Size: 5 x 50
Wrapper: Honduran
Binder and Filler: Honduras, Nicaragua
Strength: Medium
Price: ~$2.50 USD

Behind The Stick:

As some of you know, I am personally a fan of most of the products that General Cigar has put out – namely in the past couple of years. When you are talking about the ‘Big Dogs’ – General is easily one of those companies where if you want a specific tobacco, they got it. From what I understand, their tobacco vaults hold one of the largest collections of all manufacturers and blenders in the industry – with new brands being acquired and put under the General umbrella that doesn’t seem to be changing any time soon. That being said, the Don Tomas brand has existed since the 1970′s but after the cigar boom, General had decided that a reblending was in order and thus, one of those we have today is the Don Tomas Clasico. Lets see how this one does!

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Size: 6.125 x 52
Wrapper: Honduran Corojo ’99 Rosado
Binder and Filler: Honduran Criollo ’98 and Nicaraguan Corojo ’99
Strength: High Medium to Full
Price: $227 usd a box or $11.35 single

Behind The Stick:

The La Palina name has done it again – the El Diario is a cigar that was released at the 2011 IPCPR trade show with rumors of 5 sizes being added to the line by fall. You all know I am a fan of the Family Series and although the company has only been on the market for a short amount of time, the history of the brand creation to the current and future releases really makes this a company to keep your eye on. I wish there was more information out there but again, with the company being new and honestly – not many people talking about them – research has returned few rewards. Enough of me trying to fill space, onto the review!

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Tatuaje Monster Series “The face”
Size: 6.6″ x 56ring
Price: $13ea MSRP

Wrapper: Mexican (San Andreas)
Filler: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Strength: Full

Appearance & Construction: This cigar is a big mean looking s.o.b just like the movie character it was named for. The wrapper is rough and brown in color with a slightly leathery look, which I am sure was the intention. It has a closed foot and an ever so slightly tapered head that ends in what can best be described as a nub. The Face has a very unique band made of a much lighter shade tobacco. I have never seen anything like this before and must admit that the overall look really does make me think of the band as a “mask” and the only missing feature at this point is a tiny chainsaw. The presentation for this fourth installment of Pete Johnson’s monster series is really something & I hope at this point that the smoking experince can deliver.

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Size: 5 x 50 ( Robusto )
Wrapper: Mexican San Andreas
Binder and Filler: Nicaraguan
Strength: Medium to Full
Price: Just over $7.00 each

Behind The Stick:

Emilio Cigars – another semi-new company to come to the Cigar world table but unlike some of the others, this name has some big players standing just a few feet behind in the shadows. Gary Griffith who also created Grimalkin cigars, has paired up with a blender who was been named one of the ‘hottest cigar blenders’ in the industry and has created more cigars than I can count – A.J. Fernandez. Today’s cigar, the Emilio AF1 is slowly picking up some buzz in the online community and I for one could not be happier. Their website mentions ‘the Emilio AF-1 cigars are produced in Esteli, Nicaragua and named in honor of our friend A.J. Fernandez, blender and manufacturer. Two years in the making, the cigars are loaded with flavor from the Nicaraguan tobaccos of the filler, and clothed with a slow fermented maduro wrapper, dark and rich with spice and sweetness.’

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Davidoff Puro D’Oro Deliciosos
Size: 4.875 x 43 (Corona)
Price: $285 for a box/25 or $12ea

Wrapper: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic
Binder: Dominican Republic
Strength: Med/Full

Appearance & Construction: Davidoff is a top shelf name in the cigar industry and they charge a healthy price for most of their cigars but with that comes the expectation that the product should earn that money right from the start. The construction and presentation on this cigar meet that expectation in spades. The wrapper is a handsome dusty dark chocolate color that has a generous sheen of oil. The entire cigar is packed well and has no flaws that I can find. Even the pig tail cap is tight & clean while the gold stamped band at the foot of the cigar simply says “Deliciosos” as if the cigars reputation clearly precedes itself and nothing more needs to be said. With a name that translates to “Pure Gold” this Dominican puro clearly has a healthy opinion of itself & I am happy to put this cigar to the test to see if it can walk the walk because it clearly talks the talk.

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Size: 5 x 50 ( robusto )
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano
Binder and Filler: Nicaraguan
Strength: Full
Price: ~ $7.00 each

Behind The Stick:

In the never ending expansion of new cigar manufacturers and names – the Sosa name is brought to us by Antillian Cigars who also produces the Macabi and IMperio Cubano lines. The Sosa line is produced in the Tabacalera A. Fuente y Cia in the Dominican Republic and have been reported to be using the ‘finest blends of tobacco from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua using Connecticut, Connecticut Broadleaf, Habano Corojo and African Cameroon tobacco’ while the Underground itself is produced in their Miami location. The Sosa cigar factory in Little Havana, Fl is overseen by Arby Sosa – the Sosa’s Sale Manager – who had contracted Jay Barranco ( a famous Miami tattoo artist ) to create the Underground logo.

If you are not familiar with the Sosa story, a quick recap – like many cigar families that started in Cuba, the Sosa name started with Don Juan Sosa who was a small tobacco grower in the Taguasco region of Cuba at the turn of the century. By the 1920′s, the farm had gained popularity and became one of the largest tobacco producing haciendas on the island. Don Juan’s son Arturo and grandson Juan created cigars for sale in Cuba and around the world – but due to political issues the family left the island in 1962. The grandson Juan Sosa began his hunt for soil and climate conditions compariable to his native Cuba and found it in the Santiago region of the Dominican where their family is now located.

Enough of the back story – how the hell does this cigar perform!?

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