Monthly Archives: October 2014

Alec Bradley Nica Puro

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Alec Bradley Nica Puro

Alec Bradley Nica Puro

-Country – Honduras
-Wrapper – Nicaragua
-Binder – Nicaragua
-Filler – Nicaragua
-Size – 5 x 50 Robusto
-Price – around $7.50

Appearance, Pre-light
I get a mellow chocolate scent off the wrapper, but not much off the foot. Some spice comes through on the cold draw, and there is a touch of resistance that is slightly tighter than “perfect.” The cigar is very firm up and down the length, and the brown wrapper has a mottled look with no veins.

First 3rd
The first few draws open with a creamy, smooth, thick bodied smoke. The flavors are a little muted out of the gate, but I detect some earthiness, a tiny amount of cardamom, and a lot of pepper on my tongue. About an inch in, the cigar takes on a more woodsy profile. Above the wood I can find leather and bitter chocolate. These two flavors dance from background to foreground.

Nica Puro Secondary Band

Nica Puro Secondary Band

Second 3rd
The burn on this Alec Bradley Nica Puro is very even so far, and the salt and pepper ash is wavy. I can see every puff I’ve taken so far in the ash, like the suds rings left on a Guinness glass. There’s a dark fruit flavor coming through now that I can’t put my finger on. It has a tanginess to it that is familiar, yet fleeting. The bitter chocolate had morphed into a dusty cocoa that I usually like, but in this case I’m missing the straight up chocolate. That flavor seems to be what was giving the first half its creaminess.

Last 3rd
Coming into the last third, some smokey whiskey flavors are showing up. There is also some harshness that might be fixed with another month or so of aging. Or I could be totally off my rocker. I just realized the band is actually a double band. The cool thing here is that the secondary band has some latitude and longitude numbers on it. When I put them into Google Maps it landed right on La Trinidad, Esteli in Nicaragua. Very nice touch. The strength is more apparent now but not overwhelming, and that flirtatious dark fruit crops up now and then. Much of the spice had dissipated, making the retro-hale all the more enjoyable.

Yumminess

Yumminess

Takeaway
I enjoyed all 95 minutes of this deep, dark cigar. The complexity wowed me right out of the gate, and while I don’t smoke a lot of Alec Bradley cigars, this is one I will definitely be picking up again. This would be a great smoke to give someone who is looking to delve into stronger, more full flavor cigars, but a novice might find it a touch overwhelming.

Flavor – Full
Strength – Medium
Body – Medium-Full
Construction – Excellent

Rating
The Alec Bradley Nica Puro was a very good cigar. A full-flavor treat, this cigar would please any smoker looking to light up their palate and enjoy some typical, yet unique, Nicaraguan flavors.

3.5 out of 5

Short Smokes for Winter Part 2

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Part 2 – Illusione Rothchildes

“Winter is coming…”

…and with winter comes a time to enjoy all the smaller cigars in your humidor! If you live in the northern part of the USA and find yourself without an indoor lounge, it’s almost time to put those churchills and 6 x 60s away. Winter is a great time to get to know some petit coronas, small perfectos, and other cigars that don’t take quite so long to smoke. For the next few weeks I’ll be featuring some of my favorite short smokes for winter because, let’s face it, nobody wants to freeze their fingers off for two hours just to enjoy a good cigar.

Next up is a Quickie Review of the Illusione Rothchildes. This is a traditional rothchildes size that you can suck down in 30 minutes, or savor for about an hour. When all is said and done, this might be the best small cigar you will ever smoke.

Illusione Rothchildes

-Wrapper – Maduro
-Binder – Nicaragua
-Filler – Nicaragua
-Size – 4 1/2 x 50 Rothchildes
-Price – Around $4. Poor Richard’s may be getting these before winter hits, and will probably sell for about $6.

Takeaway

The Illusione Rothchildes starts off sweet and spicy, and the strength is apparent but not overwhelming. Coming into the second third, this cigar takes a sharp curve and turns into a leather bomb. Leather is a flavor I find in very few cigars, but just happens to be one of my favorites. After a while the leather backs off a bit and dark fruit flavors are noticeable in the background. I think of plums or raisins at this point in the cigar. This Rothchildes is “nub worthy.” You can expect to burn your fingers as you get every last puff off this bad boy as you can handle.

Flavor – Strong
Strength – Medium-plus
Body – Medium-Full
Construction – Excellent

Rating

I can’t recommend these enough. Probably the most complex cigar for its size.

4 out of 5

Short Smokes for Winter Part 1

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Part 1 – Arturo Fuente Exquisitos Natural

“Winter is coming…”

…and with winter comes a time to enjoy all the smaller cigars in your humidor! If you live in the northern part of the USA and find yourself without an indoor lounge, it’s almost time to put those churchills and 6 x 60s away. Winter is a great time to get to know some petit coronas, small perfectos, and other cigars that don’t take quite so long to smoke. For the next few weeks I’ll be featuring some of my favorite short smokes for winter because, let’s face it, nobody wants to freeze their fingers off for two hours just to enjoy a good cigar.

First off is a Quickie Review of the Arturo Fuente Exquisitos Natural. If you only smoke one type of small cigar all winter, smoke this one. It’s a 20-30 minute smoke that is full of flavor.

Arturo Fuente Exquisitos

Arturo Fuente Exquisitos

-Country – Dominican Republic
-Size – 4 1/2 x 33 cigarillo
-Price – $2.50, $4 local – Box of 50 $108

Takeaway
This tiny cigar won’t win any beauty pageants, but the fellas down at Arturo Fuente really bring the flavors with the Exquisitos. The wrapper covers the foot, and the “cap” is really just a small twist of the wrapper. On first light there is a subtle sweetness, and red pepper is detectable on the retro-hale. The core flavor profile is light wood, but the sweetness is present throughout the smoke. At times I pick up cinnamon and other baking spices, but these are fleeting at best and very light. These little guys usually come pretty wet, so don’t be too worried about leaving one out of your humidor for a few hours before smoking it. If you only smoke a few cigars a week, a box of 50 of these will last most of the winter.

Flavor – Medium-minus
Strength – Mild-plus
Body – Medium-minus
Construction – Gets the job done

Rating
You just can’t beat this little cigar from Arturo Fuente.
3 out of 5