We smoked the Rocky Patel Cuban Blend Robusto and now we’re ready to let readers know what we think. Will it be a regular RP smoke? Or will it remind us of the RP American Market Selection?

CIGAR BISTRO Review
Rocky Patel Cuban Blend Robusto
Vital Statistics:
Country: Handmade, Honduras
Size: Robusto – 5 1/2 x 50
Wrapper: Corojo or Maduro
Binder:
Filler: Honduran Ligero longfiller
Strength: Full

The Feel: The Rocky Patel Cuban Blend is firm, solid and sleek to the touch. The wrapper is rich, dark with that special oily feel that promises a good heavy, full-flavored Maduro smoke. The wrapper alone promises a good smoke is coming.
The Smell: Before lighting, the RP Cuban Blend is as expected: a treat for all who like a heavy tobacco smell. When it’s first lit, this Rocky Patel exploded into a variety of flavors. Some say spicy, I say smoooooth, silky with a variety of flavors, both light and heavy.
The Cap: The cap was firmly attached and the even the cut was promising: it released some of the cigar’s aromas as it the cut was made–which was very easily performed.
The Draw: The draw of this Rocky Patel is excellent from the very start. Actually, it is the best drawing cigar I’ve smoked in several weeks.

Regular readers know that I prefer heavier tasting, heavier smoking cigars, but the Rocky Patel more than exceeds this preference.

In fact, I’m smoking one as I write this and I can say it is the most pleasurable smoke I’ve had for several weeks–and that’s saying something.

I still can’t put my finger on all of the flavors in this cigar, but it’s fun trying. Earthy, woody highlights make slowly exhaling the smoke very satisfying. There’s double the pleasure: inhaling gives a heavier taste; exhaling brings another set of subtler pleasures. This cigar could easily become a regular habit.

As this cigar is being smoked, I’m already wishing I had another. But, it’s late and there’s no more to be found at this hour. That’s probably not a bad thing: this could prove habit-forming and a man must have control over his vices. This is a truly enjoyable smoking experience.

Can you tell I’m having a ball here?

MORE on Rocky Patel Cuban Blend Robusto Natural Cigars:

Yes, we have no Havanas, but we do have this affordably-priced Cuban Blend from Rocky Patel. Available ONLY at Famous Smoke Shop, these cigars present a bold, heady and well-balanced blend of long-aged Honduran Ligero longfiller tobaccos deftly rolled into scrumptious Corojo or Maduro wrappers. The smoke is ultra-smooth, complex, and brimming with dark, spicy flavors. It’s almost like getting a fine Cuban cigar without the Cuban price! Try a box and taste for yourself.

A mind-blowing, affordably-priced cigar handcrafted with a potent, extra-long-aged blend of Honduran Ligero tobaccos rolled in buttery Corojo wrappers. The smoke is bold, spicy, complex, and seductively smooth with a hearty aroma. A phenomenal buy if you love rich, ‘Cuban-like’ flavor.

NOTE: They aren’t overstating their case here–Mondo.

FINAL VERDICT:

The Rocky Patel Cuban Blend was exactly what I was hoping for: a rich, full-flavored cigar with zero bite. I’m putting this cigar down on my list to enjoy at the track. That’s one of the places I enjoy smoking most of all; relaxing, having a drink and concentrating on my smoke.

FINAL CIGAR BISTRO SCORE:

Intangibles (Feel, Heft, Smell, Cap): 9.5
Wrapper: 9.5
Draw: 9.5
Flavor: 10
Aroma while Smoking: 9.5
Smoking Experience: 10
Value: 9.5

Total: 67.5/70

That’s a new high score for a Cigar Bistro-reviewed cigar!

I must say: I’m impressed. I occasionally smoke Rocky Patels, mostly Factory Selects Rosado and they’re a good cigar. But this Cuban Blend is a great cigar in my opinion. It is far superior to the RP American Selection series.

The RP Cuban Blend is the type of cigar I would give to someone I really want to turn onto a new, great cigar. This Rocky Patel is not only a great smoke, but a great value. I would have no hesitation in offering this cigar to anyone who’s looking for that jaded smoker who’s tried everything.

This is comfortable, luxurious smoke; better than having dessert.

Back to DBKP Front Page.

Today, we try out the Don Tomas Special Edition and render our verdict.

CIGAR BISTRO Review
Don Tomas Special Edition
Vital Statistics:
Country: Handmade, Honduras
Size: Corona – 5 1/2 x 42
Wrapper: Connecticut Shade
Binder: natural
Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan and Mexico
Strength: Mild

The Feel: The Don Tomas Special Edition corona is solid, with a good heft. The wrapper is light brown with a smoothly rich look and feel to it.
The Smell: The Don Tomas Special Edition had a mild, slightly-sweet tobacco smell, prior to lighting. After it was lit, the Don Tomas slowly moved through a series of aromatic changes: from very mild, slightly sweet all the way to a more-satisfying (to this smoker) flavorful finish.
The Cap: The cap was firmly attached and cut easily.
The Draw: The draw of this Don Tomas was excellent during the entire smoke.

Don Tomas Special Edition NOTES:

Before lighting it, the Don Tomas has was a joy to smell: rich and creamy, with sweet tobacco overtones.

Readers know that I prefer heavier tasting cigars, but the Don Tomas proved to be one of the exceptions to my rule. It was tasty!

What’s more, the smoke got steadily more tasty–especially after about halfway through the Don Tomas. Though it’s a mild cigar, the smoke was rich and flavorful, like a more robust cigar–without the occasional bite.

One of the best compliments you can give a cigar is to say, “I look forward to smoking another.” I paid that very compliment to the Don Tomas three days after smoking the corona.

On a trip to Washington DC, I stopped at a little smoke shop and after looking over their stock, came back to a Don Tomas. This time, however, I purchased a Churchill. If anything, the experience was even better: I enjoyed it immensely while driving the next 116 miles.

MORE on Don Tomas Special Edition cigars:

Don Tomas Special Edition Connecticut cigars are distinguished by their silky, smooth-smoking U.S.-grown Connecticut Shade wrappers. Inside is a rich blend of Dominican, Mexican and Nicaraguan long-filler tobaccos for a creamy, toasty, mild to medium-bodied flavor with a marvelous aroma. This bestselling blend is a great way to introduce yourself to the Don Tomás family of fine cigars.

Don Tomás Special Edition Connecticut are a smooth-smoking, well-made blend of choice longfiller tobaccos from the DR, Mexico & Nicaragua encased in an aromatic US Connecticut Shade wrapper. A good, satisfying and affordable cigar you can enjoy everyday.

FINAL VERDICT:

The Don Tomas Special Edition was a great little smoke. We smoked three total, two coronas and one Churchill. Smoking is such a personal pleasure, but I’d say that “Toasty and tasty” were the words that popped into my mind while enjoying them.

FINAL CIGAR BISTRO SCORE:

Intangibles (Feel, Heft, Smell, Cap): 9.5
Wrapper: 8.5
Draw: 9.5
Flavor: 9
Aroma while Smoking: 8.5
Smoking Experience: 9
Value: 9.5

Total: 63.5/70

The Don Tomas made my list of “cigars to enjoy while driving by yourself on a trip.” In my opinion, it is also a tremendous value. It smokes like a cigar costing half as much more.

by Mondo Frazier
images: DBKP Cigar Bistro; Famous Smoke Shop Don Tomas Special Edition Connecticut Cigars
Two Don Tomas cigars obtained through: Trinity Insight LLC; One purchased from Quality Tobacco Shop.

Back to DBKP Front Page.

CIGAR BISTRO Review
CAO Cx2
Vital Statistics:
Country: Handmade, Nicaragua
Size: Robusto – 5 x 52
Wrapper: Cameroon – double wrapper
Binder: Cameroon
Filler: Colombia, Nicaragua
Strength: Medium

The Feel: The CAO Cx2 has a nice, solid feel to it. The wrapper was dark brown and luxuriously smooth with a very slightly oily texture.
The Smell: The Cx2 had a–what other way to put it?–smell of fine tobacco mixed with other scents that some have called “cocoa” and others have described as “caramel.” In spite of a prolonged session of slowly taking in the Cx2 aroma before it was lit, I couldn’t settle on a definitive descriptor. I will say that it was “delightful” and reminded me of the smells one encounters on entering a well-kept cigar shop.
The Cap: The cap was firmly attached and cut easily.
The Draw: Despite the heft, the draw was excellent. Sometimes, well-packed cigars have a problem with the draw. The two CAO Cx2 Robustos I smoked both had an excellent draw.

CAO CX2 NOTES:

The CAO CX2 presented one problem, which was a pleasant one: I couldn’t quite make out the extra flavors in the aroma. The flavors changed from a lighter (woody?) mix–when the CX2 was first lit–to a heavier (coffee? caramel?) flavor as the cigar’s halfway point was reached.

Over it all, an earthy taste of fine tobacco prevailed. It was the additional pleasant flavors which contributed to the aroma which were harder to nail down.

In fact, I left my desk and retired to lie down on the couch, the better to concentrate on the captivating flavors swirling about me. Alas, it wasn’t much help. It was a particularly pleasant problem to have.

The one thing that was distinctive: the CAO CX2 Robusto was a good smoke right up until it was too short to hold comfortably. There are some cigars that are best abandoned 1-2 inches from completion. Not the CAO CX2.

MORE on CAO CX2 Cigars.

CAO CX2 cigars (Cameroon times two) present a rich-tasting, medium-bodied cigar brimming with velvety-smooth flavor and a seductive aroma. Now made expressly for Famous Smoke Shop, these cigars have a perfectly-balanced blend of robust Nicaraguan and Colombian longfiller tobaccos surrounded by TWO rare, Grade-1 African Cameroon binder and wrapper leaves. The smoke is laden with earthy-woody flavors underscored by sweet tobacco notes. One of CAO’s BEST cigars.

FINAL VERDICT:

Despite not being able to quite put my finger on the hints of flavors the cigar contained, the CAO CX2 was a fine smoke. Unlike some cigars which disappoint the second time around, the subsequent smoking of a second CAO CX2 was a no less rewarding experience.

FINAL CIGAR BISTRO SCORE:

Intangibles (Feel, Heft, Smell, Cap): 9
Wrapper: 10
Draw: 9.5
Flavor: 9
Aroma while Smoking: 9
Smoking Experience: 9
Value: 9

Total: 64.5/70

All in all, I look forward to next being reacquainted with the CAO CX2. Perhaps then, those other fainter, more elusive flavors will give up their secret.

by Mondo Frazier
images: DBKP; Famous Smoke Shop
CAO CX2 obtained through: Trinity Insight LLC

Back to DBKP Front Page.

Photo courtesy of Real Estate Sizzle

WHAT TO DO IF YOUR CIGARS GET TOO WET

The question is usually how do you keep cigars fresh and moist. But what happens if cigars get too moist? What’s the best way to dry out an overly-wet cigar? Here’s one answer below.

QUESTION:

From Over wet cigars, best method to dry them out?:

I bought two cigars today. In order to prevent it drying out before I smoke them later this week the seller sprayed the inside of a ziplock bag before placing the cigars in a carboard sleeve and into the bag. To my dismay I noticed, at home, that the water had collected at the bottom, soaking through the cardboard and wetting the caps of the cigars (much like when over salivated if smoking). My question is whether I can save them? If so, how? I immediately dried the inside of a bag and transferred them to a new sleeve and placed them back in, is that a step in the right direction? Would cutting past the wetness be advised. I plan on smoking them in about 2/3 days.

ANSWER:

I have never seen water sprayed in the inside of a ziplock bag before placing the cigars in a cardboard sleeve and into the bag. You have nothing to worry about. Just let the cigar sit in a cigar box or humidor and in a few days it will be dry. If you don’t have a humidor or empty cigar box, then let it sit out until it’s dry. The only side affect of the water is a water stain on the cigar. The formerly wet head does not affect the taste or burn as long as you let the cigar dry out before smoking. Most cigar makers prefer to smoke dry cigars as they will taste and burn better

Answer submitted by Cuban Crafters.

by Mondo

There’s a love of cigars–and then there’s the ridiculous.

From the Seattle WA area:

Kidnapper demanded money, cigars, sex

The man was wearing a long black wig and demanded to know where the safe was. He also kept making calls on his cell phone.

“Just kept calling his friend Jay, Jaybird,” the woman says.

“When the friend didn’t come to get him, she says he cleared out the till and grabbed some cigars and cigarettes.”

No word on whether the smoking bandit was apprehended.

image: metro

Interesting story from Tarpon Spring FL via TampaBay.com.

From Native Cuban hand rolls cigars on Tarpon Springs Sponge Docks:

Lazaro Victores became interested in cigars at age 12.

Victores, now 21 and a Holiday resident, would sit in Tarpon Springs with elder cigar rollers who would show him the intricate process of neatly and snuggly wrapping the tobacco filler.

Victores can be found daily at Dream of Cuba on the Sponge Docks, hand-rolling cigars.

“It’s very interesting to be rolling cigars in Tarpon Springs because everybody is Greek,” Victores said. “You’re there, rolling cigars at the table and you have people all the time, they come watch you and they are fascinated with what you do. It makes you feel real good.”

Now, that’s the life: sitting on the dock of the bay–and doing something worthwhile–watching the tide roll away.

And Tarpon Springs appears to be one of the few places in the USA tht one can obtain a real, honest-to-goodness Cuban hand-rolled cigar–legally.

by Mondo
image: tampabay.com

If you live in Pennsylvania and enjoy a good cigar, expect the price of it to continue up as the government continues to take a bigger bite out of things people enjoy.

From Governor says layoffs, higher taxes are likely necessary to plug $1 billion Pa. budget gap:

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) – With Pennsylvania facing a $1 billion-plus deficit for the second year in a row, Gov. Ed Rendell called on legislators Monday to increase taxes to limit the number of state employee layoffs or furloughs that are likely to result from spending cuts.
[...]
Rendell said little spending can be cut without also forcing the state to eliminate jobs. To avoid more substantial layoffs or furloughs, legislators must consider imposing new taxes on cigars, smokeless tobacco and the extraction of natural gas, he said.

Nope, there’s not anything the Governor could possibly find in the PA budge that needs cutting. It has to be more taxes.

…and this time, those taxes are planned to land on cigars, among other things.

Wonder how this will affect Bethlehem (PA) Cigar International? Florida might be looking pretty good if this goes into effect.

by Mondo
image: offerincompromiselawyer.com

So, you just bought a cigar and it says “Maduro”.

What’s that mean?

From Cigar Parts:

Wrapper Types

Double Claro (also called Candela or American Market Select) – green to greenish brown. The color is achieved by picking the leaf before it reaches maturity, and then drying it rapidly. Very mild, almost bland with very little oil.

Claro – Light tan. Usually this is the color of shade grown tobacco. Connecticut Shade wrappers are said to be some of the finest in the world. Shade grown tobacco is grown under large canopies to protect the tobacco from harsh sunlight. Neutral flavor and smooth smoking.

Natural (see also English Market Selection) – Light brown to brown. These are most often sun grown, meaning they are not protected by canopies like shade grown leaves. Fuller bodied flavor than shade grown leaves, but still very smooth.

Colorado Claro – Mid-brown, tawny. (For example, brands such as Dominican Partagas or Fuentes, using Camaroon wrappers.)

Colorado – Reddish dark brown, aromatic. A cigar with this wrapper tastes robust and rich.

Colorado Maduro – Dark brown, medium strength, slightly more aromatic the maduro. Usually gives a rich flavor, as found in many of the best Honduran cigars.

Maduro – Dark brown to very dark brown. These usually have more texture and veining than the lighter wrappers. They are often described as oily looking, with stronger taste – sweet to some palates with a unique aroma.

Oscuro – Very dark brown or almost black. They are the strongest tasting of all wrappers. These wrappers tend to be from Nicaragua, Brazil, Mexico, or Connecticut Broadleaf.

English Market Selection – A broad designation refering to brown cigars (anything other double claro essentially). The darker the color, the sweeter and stronger the flavor and the greater the oil and sugar content of the wrapper. Darker wrappers normally spend longer on the plant or come from greater altitudes. The additional exposure to the sun at higher altitudes tends to enhance the production of oil (which protects the plant) and sugar (because of increased photosynthesis). Sure leaves are typically fermented for longer as well.

Don’t you feel better?

Now, go ahead and light up.

Being knowledgeable won’t make the cigar smoke any better, but knowledge is its own reward.

From CNN Money– Prime Star Group Introduces Delizia Limited Cigars:

Prime Star Group, Inc. (OTCBB: PSGI) is pleased to announce that Delizia Limited, its wholly owned subsidiary, is launching a line of impeccably constructed premium long filler cigars. Prime Star Group’s Delizia Limited can produce between 250,000 to 400,000 cigars per month.

The company produces multiple sizes of premium cigars and focuses on the following:

– Connecticut Cigar
Size 8 – Churchill, Toro, Robusto, Torpedo, Petite Corona, Lancero,
Lonsdale
– Corojo Cigar
Size 7 – Churchill, Toro, Robusto, Lonsdale, Torpedo, Lancero
– Habano 2000
Size 7 – Churchill, Toro, Robusto, Torpedo, Lancero, Lonsdale

For Information, CONTACT:
for Prime Star Group, Inc. Public Relations
Dan Schall
(858) 240-7873
on the web at www.PrimeStarGroup.net

TWENTY QUOTES ABOUT TOBACCO & SMOKING

Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.
–Sigmund Freud

Enjoy your next smoke with the following 20 quotes about smoking, cigars, cigarettes, tobacco and the joys of smoking.

It is now proven, beyond a doubt, that smoking is a leading cause of statistics.
– Fletcher Knebel

Now the only thing I miss about sex is the cigarette afterward. Next to the first one in the morning, it’s the best one of all. It tasted so good that even if I had been frigid I would have pretended otherwise just to be able to smoke it.
–Florence King

A good cigar is like a beautiful chick with a great body who also knows the American League box scores.
–Max Klinger,
“Bug-Out” espisode of M*A*S*H, 1976

I used to smoke two packs a day and I just hate being a nonsmoker…. but I will never consider myself a nonsmoker because I always find smokers the most interesting people at the table.
–Michelle Pfeiffer

There are some circles in America where it seems to be more socially acceptable to carry a hand-gun than a packet of cigarettes.
–Katharine Whitehorn

Divine Tobacco.
–Edmund Spenser
The Faerie Queene, (bk. III, canto V, st. 32)

A cigarette is the perfect type of a perfect pleasure. It is exquisite, and it leaves one unsatisfied. What more can one want?
–Oscar Wilde,
The Picture of Dorian Gray

Sublime tobacco! which from east to west,
Cheers the tar’s labour or the Turkman’s rest;
Which on the Moslem’s ottoman divides
His hours, and rivals opium and his brides;
Magnificent in Stamboul, but less grand,
Though not less loved, in Wapping or the Strand:
Divine in hookas, glorious in a pipe
When tipp’d with amber, mellow, rich, and ripe;…
Yet thy true lovers more admire by far
Thy naked beauties – give me a cigar!
–Lord Byron,
The Island

To smoke a cigar through a mouthpiece is equivalent to kissing a lady through a respirator.
–The Smoker’s Guide

Tobacco and alcohol, delicious fathers of abiding friendships and fertile reveries.
–Luis Buñuel

Remember, if you smoke after sex you’re doing it too fast.
–Woody Allen

The man who smokes, thinks like a sage and acts like a Samaritan!
– Edward George Earle Lytton Bulwer-Lytton, 1st Baron Lytton,
Night and Morning (bk. I, ch. VI)

It’s easy to quit smoking. I’ve done it hundreds of times.
–Mark Twain

Good food, good sex, good digestion, good sleep: to these basic animal pleasures, man has added nothing but the good cigarette.
–Mignon McLaughlin
The Second Neurotic’s Notebook

My rule of life prescribed as an absolutely sacred rite smoking cigars and also the drinking of alcohol before, after and if need be during all meals and in the intervals between them.
–Winston Churchill

Watching the smoke dance out of a cigarette is like watching a girl dance out of her dress.
–D.H. Mondfleur

I smoke ten to fifteen cigars a day. At my age I have to hold on to something.
–George Burns

A woman is only a woman, but a good cigar is a smoke.
–Rudyard Kipling, The Betrothed

Coffee and tobacco are complete repose.
–Turkish Proverb

Yes, social friend, I love thee well,
In learned doctor’s spite;
Thy clouds all other clouds dispel
And lap me in delight.
–Charles Sprague,
“To My Cigar”

[Originally published at DBKP as "Smoking Quotes: Twenty Quotes on Cigars, Cigarettes, Tobacco and the Joys of Smoking"

by Mondo Frazier
Sources:
* Quotations about Smoking and Tobacco
* TOBACCO
* Smoking Quotes
Images:
hsart.com
Rockestone
cigaraficionado.com

[ABOVE: The famous label used on the Marsh-Wheeling cigar box]

THE COUNTRY’S OLDEST CIGAR COMPANY

Marsh-Wheeling stogies are a unique type of cigar. They are both affordable and are a good cigar for everyday, knock-around smoking.

From Marsh-Wheeling:

Marsh Wheeling was founded by Mifflin M. Marsh in 1840. Located in Wheeling, West Virginia, it was the oldest cigar manufacturing company founded in the United States. After beginning production and sale from his home, Mr. Marsh developed the company and opened a factory first on Water Street and later on 12th Street between Water and Main. In 1908, the company opened the historic location at 905-915 Market Street.

M. Marsh & Son is most notably remembered for the Marsh Wheeling brand of stogies. The cigar’s famous box became a known staple of the tobacco industry.

A box also appeared in the movie The Green Mile as the home of Mr. Jangles, a mouse kept by one of the prisoners.

The Marsh Wheeling brand had a reputation for quality from coast to coast. The Marsh-Wheeling cigars got their name “stogie” because they were sold to the drivers of the wagons heading west on the National Road coming from the Conestoga Valley in PA. They were also sold to crews and passengers of the steamboats traveling down the Ohio River, which put in at the Wheeling wharf.

FAMOUS MARSH-WHEELING SMOKERS: Daniel Webster, Annie Oakley & P.T. Barnum.

[ABOVE: Annie Oakley, in between puffs on a Marsh-Wheeling]

Sadly, Marsh-Wheeling’s connection to its birthplace, Wheeling, WV came to an end in 2001. The Wheeling plant was closed and the company was bought by National Cigar, which moved production to Frankfort, Indiana. The Marsh-Wheeling building, just a block from the Wheeling suspension bridge remains for sale.

by Mondo Frazier
images:
* DBKP file
* drudge22.blogspot.com
* http://www.fcsutler.com
sources
* Marsh-Wheeling