Cigar Review

Umbagog From Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust
Umbagog Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust

When this particular cigar entered the market I was working in a cigar shop and remembered when it hit the shelves. I was thinking “Umbagog, what an interesting name”. Even though I had been smoking cigars on and off for 18 years, I just smoked cigars. I didn’t really read or look into a cigar as much as I do now. Friends would share cigars with me, I would purchase one from time to time and if the cigar was good it was good. It wasn’t until a year or two later when I REALLY started to get into cigars; saving labels, writing notes, heck, even when I went to apply at the cigar shop I worked at, my resume was my book full of labels and notes. My foot was in the door and had no idea the exponential growth my journey would take me on. This brings me to this cigar “Umbagog”. 

Going back to when I first smoked it, not knowing anything about the cigar I enjoyed EVERY puff, draw, retro, right down to the nub. What an amazing cigar, sold a lot of them actually because it wasn’t just about how good the cigar was, but the price was phenomenal. In fact I had read that Steve Saka himself had referred Umbagog as his “version of an economy minded cigar”. With a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper and a Nicaraguan binder and filler one might think “How can this cigar be a budget or an economy cigar?” Well, the story with Umbagog goes back to the production of Mi Querida. During the quality control process, Saka felt that some of the Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper he was using was not aesthetically up to the standards of Mi Querida. While the wrapper wasn’t as pretty as Saka would like, the tobacco was still good. Rather then discard the wrapper, Saka decided to use the wrapper for another cigar. He chose to call it “Umbagog” and sell it at a lower price. To offset costs, Saka decided to package the cigars in bundles instead of boxes. 

This is where it really gets exciting to not only know what’s inside this beauty but the meaning of the name. Now, reiterating that when I first smoked this cigar I had zero knowledge of this cigar, yet; now, here I am, feeling blessed and honored to type out a review in hopes that you all enjoy the read, learn as much as I did in regards to “Umbagog”, and perhaps even smoke a Umbagog while reading this article.

Umbagog is a wilderness lake located in Coos County, New Hampshire and Oxford County, Maine. It is one of the most pristine lakes in the state of New Hampshire. The word itself is said to come from the Abenaki Indian Tribe which means “shallow water” and properly pronounced (um-BAY-gog) but as Steve Saka likes to pronounce it (along with most of us out there including myself) “Oom-BAH-gog”. Umbagog Lake is actually one of his favorite fishing lakes. This cigar is meant for the great outdoors; hiking, fishing, camping, whatever you might like to do and as Steve Saka says “This is a cigar that doesn’t pretend to be special or seek to elicit the ‘oohs or aahs’ of the cigar snobs. It is an honest, hardworking cigar that is meant to be smoked, chewed upon, and lit however many times you wish”. Speaking of lit, let’s get into this cigar. 

Before lighting up, as you know, I have to take a couple of dry pulls just to see if this cigar is really going to get me into the “Great Outdoors” mood. Leather, dark chocolate, coffee, earthiness, even a hint of molasses hit’s my palate. Yep, now I’m ready for a campfire right by the lake. Even if you can’t sit next to a lake right now, this cigar will definitely take you there, at least that’s where it took me. Upon light up, copious amounts of earthiness, espresso, oak, toasted almonds, and leather spring into action on my palate. Not really knowing what to expect, yet, if I was to anticipate a certain profile but, THIS is exactly how I would hope it would be. 

Smoking into the first 1/3rd of this cigar the Leather and Oak really stay prominent yet with a tad bit of spice coming through with a layer of cocoa. At this point of the cigar, as I continue to smoke into the second 1/3rd, I start thinking about campfires, the smells, the foods we might eat, the drinks that might be had, or just the essence of being outdoors doing whatever it might be that we love to do. Maybe it’s a psychological thing since “Umbagog” has got me wishing I was by a campfire the taste of s’mores comes to my palate. graham cracker, chocolate, toasted marshmallow and that smell of campfire smoke hit’s my nasal senses while sipping on some coffee. This is really a treat to be experiencing the journey this cigar is sharing with me. The flavor profiles continue to remain the same and to put Steve Saka’s words to the test “ hardworking cigar that is meant to be smoked, chewed upon, and lit however many times you wish” I wanted the cigar to go out a few times just so I can relight and see if I get the same flavor profiles. Steve Saka was NOT wrong. Absolutely positively true in every way, flawless, especially smoking into the last 1/3rd of this wonderful masterpiece! Toasted almonds, oak, leather, milk chocolate, fire toasted marshmallow, like having a creamy mocha, it’s rather unbelievable but oh so true to my palate. At least now I know what cigar I will be sure to have in my travel case the next time I go camping. 

Because “Umbagog” has the less atheistic Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper, the production of this cigar has been somewhat limited. Yet, Umbagog does come in six sizes; Corona Gorda (6×48), Robusto Plus (5×52), Toro Toro (6×52), and Gordo Gordo (6×56), Churchill (7×50), Short and Fat (4 ¾ x 56). Steve Saka wanted to also point out that even though this cigar is made in the NACSA factory in Esteli, Nicaragua, that this cigar blend is not identical to the Mi Querida. Umbagog uses different priming’s and occasional “broken” (long filler with breaks in one half of the leaf). So you know what this means, if you have not tried this cigar then it’s certainly a must try! Because I’m giving this cigar a 5 out of 5!!! Why?? You might ask, smokes well, relight’s good, it is rugged, the flavor profiles are amazing, the experience, AND the price. MSRP for a Corona Gorda is $6.45 (bundle of 10 @ $64.50) up to the Churchill size at $8.95 (bundle of 10 @ $89.50) It’s kind of a no brainer and to leave you with the words from Steve Saka “Cigars without compromise: This is an expression of our closely held ethos and states in just three simple words everything we wish to accomplish here at DTT. Cigars are more than just a passion for us; they are our life.”

Wrapper –  Connecticut Broadleaf

Binder – Nicaraguan

Filler – Nicaraguan

Website: www.dunbartoncigars.com

Rating: 5 out of 5 pints.

Espinosa Cigars Presents Comfortably Numb 2
Espinosa Comfortably Numb 2

Good afternoon Ruffian family and happy National Cigar day. Today we’re going to take a look at the Espinosa Cigars Presents Comfortably Numb 2. I’ll be honest, even being a huge cigar geek, I had not even heard of this cigar until it was sent in the mail to me by the Prez himself. Even that being said, the few hours of surfing the web, not much was available, and what I did find had a lot of contradictions. What I could find was that this had a corojo ligero wrapper with Nicaraguan and Honduran ligero fillers. It was made in just the one size, 6×52 toro and made by Erik Espinosa at La Zona factory. I couldn’t find when this was first released to the market, but all signs point to 2019-2020. This cigar has an MSRP of $8.60 and from what I could find, isn’t too widely available in the present market. Enough with the filler, let’s get to the reason you’re here.

At first glance, this cigar has a dark brown wrapper with a lot of veins that stand out much lighter than the wrapper itself. It almost reminds me of Liga Privada T52 in the way of appearance. I use my Palio straight cut to nip the cap and get a sense of the cold draw. The cold draw has a graham cracker sweetness that I hope comes through when I finally light this bad boy up. The cigar has a perfect resistance in the draw, so let’s set this guy on fire. I use a cedar spill to toast and finally light the cigar fully.

The first thing I get is a crazy smoke output. It’s not quite Nica Rustica level, but it sure is close. There is a lot of caramel right off the bat with a bit of cinnamon that lingers a bit on the tongue. The retrohale has quite a bit of white pepper that makes me sneeze instantly on the first draw. If this is a sign of things to come, this may end up in the full strength range sooner rather than later. Moving further in, it has like a french toast with syrup sweetness that lingers. By the end of the third, it is burning perfectly and is about medium in strength and flavor.

Slowly moving into the 2nd third, a weird soap flavor hits the palate. It’s not pleasant, to say the least. I hope this is because of the tunnel that started up after I ashed it. After a few minutes of letting the cigar sit, I have fixed the issue with the tunnel and the soap flavor has subsided for the time being. A mix of toast and dried cherry are coming to the front now and the white pepper on the retrohale has not calmed down as I get further in. Luckily the soap flavor is completely gone as I moved toward the end of the third. The draw is still good and the burn has not waivered since the beginning. 2nd third ends at a full-strength with a medium flavor.

As we start to wrap up the end of the cigar, the retrohale still stands out as the focus of this cigar. Sharp white pepper is still quite potent with a bit of cinnamon to make it less intense. A nice wheated bourbon flavor is coming through and I was wishing it would

have shown itself earlier. A metallic flavor starts to kick in with about half an inch left, so I decide to pop it into the ashtray and salute the dead soldier. Total smoking time was 1 hours and 30 minutes.

So, quite a lot to dissect with this cigar. A boatload of transitions, which is a great thing in my opinion. However, the changes did not seem to line up with the other flavors, making it kind of like choppy waves on a calm day. I wish the wheated bourbon flavor would have come to light earlier in the cigar, as well as the graham cracker that I got on the cold draw. The soapy flavor that came through in the 2nd third was quite the turnoff, but fortunately, it didn’t last long enough to damper the cigar. With that all being said, the T Money score is 3.5 out of 5, rebuy 5 pack.

For the price, this is a cigar worth seeking out. Tons of flavors with many transitions to keep you on your toes throughout the duration of this cigar. The retrohale packs a punch, so I would not suggest it for the mild to medium cigar smokers and not on an empty stomach if you’re prone to nicotine sickness. With all of that being said, it was a quality stick that if you can find one or 5, give it a shot. Share one with a friend, a family member, or even a stranger. Remember to do something nice for someone and treat everyone like family.

Wrapper –  Nicaraguan

Binder – Nicaraguan

Filler – Honduran and Nicaraguan

Website: www.espinosacigars.com

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 pints.

601 Black From Espinosa Cigars
601 Black

With Valentine’s Day upon us, it’s a day that can bring back the memories that we love and sometimes within the cigar industry a certain cigar may be brought back to remind us how much we missed and loved that particular cigar. 

Here we have the 601 Black Connecticut.  The 601 Black had been out of production for several years.  In 2020 this cigar was reintroduced as an annual limited editiion.  The 601 Black is a cigar that traces back to EO Brands, the partnership between Espinosa Cigars founder Erik Espinosa and Eddie Ortega.  601 Black was one of the original 601 blends released in the EO portfolios.  At the time it was released, it was considered a groundbreaking cigar in that it was one of the early Connecticut Shade blends to break the mold of traditional, milder Connecticut Shades and as Espinosa Cigars Director of Operations Hector Alfonso quoted, “the 601 Black was a cigar ahead of its time”. 

The 601 Black is certainly a cigar that might change your view on Connecticut Shade cigars.  Underneath the Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper leaf is a core of perfectly aged Nicaraguan long filler and binder tobaccos, yielding a more powerful and bolder smoke than an old-school Connecticut smoke. 

Getting ready to light this cigar up I take a few dry pulls to get the FULL aspect of the experience I am about to have.  In my dry draws I was able to pick up some caramel, toasted nuts, and cedar notes.  The cigar definitely started to get my glands active with saliva which was all before the cigar was even lit. 

As I began to light up, right off the rip, I was getting some very rich and flavorful pepper, cream, cedar, toasted nuts and dried fruit.  I can immediately understand why this cigar is typically not your traditional Connecticut Shade cigar.  As I continue to smoke the first 1/3 of the cigar it was staying strong with robust flavors of caramel, toasted nuts, cedar with a hint of floral notes to enhance my experience.  Continuing on with the second 1/3 of the cigar a nice frothy latte with some cocoa powder came to mind; coffee, cocoa, hints of sweetness, and molasses certainly surprised me yet the transition was certainly enjoyable.  As I continue with the last 1/3 of the 601 Black the strength and flavor really became prominent; molasses, espresso, cocoa, with hints of brown sugar.  

This cigar certainly illustrates why it stands out above most traditional Connecticut Shade cigars.  This cigar will absolutely pair well with your drink of choice.  The 601 Black is offered in boxes of 10 and ONLY in a Toro Size.  This cigar is most certainly one you want to hunt for. I would rate this cigar 4.9 out of 5 which say’s a lot because I can be quite picky on a cigar from start to finish but this cigar was absolutely delicious and almost flawless.  I did have one tiny burn issue half way through but it didn’t last long and the flavor profile was impeccable. Check out your local B&M to track some of these down!

Wrapper –  Ecuadorian Connecticut

Binder – Nicaragua 

Filler – Nicaragua

Price: Around $9.00 a stick

Website: www.espinosacigars.com

Rating: 4.9 out of 5 pints.