Zack the Stogie Man's Honorable Mentions for 2011

After spending the last couple weeks working on my Top 10 of 2011, I found it difficult not to give the proper respect to all the cigars that were worthy. There are five other cigars that were very close to making the list, but I felt that they just didn’t leave an impression like the others did.

I felt it was only fair to create the list of some of some honorable mentions for the best cigars I reviewed this year.

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.

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.

Perdomo Reserve Limited Cameroon Edition Petit Corona Review

Wrapper: African Cameroon

Filler: Cuban-Seed Nicaraguan

Price: $5.00

The reason I am review this cigar right now if for two reasons. The first reason is that it is a limited edition cigar, so I don’t know when I would get the next opportunity to smoke one. The other reason is the shop I got this one at is hosting a Perdomo event on September 16th. Xhale Lounge asked me to review this Perdomo in particular because of its amazing price tag, and the fact that it is new to the shop.

This petit corona appears flawless. The smooth Cameroon wrapper is a medium shade of brown with a perfectly flush cap. The stick itself is solid. There was not a single soft spot or vein throughout the entire cigar. The Cameroon wrapper gave off a very grassy yet sweet aroma.

The flavors were very robust right off the start. There were a couple flavors that struck me right away. There was a subtle spice and a mild sweetness off the light. These flavors altered very quickly. The sweetness picked up and the spice died down. As the cigar progressed, I was met with a mild sweet cedar flavor that stuck to my palate.

Perdomo Reserve Champagne Noir Review (Saturday Morning Smoke)

Wrapper: Nicaraguan Maduro

Filler: Nicaraguan

Price $5.00 - $7.00

When I was asked to do a review on this cigar, I couldn’t resist. Perdomo is one of my favorite brands if I need a quick go-to cigar that isn’t too strong. And being that this cigar hasn’t been on the market too long, I jumped all over this opportunity.

This Nicaraguan Puro had a dark maduro wrapper with very small veins. The cigar was very solid in construction with no soft spots at all. The smell resembles coffee but had a pre light draw flavor of honey. One I got these two things in mind, I knew I was in for an early morning treat (roughly 6:45 am).