: Padilla Achilles Robusto

Brand of Cigar: Padilla
Name of Cigar: Achilles
Vitola: Robusto 5x54
Wrapper: Habano-Seed Corojo
Binder: Unknown
Filler: Nicaragua, Honduras, Dominican Republic
Body: Medium
Time of Smoke: 1.15
MSRP Price: 5 pack at $20-22
Purchase Price: 5 pack at $11
Place of Purchase: Cigarbid.com

Intro:

I’ve had a 5 pack of these once before and remember them being a pretty solid smoke. So naturally I grabbed a second 5er off of cigarbid for 11 bucks. Now after about 3 or 4 weeks of seasoning in my humidor, this stick is going to accompany me out to the breezeway so we can get to know each other a bit more.

Appearance & Construction: 22/25



This cigar was tightly wrapped



This Robusto comes in at 5 x 54, with a medium brown Cuban-seed corojo wrapper. The wrapper itself looked very well aside from a good sized raised spot near the head of the stick. It also had a smaller raised vein towards the foot that I only noticed after I began smoking it. The wrapper itself was very oily, and had no other imperfections. The cigar cut well, which I wasn’t expecting seeing as how large of a ring size it had.

Smoking Experience: 26/30

I lit this puppy up with excitement, as it had been at least a week since I’d had a cigar, so my expectations were high! This cigar started off well, leaving me with a wood flavor, with a peppery after taste in my mouth. After about the half way point I was getting the same woodsy flavor, as well as a nutty note, and the peppery after taste shifted and became a little sweeter. The Achilles burned very evenly throughout the entire cigar, and it’s ash lasted at least an inch both times.

Price: 18/20

I got these beauties in a 5 pack for $11, so at $2.20 I can’t complain. The MSRP is around 20-25 bucks per 5 pack, so I did get a good deal on these at Cigarbid.com

Overall: 23/25

Overall, there is absolutely nothing bad I can say about this stick. The Padilla Achilles offered some very good flavor notes, burned well, and aside from the two raised veins was very well constructed. Unfortunately I only have 1 of these left out of my 5 pack, so once it gets some time in my humidor I will definitely be giving it another go! I recommend this one to any cigarnivore, especially if they enjoy a medium bodied smoke

Rating: 89

October Releases Part 3

La Aurora 107 Maduro

This feature from La Aurora will be donning a very beautiful Oscuro wrapper from Ecuador. The filler is a blend from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. The tobacco used for the binder wasn’t disclosed, but this stick is said to have flavor notes of cedar, spices, and an earthiness. I wasn’t able to find the MSRP on the Maduro, but it’s sister cigar the 107 is around $8, so you can expect something similar.

Padilla 8 & 11

Padilla will be re-releasing it’s famous 8 & 11 line this October, with a very limited quantity of 200 boxes. Each box will come with 20 Robusto cigars. The 8 & 11’s will consist of wrapper, filler, and binder, all from Nicaragua. The first release of this line has an MSRP of $8.95, but there was no info on the price of the re-release. With Padilla being one of my favorites, I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for these beauties.

Tatuaje Monster Series "The Wolfman"

Every Halloween Tatuaje unveils a new cigar for it’s Monster Series, and this year is no different. They’ve come out with “The Wolfman”, a 7 ½ x 52 box pressed torpedo. This gem will be given hair in the form of a shaggy foot, and will be released exclusively in only 666 boxes. In boxes of 13, and unmarked boxes of 10, you should expect to pay around $13 per stick. If I can get my hands on one of these, I will be aging it for years!!!

October Releases 2011 Part 2

Leon Jimenes Prestige



Leon Jimenes' newest line released this month. The Leon Jimenes Prestige comes in three different sizes including a 5X38 Corona, a 5X50 Robusto, and a 7X47 Churchill. The Prestige comes from La Aurora's factory in the Dominican Republic. It will have a Dominican filler, Corojo wrapper, and will be a medium bodied blend. The medium body is a nice change of pace from the usual mild cigars from Jimenes. These sticks look like a pretty good smoke, but they'll cost you. The Prestige's MSRP ranges from $8.20 for the Corona to $10.30 for the Churchill.

Torano Vault

Carlos Torano released his newest addition to the popular Torano brand on October 1st. The Vault's filler will be composed of three different Nicaraguan tobaccos and it's held together by a Honduran binder and Nicaraguan Colorado wrapper. It will come in three different sizes including a 5X52 Robusto, a 6X50 Toro, and a 6 1/8X52 Torpedo. The Vault will also be accompanied by a Limited Edition Corona Gorda Vault which will release on Halloween day. The MSRP on these sticks sits right around $7.00

AKACigars Full Body


American KickASS Cigars will be releasing their newest cigar in October. AKA started releasing their cigars in 2010 when they brought out the "Hybrid" and "Respect" ines. Now they will add the "Full-Body" to their line. The new line will be a tribute to the United States Military and AKA will donate a percentage of their sales to the US Military. Their is not a whole lot of info about the "Full Body" line out their yet other than that it is a Honduran Blend. The info to take away from this release is that AKACigars look to be a badass new cigar brand. They have some awesome ideas at AKA including sending in your bands to receive dogtags showing your American KickAss Cigar rank, not to mention they are giving back to the US military and have some awesome looking bands! Sign me up for one of these 18-band boxes!

October Releases 2011 Part 1

C & C Corojo

This new line comes from the makers of Cusano cigars, and will be in three different Vitola’s. The Robusto 5 x 50, the Toro 6 x 52, and finally the Churchill at 7 x 50. This cigar comes in a Ecuadorian Corojo wrapper, binder from the Dominican Republic, and filler of seco, viso, and ligero all Corojo or Cuban seeds. This stick is a medium bodied cigar, and will profile many spicy notes. These won’t be too expensive either, with an MSRP ranging from $3.99 to $4.50 per cigar.

C & C LRMD


C&C LRMD Cigar Band



The second stick from C & C is there limited release of the LRMD. This cigar will profile a Dominican maduro wrapper, binder from the Dominican, and a filler blend of Piloto Cubano and Ligero. The LRMD is a medium to full bodied smoke, with a more sweeter flavor than the Corojo. There was no MSRP for this line, but this cigar will be coming in the same three Vitola’s as the Corojo.



The E.P Carrillo's newest Limitada line.

 E.P. Carrillo Limitada Edición Limitada 2011 "Dark Rituals”

The cigars name, “Dark Rituals”, is taken from it’s beautiful dark maduro wrapper. This stick is a follow up line to the 2010 edition which was one of the top ten cigars of 2010 according to Cigar Aficionado’s. The oscuro maduro wrapper’s origin was not released, but this stogie has Ecuadorian Sumatra binder, and filler from Nicaragua. The “Dark Rituals” will be in a “Super Toro” vitola and will sit at 6 ½ x 56. There is no MSRP for this stick as of now, so keep your eyes peeled.

Montecristo No. 2 Gran Reserva Consecha 2005

The Montecristo's Classic Band

My personal favorite cigar brand will be releasing a new Cuban blend this October. The Gran Reserve is the first of its kind from Montecristo, it comes in at a 52 by 152mm. This cigar will be limited in its release, with only 5,000 numbered boxes each containing 15 of these beauties. The price on these puppies are unknown, but I’ll be keeping an eye out for more information.