Emilio Cigars Grimalkin Torpedo Review

Wrapper: Nicaraguan

Filler: Nicaraguan

Price: $7.00

This is a cigar that I have been trying to find for some time now. Not only did the name draw me in, but I have heard great things about it. I met the owner of Emilio Cigars a couple weeks ago at an event in Delaware and it was then that I decided I needed to try these. So this past weekend I strolled into a cigar shop, and they had a lone box of these. I had to grab it and give it a try.

The cigar looks delicious. The wrapper is a medium shade of brown. There are quite a few veins but none of them were thick enough to concern me in any way. The stick is very solid with a nice spongy foot that made it very easy to light. The torpedo cut very clean and I was ready to enjoy this stick. The pre-light aroma was very sweet and earthy, so this made me even more interested to get started.

There was a mild spice right off of the light. Along with the spice, there were some nice earthy notes came out as well. Once the earthy notes came out the spice picked up. But just as quickly as the spice picked up, it dies back down. There was a nice, sweet honey flavor that was lingering in the background. This flavor stuck to my palate, which was nice.

CAO OSA Lot 50 Review

Wrapper: Olancho, San Agustin Sun Grown

Filler: Nicaraguan and Honduran

Price: $4.50

This past weekend I was in a wedding for one of my college roommates. That morning of the wedding I had to go out and get a card. Right across the street from out hotel was a little strip of stores. Right in the middle of this strip was a big yellow sign that just said “CIGARS.” Naturally I had to walk into this shop. After browsing for a few minutes I picked up this cigar and a few others (to be reviewed later).

This cigar has a light brown wrapper that had a couple darker spots, almost like freckles. The stick was very solid with only a couple miniscule veins. The construction was very nice as well. The cap was perfectly flush and cut very clean. This stick also cut very easily. The pre-light aroma of this stick was a little odd. The best way I could describe it would be  a combination of caramel and hay.

The flavor was what really got me. It had a very woody and earthy start with a sweet tobacco undertone. Shortly in, the flavors open up. There is much more sweetness that comes out. It becomes sugary with a combination of leather. There is also I little bit more wood that comes out.

Around the start of the second third the wood notes become very strong. The flavor also becomes a little toasty, almost leading me towards a charred wood flavor overall. The sweetness died down which gave way to the strong earthy notes. The wood notes point towards oak, but I can’t put my finger exactly on it. The last couple inches were very earthy. There was also a little bit of spice that came out at the end. The flavor really mellowed out but the finishing flavor was very nice.

The ash on this stick was a little dark but it was nicely layered and held on for almost two inches at a time. The burn was perfectly even throughout the entire stick. The draw was very easy, which is always a good thing. The smoke was very thick and white. It actually stuck around for a while which gave me time to pick out some of the earthy notes in the aroma.

This is definitely one of the best CAO cigars I have ever smoked. And the price is great on this stick. I recommend trying it because it’s a milder cigar with a good amount of flavor. I give it an 8.5 out of 10.

Until next time,

Zack the Stogie Man

Panacea Red 560 Review

Wrapper: Brazilian Maduro

Filler: Seco Cubano, Ligero Piloto Cubano, Dominican Ligero, Nicaraguan Ligero

Price: $6.00 - $7.00

This past weekend I stopped into a new cigar shop that just opened up by my house. The shop is called “The Smoking Dog” and is located in Maple Shade, New Jersey. It will soon be complete with a lounge, but that room is currently under construction. So if you are in the greater Philadelphia are, please stop in a check out the store.

The owner, Jonnette, informed me that their official Grand Opening will be the weekend of October 14th. They will have their lounge open by then, deals on cigars, and even a cigar roller. When I was in there, she gave me a couple cigars to try because Panacea cigars will be featured during their grand opening. So I was happy to review a couple cigars for her. This is the first one I reviewed.

This cigars looks perfectly constructed with a chocolate brown wrapper. The wrapper if flawless with not one vein running through it that causes any concern. The cigar is very stiff with a nice soft foot that makes it much easier to light. The cap is perfectly flush, and cuts very clean. There is also a nice chocolate smell coming off the cigar before I lit it.

Camacho Triple Maduro Review

Wrapper: Honduran Maduro

Filler: Honduran Maduro

Price: $11.50

I received this cigar is a trade earlier this month. I have been planning on reviewing this cigar for some time, its just a little to expensive for me, so it kept getting passed over. But once it was sent to me, I felt it was time to finally review it. This cigar is unique in the fact that every bit of tobacco in this cigar is maduro, usually cigars only use maduros as the wrapper. I knew this cigar was going to be great before I smoked it because maduros produce great flavor. How could this much be bad?

This cigar looks great. It is almost black. There is no thick veins throughout the entire leaf, which is always a great thing. The cigar itself is very solid, there is no spongy or softer spot throughout the entire stick. The cap appears to be oversized, it looks as though it comes about a half inch down the cigar.  The maduro wrapper gives off a very sweet pre-light aroma.

The flavor was fantastic immediately. It dished out a nice helping of spice and chocolate instantly. Shortly after the light, the spice mellowed out  and allows some wood and other sweet notes to open up. As the cigar progressed, the smoke just got creamier, which let to a good amount of flavor to be left on the palate. There are a few bits of coffee notes that kept popping up every once and awhile.

Montecristo Grand Edmundo Limited Edition 2010 Review

A friend of mine sent me this cigar a few months back. I have been letting it rest since then. I was told that this cigar only comes out once a year, so it was really tough for me not to smoke it right away. The cigar is almost milk chocolate color. There is a perfect three-layer cap that lays perfectly flush. There were a couple of veins that never amounted to anything. The stick itself is pretty solid with a nice soft foot which made it very easy to light. The cut was very clean with no splitting or peeling. The smell of this stick was very earthy with a little bit of sweetness.

The flavor was delicious right off the bat. There were strong cedar and toast flavors that were prominent and easily picked out. There was a nice amount of spice that kicks in after a few puffs. By an inch in, the flavor profile mellows out and becomes mainly all earth and cedar flavors. There is another mild sweetness that starts to develop just before the halfway. It was like a bitter chocolate tone that blended with the strong earthy tones.

601 Green Oscuro Review

Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano Oscuro

Filler: Nicaraguan

Price: $7.00

About a month ago I received this cigar in the mail from a friend. He sent is as a surprise along with a couple other cigars to review. I have heard a couple people talk about how powerful this cigar was. So I had to wait until the right day and after a good meal to take this one out for review. So after I got home from work the other night, I decided it was time to take this cigar out and enjoy it.

The wrapper is a nice chocolate brown shade with a little bit of an oily shine to it. There were no thick veins throughout the entire wrapper, there were a couple thin ones, but they were no worry to me. The multi-layered cap was perfectly flush. This cigar was solid from the cap to the foot. There was not one soft spot throughout the entire stick. There was also a nice sweet earthy smell coming off of the stick that I liked.

La Flor Dominicana Double Ligero Oscuro Natural Especiales Review

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sun Grown Oscuro

Filler: Dominican

Price: $9.50

So the other day after work I stopped into Xhale Lounge to see how everything was going. I learned that they are now running a special on La Flor Dominicana cigars. From now until October 7th, they are running a buy three and get one free deal on of LFD cigars. So when I learned that the special was going on now, I wanted to review one of their sticks since I haven’t yet. I know its strange that I have had this website for about six months and I haven’t reviewed an LFD yet.

Well this cigar looks stunning. The oscuro wrapper is amazing in every aspect. It is very dark and oily. There were a couple veins, but nothing too bad. There was a nice, tight pigtail cap that unraveled to be about two inches. The stick is very solid with a nice soft foot that made it easy to light. This stick also gave off a nice earthy smell that gave me a nice heads-up as to what I was to expect.

The flavor was delicious right away. There was a good amount of spice off of the light, but that quickly died down to give way to a sweetness. The sweetness was something I had not tasted many times before. I had to taste it a few times before I could pinpoint it, and the only thing I could come up with was a slight fruity flavor. I know that’s general, but I would have to smoke a couple more of these to pinpoint a little bit more.

Along with the fruity sweetness came along a nice woody flavor. After a couple inches, the flavor became very leathery and the combination of the wood and leather coated my palate perfectly.

Perdomo Reserve Champagne 10th Anniversary Super Toro Review

Wrapper: Connecticut shade Nicaraguan

Filler: Cuban-Seed Nicaraguan

Price: $7.50

This past Friday was the Perdomo Event at Xhale Lounge in Philadelphia. They are running their special all month long on their Perdomo products. I was told that this cigar received praise and several very high ratings from several sources. I have had the Noir several times before, and actually have a review of that as well. When I learned this cigar was rated just as high as the Noir, I felt I owed it to my readers, and myself to review this one as well.

The Connecticut shade wrapper on this cigar is flawless in every aspect. It was perfectly smooth and veinless. What more can you ash for than that? The cap was multiple layers and lay perfectly flush. This stick was solid throughout, not one soft spot in it. The aroma of this cigar before I lit it was sweet, almost like honey. If the appearance and construction is any early indication, I am in for a real treat with this one.

The initial flavors were simply amazing. There was a nice amount of spice, but not too strong, that was complimented quite nicely with an oak-like flavor. After about a half of an inch into this cigar, the spice dies down a bit, and opens up a very earthy profile. Around the same time, a slight sweet undertone forms to compliment the earthiness. My guess is that it is the honey I smelled before. It wasn’t strong enough to be perfectly accurate, but it kept hinting towards honey.

Siglo VI Review

Wrapper: Ecuadorian-grown Cubano

Filler: Honduran and Nicaraguan

Price: $6.00 - $7.00

A couple months ago I stumbled upon a couple of boxes of these in a cigar shop near where I went to college. The reason I stopped in was because it was on the way to a wedding I had to go to. These grabbed my attention because of the bright yellow box they come in. They were towards the front door, so they were right there to be seen. That night I smoked one at the wedding, and thought the cigar was amazing. So on my way home the next day, I stopped back in that shop and grabbed a few more. I saved this one to do a review on.

The wrapper is a nice chocolate brown color. The cap was actually a little bit darker than the rest of the cigar. Other that little oddity, the rest of the construction was flawless. There was one little water spot, but that really isn’t a huge deal. There were no thick veins throughout the entire wrapper. The cigar itself was very solid. The foot was a little softer than the rest of the cigar, but that just makes it easier to light. The cut was very clean with no splits or peeling. And there was a nice sweet smell coming off of this cigar.

Perdomo Lot 23 Toro Maduro Review

Wrapper: Broadleaf Maduro

Filler: Nicaraguan

Price: $5.00

The other day I decided to stop in to Xhale Lounge in Philadelphia to talk with the owner and grab a few cigars to review. As I am talking with the Brad, the owner, he informs me that there is a Perdomo event coming up this Friday (September 16^th) at the shop. Instead of having the special on just that day, he made the special of “buy 3 get one free on all Perdomo products” for the entire month of September. So I grabbed a couple to review, and this one was the first one I chose to do.

The cigar isn’t the darkest maduro I have ever smoked, but it does have a nice dark brown color to it. This cigar only has one vein throughout the whole wrapper that may affect the burn, but I am not to worried about it. The cap is perfectly flush and cut very clean. This is one solid stick. There is not a single soft spot throughout the entire thing. This cigar also has a very sweet smell, almost like chocolate.

One it is lit, the flavor comes out immediately. There is a very mild spice off the start. This spice is a little lighter than most maduros I have smoked. There is also a subtle sweetness that comes out as well. Shortly into the smoke, the spice dies down and gives way to a very nice leathery flavor. The leather flavor quickly covers the palate and stays around for a while.

Espinosa y Ortega Cubao Maduro Review

Wrapper: Ecuadorian

Filler: Nicaraguan

Price: $6.00 - $7.00

A couple weeks ago, a couple of these were sent to me from a friend for review. So after letting them rest, today was the day to light them up. Today was a beautiful morning. The weather was nice and cool with a nice breeze blowing. The perfect morning for a nice cigar and a cup of coffee. I have heard nothing but good things about this cigar, so it was time to dive in a see what it was all about.

The wrapper is dark brown, and looks perfect. There was one little vein in it, but it was nothing to worry about. The cap was multiple layers and was very flush. The stick itself was very stiff except for the softer foot, which made it very easy to light. The cigar gives off a very sweet smelling aroma. This cigar had a perfectly clean cut as well.

Gurkha Blue Steel Double Headed Monster Review

Wrapper: Costa Rican

Filler: Nicaraguan, Honduran, and Colombian

Price: ~$15

For a while now I have been trying to get my hands on this box of the “Double Happiness.” When the opportunity came up for me to get them for a great price, I jumped all over it. So this passed Saturday was the town festival in my home town. So I walked around town, and kept thinking about this box I had just received. So when I came home I closed my eyes and just grabbed on. Then I had to decide to cut it in half or smoke the whole 10 inches as a whole. It was only noon, so I figured it was late enough to smoke the whole thing. So here is the review of my first 10 inch cigar.

This monster looked amazing. The wrapper was flawless. It was wrapped in a way that it could be enjoyed as two separates. Both ends had perfectly flush caps. The wrapper was a chocolate brown shade. There were no veins in this cigar at all, which really surprised me. Once I cut both caps, I was ready to light up this beast.

Romeo Y Julieta Mille Fleurs Review

This cigar has a great appearance. The light brown wrapper is completely flawless. There is multiple caps on this cigar, all of which lay perfectly flush. There isn’t a single thick vein on this cigar, a couple really small ones, but nothing bad. This is one solid stick, the foot appears to be tightly packed. There is a nice earthy sweet aroma coming from this stick as well.

As soon as I cut and lit this fantastic stick, the flavors came out immediately. There a nice mild spice right off the start. Along with the nice mild spice, there is a strong earthiness that is very nice. Shortly into the stick, the spice dies down and gives way to the earthy flavors. There is a nice sweet cedar flavor that comes out after the spice dies down. The cedar and strong earthiness stay prominent until the halfway point.

Vallejuelo Gran Toro Review

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano

Filler: Dominican and Nicaraguan

Price: $6.00

This is a newer stick that is quite a bargain. The prices of this cigars in this line range from about $5.00 to $6.50. When I was talking to the owner of Xhale Lounge, he mentioned that he just got these cigars in and that they received excellent ratings. I figured I would grab the Gran Toro and see if it, to me, truly earned its high rating.

The cigar looks great. The medium brown wrapper if flawless except for the 2 small veins on the side of it. The cap is multiple layers, and perfectly flush with one another. The stick is solid, except for a very small soft spot just below the band. The cigar gives off a sweet earthy smell that is similar to that of the couple Cubans I have had.

The flavor is amazing right off the light. There is a nice mild spice that is quickly met with some earthy and wood notes. The spice quickly dies down, leaving the earth and wood to be very strong. After about an inch or so, the spice was almost gone, and the cigar became a solid medium bodied smoke. Throughout the first third, the wood and earth notes kept growing and became more potent.

Just shy of the halfway point, there were some coffee notes that came out. The coffee was a nice compliment to dull down the earthy tones. Around this point, all the flavors mellowed out and blended evenly. Just after the halfway point, a slight, sweet undertone came out. This sugary flavor stayed on the palate for the remainder of the cigar.

CAO America Potomac Review

Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro and Connecticut Shade

Filler: Nicaraguan and Dominican Ligero

Price: $6.00 - $7.00

With today being Labor Day, I felt it was finally time to dive into this cigar that had been sitting in my humidor for a couple months. The weather was nice, there was a nice breeze, it was the perfect morning for a cigar. I was going to review this one last week, but I figured it would be good one to smoke on this holiday.

The double on this cigar gives a really nice appearance. The cigar was smooth unlike some other cigars I have had with multiple wrappers. The double cap on this cigar was also perfectly flush. There were a couple veins that I was a little weary about, but they never amounted to anything. This cigar is solid with a very sweet chocolate aroma coming off of it.

Chubby's Maduro Review

Wrapper: Dominican Maduro Special

Filler: Dominican

Price: $6.00 - $7.00

This is one of those cigars that up until a couple days ago I had never heard of. When I was helping Brad from Xhale Lounge, he was telling me that this cigar is made by Cuban Stock, which I have heard of. This is also the only store I have ever seen this stick in. The few times I walked around the humidor, this one kept catching my eye. So I figured it was time to give this one a shot.

This cigar was dark, not like just any Maduro, this one was almost black. The wrapper was very oily as well. The cigar looks flawless. There are no veins or soft spots throughout the stick. The cap is perfectly flush as well. This massive 6”x60 gave of a sweet earthy aroma.

Romeo Y Julieta Reserva Real #2 Review

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade

Filler: Nicaraguan

Price: $6.00

Every once and awhile a mild cigar comes along that I like. This one did it for me. It was nice to get up in the morning and sit outside with this one. My Dad and I were both off of work, so we each grabbed a cigar and enjoyed the morning air.

The one thing that always draws me to Romeo Y Julieta cigars is their appearance. Most of the time they are flawless, and this one was no different. The Connecticut shade wrapper was very smooth. Not one vein throughout the entire wrapper. There were a couple soft spots, but none of them were bad enough to alter the burn pattern. The cigar gives off an amazingly sweet tobacco aroma.

The flavor of this stick surprised me a little bit. I wasn’t expecting strong flavors right away, but I was shown otherwise. Right off of the light this stick was very earthy and grassy. There was also a nice spice undertone that complimented the earthiness well. After about an inch, the flavor lightened up quite a bit. The cigar mellows out, while still keeping subtle hints of spice lingering.