Cigar

Lunatic Hysteria By Aganorsa

Lunatic Hysteria Aganorsa Aganorsa Hysteria is third cigar that Aganorsa Leaf (formerly known as Casa Fernandez) has created for Famous Smoke Shop, joining the Aganorsa Famous 80th and Siboney Reserve. Created to expand their Just For Retailers series and inspired by the Def Leopard song it is the one of the newest installments in the series. (OK maybe the Def Leopard thing inst true but it should be.) Incase you didn’t know the Just For Retailers series are cigars made exclusively for brick and mortar stores to help support them. So you might think, “Wait a minute, if these are to support B&M shops why does Famous have an exclusive blend for them when I buy cigars on line from them?” Well if you’ve never been there Famous has a large B&M along with a large restaurant attached at their warehouse in Easton PA and has been gracious enough to host several DR Meetups there. If you haven’t had the chance to go there I would recommend making the trip.

The wrapper is dark bronze in appearance with medium veining, nearly invisible seams and a closed foot. It feels firm to the touch with little yield when pressed between the fingers. The construction is solid and the cap cuts fine leaving no damage to the body. From the body I smell a lot of hay and cedar. The cold draw offers lots of licorice, tobacco and sweat tea flavors with a resistant pull.

As soon as it is lit the first few draws are loaded with pepper. Quickly the pepper drops to the backgrounded a more earthy flavor come to the front. The burn is even and the smoke production is plenty and light on the tongue. As I am a fast smoker I found the draw to be a little tight but after relaxing how hard I was trying to pull, it became easier to smoke.

When I reach the second half of the Lunatic Hysteria it becomes more full bodied and spicy. it is still earthy but with nuts with plenty of spice on the finish making it a real delight. Burning evenly through the entire session and loading the room with great smelling smoke I bring this one down to a nub.

Even though this is a JFR cigar the advantage of making an exclusive for Famous is that you have access to them even if you’re not in PA. With a full body and flavor its a great cigar that’s flavors make it enjoyable to anyone. Whether you’re in Easton or you have to hop on to their website at least pick up a fiver of these, you will not be disappointed.

Wrapper – Mexican San Andrés maduro

Binder – Nicaraguan

Filler – Nicaraguan

Price: From $26.00 for a five pack and $100 for a box of 20

(Available exclusively at Famous Smoke Shop.)

Website: Aganorsaleaf.com

Rating: 4.7 out of 5 pints

 

Aganorsa Leaf Signature Selection Maduro

Aganorsa Signature Selection MaduroAganorsa Leaf has been in the game for a while, I just didn’t know how much they were into it… until recently. While smoking a few of their cigars I decided to do some homework and, before I get to the review, here’s a bit of what I found out.

Originally named Casa Fernandez it was in 1998 that Eduardo Fernandez went to Nicaragua with a dream: to grow the finest tobacco in the world that captured the very essence of the Cuban cigars of old.  To do this, he traveled to Cuba and assembled a world class team of Cuban agronomists who worked at the highest levels of Cubatobaco, in many cases for over half a century, and brought them to Nicaragua.  These men oversaw the production of tobacco during the heyday of Cuban cigars, knew exactly the taste they were famous for, and recognized they could recreate the style and aroma of Cuban leaf using traditional Cuban methods in conjunction with the resources available to them in Nicaragua. The tobacco they cultivated is named Aganorsa Leaf as an acronym for his farm named Agricola Ganadera Norteña S.A.

As a vertically integrated company, Aganorsa Leaf oversees the entire production process—from seed to ash—guaranteeing every cigar consistently produces maximum pleasure. Every cigar rolled in their factories in Nicaragua and Miami is composed their highest grade Aganorsa Leaf, and is crafted under the watchful eye of Eduardo, his son Max, and their team of Cuban supervisors. When you smoke one of our world class blends, you will experience the difference between ordinary tobacco and Aganorsa Leaf. Try one today and taste the superior flavor of AGANORSA.

OK, on to why you’re really here, how was this cigar?

Visually the Signature Selection Maduro is a great looking cigar. The wrapper is dark brown in color with hints of red when the light hits it just right. Light veining and seams that you have to search to find. It has a soft velvet finish to it and the body feels dense. The cap cuts easily and creates no damage to the body. The smell offers aromas of hay, cedar and leather with these notes stronger at the foot. The preflight draw had earthy flavors and a hint of cocoa.

The first half tasted of chocolate, earth, and a white pepper finish. With a profile in the medium body range it’s a smooth smoking cigar. It provides plenty of pleasant smelling smoke that has a good weight to it, burns evenly and produces a light grey ash that holds on for about an inch.

The second half is where the fuller flavors start to come into focus. at this point it transitions into flavors of coffee and chocolate with a spicy pepper finish. While these flavors are full it never feels overwhelming and remains a easy smoking, medium bodied cigar. Then burn is nothing short of perfect and the smoke gets more heavy and dense as you smoke, filling the room with its aroma.

In the end I thought this was a great cigar to smoke and now wish I had picked up more than just a few. I grabbed the Belicoso size and but I’m sure each size is equally as good. After looking into the blend I found that for this cigar they are using medio tiempo, which is not only rare but, very rich in flavor. If I had to guess this is the secrete ingredient to rounding out the overall flavor f this smoke. From novice to expert this is a solid stick to try out. When you see these in your local B&M make sure to pick some up.

Wrapper – Nicaraguan Corojo

Binder – Nicaraguan

Filler – Nicaraguan

Don’t Forget Medio Tempo is added in there

Price: $10.00

Website: Aganorsaleaf.com

Rating: 4.8 out of 5 pints

 

Wasabi From Espinosa

Espinosa WasabiIn November 2016, a series of cigars from Espinosa Cigars were released. There was a total of eight to be used as part of the company’s “Backroom Series” available exclusively to the Espinosa-branded lounges. In April one of these cigars, the Wasabi, was brought onto the market again as a limited release of 500 boxes of 10. This release just happened to co-ordinate during our annual Crawfish Boil that we hosted along with Erik and his son so I managed to get my hands on quite a few of these guys.

Of course as we talked about the cigar the mention of people thinking it was flavored with wasabi came up (much like how some people seemed to think that the Pickle Juice was also flavored with pickles). Of course this is not the case and the name was picked solely because he liked the name. Of course Erik does refer to it as a spicy candela so I have a sneaking suspicion that might have had something to do with it as well.

When you first look at the cigar it has a pleasing overall look to it. The color of the candela is a nice pale green color. There are some noticeable veins throughout the wrapper but over all it is smooth to the touch and the seams are tight and even. The Habano tip adds a nice contrast to the overall look of the cigar. Construction feels firm but giving enough not to feel over packed when pressure is applied with the fingers and no dead spots were apparent when inspected.

The odor from the body is light and sweet, while the odor from the foot leans a bit more towards a hay or barnyard odor with a hint of pepper. The cap cuts easily with no damage done to the construction. Pre-light draw is easy and has a mild tobacco flavor, some sweetness and a touch of pepper to it. The cigar lights evenly and produces plenty of medium weight smoke on the tongue.

The first half of this cigar comes across with a decent amount of spice to it. In the foreground to me is a good amount of white pepper and citrus. Definitely a solid medium / medium heavy cigar at this point. The burn is even and stays consistent for the most part. The ash is a dark grey in color and drops off about every ½ inch.

Reaching the second half the cigar really starts to mellow out and more of its earthy tones start to move to the front. The spice is still there on the finish but the taste of smoked cedar and peat become more prominent. This lasts until reaching the end of the cigar where the full strength becomes noticeable and the pepper fights its way back to the forefront of the flavors.

In all after smoking several of these I have to say I really enjoy them. Not something I’d recommend for the beginner but would easily recommend it to someone who likes a variety of flavor and is looking for something to try that you don’t see every day. Better go out and grab some before they all disappear. 500 boxes sounds like a lot but trust me, with how good these guys are they will be gone before you know it.

Wrapper/Binder/Filler: Ancient Japanese Secret

Website: https://www.espinosacigars.com

Rating: 4.4 out of 5 pints