Cigars

Diesel Whiskey Row

Diesel Whiskey RowBourbon seems to be the hot thing for the last while here, nearly overtaking the craft beer craze. So of course people started shoving leaves into barrels and aging them (that’s actually been happening for a while but I digress) it can, however, be tough to find one that actually tastes good. In comes AJ Fernandez to take care of that with a partnership between General Cigars and Rabbit Hole Distillery. In 2016 binder leaves were placed by AJ in Rabbit Hole whiskey barrels using a specific aging method and from there Diesel Whiskey Row came to life.

Diving into this thing the odor from the body is floral with lite notes of leather and oak. From the foot the smell is the same. The look of the cigar is attractive with a milk chocolate wrapper covering it. There is a light oily sheen to it and very few noticeable veins. Seams are tight and not remarkable but blend in with the body, the cigar feels full even firm to the touch. The cap is cut with no issues and it lights easily and evenly.

The first half brings flavors of rich tobacco with a slight bitter dark chocolate and spice on the finish. The burn continues to be sharp while the ash holds for about 1/2 inch at a time before falling. It produces plenty of medium weight, pleasant smelling, smoke. As the cigar progresses the spice dissipates.

The second half is more mellow with sweetness and bread flavors. This remains until nearly at the end where the spiciness does return. For the duration the cigar has burned properly and required no touching up of any kind.

While this is a barrel aged cigar it didn’t have that overwhelming flavor of being barrel aged and to me thats a good thing. Usually those flavors can over power the taste of the tobacco which is a disservice to it. The overall intensity is mild to medium which makes this cigar perfect to smoke at any time of the day. It also makes it accessible to all smokers regardless of palette. My recommendation is, if you see these in a shop pick some up

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Mexican San Andrés (Bourbon Barrel-Aged)
Filler: Nicaraguan (Ometepe | Condega | Jalapa)
Price: $8.00 per stick
Website: Diesel.com
Rating: 4.4 out of 5 pints

 

Dias de Gloria from AJ Fernandez

Dias de Gloria AJ FernandezWhen A.J. Fernandez came up with the idea for Dias de Gloria his idea was to pay homage to an idyllic time he believes were the glory days of Cuban tobacco—preCastro Cuba. While it is a nod to this time period in Cuba’s history, the new cigar contains no Cuban tobacco. It is, however, made up of aged tobacco from four of his oldest farms in Nicaragua: Finca los Cedros, La Providencia 1, La Lilia and La Soledad. All of them located in Estelí.

“These are the four oldest farms I own,” says Fernandez, “and I’ve been setting aside tobacco from each farm and aging it for years for this blend [some for as much as 7 years]. I want everyone to enjoy it like the glory days of old Cuba.”

The look of the cigar is quite nice, the wrapper has a tan leather color with a light oil sheen to it. It has some light veining with tight seams. The body feels well rolled with no discoverable dead spots or areas that give more than anywhere else. The smell from the body is chocolatey with leather and cedar notes. (Not uprising given that 1/3 of the cigar comes wrapped in cedar.) Same notes are noticed from the foot.

The cigar cuts easy using scissors leaving no damage, it lights easily and has a firm draw. From the first few pulls there is a great amount of pepper flavor which subsides relatively quickly to let the other flavors come in.

In the first half has flavors of leather and cedar with the pepper moving in and out. The ash hold tight for about 1/2-3/4 of an inch at a time. It provides a medium amount of light weight smoke, burns sharp and the draw remains firm. Approaching the 2nd half (fine I will say it, in the 2nd 3rd) the pepper starts to fall further to the back and so far over all has been an enjoyable mild flavored smoke.

In the second half the draw begins to loosen up a bit but not in a bad way. The mild nearly buttery flavor continues until approaching the final 3rd of this cigar. In this final 3rd the flavor really begins to pick up, filled with full spice and dark chocolate. The burn is even for the duration of the smoke and no touch up is required. The smoke remains light which creates an intriguing mouth feel when compared to the fullness of flavor.

As a general rule I do not break cigars down by thirds because I personally don’t notice a great deal of flavor changes in the cigar to warrant such a discussion but, Dias de Gloria could easily be broken down this way. The flavors are peppery in the beginning, then mellow to a mild flavor then come back as a powerhouse at the end. When you find this cigar in the shop be sure to add several to your humidor you won’t be disappointed

Wrapper: Nicaraguan Sun Grown
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $9.00 – $12.00 depending on vitola
Website: Ajfcigars.com
Rating: 4.6 out of 5 pints

 

 

Undercrown Shade Suprema

Undercrown SupremaSince the inception of the Drew Estate Undercrown series they have been a great priced sought after cigar and the shade variation was no exception to this. Now with the limited edition release of the Suprema there’s another great cigar in the catalog.

The Limited Edition Undercrown Shade SUPREMA is a 6 x 50-54 perfecto wrapped in a creamy Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade leaf, with rich Sumatran binder and filler leaves of Dominican Criollo 98, Nicaraguan Corojo, and Nicaragua Criollo. The limited vitola presents a bolder profile on the palate compared to core sizes while remaining a smooth smoking experience.

Jonathan Drew President and Founder of Drew Estate highlights, “Since the release of Undercrown Shade in 2015, it has been a staple in humidors nationwide. We knew it was the right time to release the first Limited Edition for Undercrown Shade, and it’s packaged beautifully in a clean white box.”

From the Drew Estate offices, Factory Spokesman Pedro Gomez notes, “Man, when Willy Herrera handed me this stick I immediately knew it was something special bro. Let me tell you something, when I lit this up with my morning cafe I knew I needed more, the creamy bold flavor coming off this SUPREMA is just supreme. Every Undercrown Shade fan needs to smoke this cigar. I’m telling you something.”

The general smell of this cigar is a light hay with a touch of spice. The cold draw is light, airy and has some sweetness to it. The construction is top notch, typical of DE, wrapped in a milk chocolate covered wrapper with very minimal veining and tight seams. The cap cuts easy and it lights with minimal effort.

The first half has a light but somehow full flavor. I know a contradiction but if you smoke this you’ll know what I’m talking about. The flavors are somewhere in-between toffee and bitter chocolate, a bit of roasted nuts. Theres a sneaky pepper taste coming in on the back end towards the end of the first half as well. The draw is easy but not loose feeling and it produces plenty of light weight smoke. The burn is sharp and the ash holds tight until knocked free.

In the second half flavor becomes fuller with the spicy/pepper flavor rising to the front. The sweetness can still be found but you have to look for it. The burn remains solid and the ash is as tight as ever. Thanks to the excellent construction the draw remains nice and easy making this a breeze to smoke all the way down to the end.

As a whole this cigar was totally enjoyable from start to finish. The flavor profile is complex but easily accessible to novice smokers. While its overall size might be off putting to beginner smokers there’s no need to worry, however if you want something smaller try out the Corona Pequena. If you’re looking for a cigar that will last you a solid 70-90 minutes (depending on your smoking style) and something with great flavor, this is the cigar to try.

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade
Binder: Sumatra
Filler: Dominican Criollo 98, Nicaraguan Corojo, and Nicaragua Criollo
Price: $47.99 for a box of 5
Rating: 4.7 out of 5 pints