Make sure to like Partagas on Facebook, follow them on twitter (@Partagas), and check out the Cigar World Website.

Size: 6 x 60
Wrapper: Honduran San Agustin
Binder: Connecticut Broadleaf
Filler: Dominican, Mexican, Honduran
Strength: Medium
Body: Full
Flavor: Full
Cigars Smoked For Review: 2

Construction and Appearance: The Partagas Spanish Rosado Gigante features a single band which is yellow with a gold trim. In the center there is red writing along the top and bottom, the top says “CIFUEMTES Y CIA” and on the bottom it says “PARTAGAS 1845″.

The wrapper of the Partagas Spanish Rosado Gigante is a medium brown with a nice rich reddish hue to it. The wrapper is just a little toothy, but has a nice rich oil to it, and the construction is very seamless. The cigar feels heavy in hand and has no soft spots that I can detect.

Flavor and Notes: The wrapper of the Partagas Spanish Rosado Gigante has notes of sweet wood, cedar, citrus, and a little spice. The foot has the scent of sweet cedar, spice, and hay. I start with a slight straight cut across the cap, and on the cold draw there are flavors of cedar, wood, grass, spice, and a little leather.

Smoking Characteristics: The Partagas Spanish Rosado Gigante kicks off with a nice rich blend of spices, there is a bit of Asian spice, baking spice, and even a little cinnamon. Along with the spice there is also a bit of cedar, wood, citrus, earth, and grass. The blend has a nice bit of sweetness to it, along with a rich blend of spice and creaminess lingering on the palate between draws. The draw is a little loose in this third, but the body of smoke is still fairly full. The strength starts off as a nice solid medium.

Into the second third of Partagas Spanish Rosado Gigante, the blend of Asian spice, baking spice, cinnamon, citrus, cedar, earth, and grass all continue. In this third, a nice little toasted note also joins the flavor profile, and compliments the blend nicely. The draw tightens up to an optimal resistance while still providing a nice full body of smooth, cool, rich, creamy smoke. The ash holds firmly till about the inch point, without flaking at all, and the burn is razor sharp. The strength remains in the medium range, with a nice little buzz.

During the final third of the Partagas Spanish Rosado Gigante, the Asian spice fades from the profile, but the baking spice, cinnamon, citrus, cedar earth, grass, and toasted flavor all remain. The blend is a little sweeter in this third, with a bit of a sweet citrus, baking spice, and cedar finishing on the palate between draws. The draw remains excellent in this third, easily providing a full body of rich, cool, smooth, sweet, creamy smoke. The strength has not increased from the first or second third in any way, remaining a perfect medium. The ash and burn both remain excellent, neither requiring any attention. The Partagas Spanish Rosado Gigante smokes cool to the nub, yet does become quite a bit soft towards the end.

Conclusion: Before I decided to review this, I hadn’t smoked the Spanish Rosado line on more than just a few separate occasions. Like a lot of enthusiasts I get caught up in all the new releases, and limited edition cigars that are coming out, and I pay little mind to the older more reliable lines. I remember this cigar being something I enjoyed the last time I smoked it, but I don’t remember enjoying it quite as much as I did when I reviewed it. The Partagas Spanish Rosado Gigante is a great cigar, one that shall find it’s place among my humidor’s shelves regularly.

Rating: 89

MSRP: $9.25

Pinellas Park, FL – May 1, 2013.  A brand with roots deep in self-expression,that’s pushed the limits of the cigar industry. Zino Platinum recognizes thatsame disruptive innovation of a city that’s constantly redefining the culture that surrounds it.

Following the global success of the first limited edition, launched in 2012 for the ten-year anniversary of Zino Platinum, the brand has produced its second premium cigar collector’s edition set of four custom art boxes in collaboration with urban artists UR New York. Zino Platinumis heading back home to its original stomping grounds with a release suitably dubbed “The Make of New York” – this collector’s edition celebrates four pillars of self-expression in the greatest city of the world for challenging the status quo and disruptive innovation – NEW YORK CITY.

FASHION – THE THREAD OF THE CITY                                   MUSIC – THE PULSE OF THE CITY

FOOD – THE FLAVOR OF THE CITY                                        MIXOLOGY – THE SPIRIT OF THE CITY

Zino Platinum has teamed up again with the illustrious UR New York—an urban artist collective who have redefined themselves and the landscape that surrounds them—to help capture thesame maverick spirit of Zino Platinum. Brooklyn based, Mike Baca aka 2ESAE andFernando Romero aka SKI originally joined forces with the goal of transforming the perception of street art and have become successful international artists. The dynamic New York duo went to work on the collector’s edition Zino Platinum boxes with the same passion and artistry that brought them success in their professional art career.

This limited release of only 750 sets of 4 boxes will appear on retailer’s shelves on May 15^th with a kick off event in New York City, supported by an eight week east coast US Tour featuring theZP Mobile Lounge.  “This special collector’s edition perfectly illustrates what Zino Platinum represents, self-expression. New York is a city that inspires self-expression like no other and we are thrilled to pay homage with this limited edition cigar to the pioneers that continue to disrupt the status quo.“ states Scott Kolesaire, Zino Platinum Brand Manager.

Size: 6 x 50
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sun Grown
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Strength: Medium to Full (Finishes Full)
Body: Full
Flavor: Full
Cigars Smoked For Review: 1

Construction and Appearance: The Oliva Prototype OC – 001 features a single simple paper band which is white with black writing. In the center it says OC – 001 in what looks like a tight neat had writing and underlined.

The wrapper of the  Oliva OC – 001 is a medium brown with a very slight reddish hue to it. There are almost no veins at all, the construction is seamless, and there is a nice rich oil to it as well. The cap is very neat and tight, and there are no soft spots that I can detect on the sample I am smoking for review.

Flavor and Notes: The wrapper of the Oliva OC – 001 has notes of grass, mineral tones, leather, and a little earth. The foot has the scent of sweet hay, wood, leather, and earth. To prepare smoking the Oliva OC – 001 I use a slight straight cut, on the cold draw there are flavors of nuts, hay, wood, spice, and a bit of earth.

Smoking Characteristics: The Oliva OC – 001 kicks off with a nice blend of spices, wood, leather, and a rich mineral tone. After the first few draws, the spice is a bit more subdued and the blend becomes much creamier and smoother. The notes of wood, leather, spice, and the rich mineral tone all remain and now a slightly nutty flavor joins the blend along with a bit of a nutmeg spice. The strength in this third is a solid medium, maybe even just a touch below. The draw is slightly tight, and provides nearly a full body of smoke with each puff. Each draw leaves a rich blend of wood, leather, and the slightest touch of pepper lingering on the palate providing a long finish.

Into the second third of the Oliva OC – 001, the strength kicks up to a rich medium to full, with a nice buzz setting in while smoking. The smoke is still very smooth, creamy, and cool, with the draw now opening up a little and providing the perfect resistance. The flavor has not evolved much from the last third, the notes of wood, leather, nuts, nutmeg, and spice all remain along with the rich mineral tone. The ash holds firmly, well past the inch point, without flaking at all. The burn has been razor sharp thus far, and has not required a single correction. After each draw in this third, a very rich spice along with a bit of cedar lingers on the palate, but the pepper has faded out completely.

During the final third of the Oliva OC – 001, the rich spice in the blend becomes a bit bolder and has an almost mesquite flavor to it. The notes of wood remain, but become a little toasted or charred and blend well with the leather and nuts. During this final third the nutmeg spice has completely faded from the blend. The strength kicks up to a rich full, with quite a buzz setting in at this point. The smoke is still smooth, cool, creamy, and very full in volume, continuing to billow from the foot and cap between draws. The Oliva OC – 001 smokes cool to the nub, remaining very firm down to the last puff.

Conclusion: The Oliva OC – 001 is a fairly unique blend from Oliva. If I had to compare it to anything, I think it is closest to the Oliva O, but with more flavor and strength. The strength is really what surprised me the most in this blend. It packed a much bigger punch than I expected, and really satisfied me. If this every became a full release I would smoke it fairly often, in fact I’d consider picking up boxes depending on the price.

Rating: 89

MSRP: Only Available in the Oliva Sampler at Oliva events

The two-phase contest ran February 15 – March 15, 2013, in 51 qualifying Toraño smokeshops nationwide. Participating customers received raffle tickets and valuable gifts, including leather travel humidors, Toraño beer glasses and Toraño cigars. A simultaneous, parallel promotion on the Toraño Family’s Web site (www.torano.com), drew several thousand eager contestants.

At the end of the promotion, the stores’ and Web site’s 52 lucky winners each received a “Mini-Kegerator” draft beer cooler/dispenser, valued at $200. On March 18, a second raffle… limited to the 52 Kegerator winners … was held at Toraño headquarters in Miami. There, the raffle earned Gullage the title of Grand Prize winner. He and Danielle won a 3-day, 2-night stay at the Park Central Hotel on beautiful Ocean Drive in Miami’s South Beach. A surprise in the hotel room was a Toraño Vault humidor, filled with Toraño cigars.

The first night, the Gullages enjoyed a sumptuous dinner and drinks at Texas de Brazil Steakhouse, shared with Toraño Family members Carlos Llaca Toraño and Jack Toraño, followed by cigars at South Beach’s Harlan Cigars.

The following night, a private limousine brought them from the hotel to the American Airlines Arena® for the Miami HEAT®/Philadelphia 76ers® game, where they cheered the HEAT to a 106-87 victory from courtside seats, along with President Charlie Toraño and his daughter Vanessa… an experience they won’t soon forget.

Toraño states, “We want to thank everyone who participated in this promotion … our loyal Toraño retailers and smokers alike… with special thanks to White Glove International, the official ticket agency of the Miami HEAT®, for helping make this all possible.”

 

You can follow Ortega Cigars on twitter (@Eddieor) or check out their website at www.ortegacigars.com.

Size: 6 7/8 x 60
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano Rosado
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Strength: Medium to Full
Body: Full
Flavor: Full
Cigars Smoked For Review: 2

Construction and Appearance: The Big Bad John features a single band which is very similar in appearance to a trading card. In the center is a cartoon image of Big Bad John holding a jackhammer and smoking a cigar. On the right side of him image is the number 12 and 1 of 12 written above, on the left the Ortega cigars logo. Below is Big Bad John written on what appears to be some sort of construction site warning background.

The wrapper of the Big Bad John is a very rich looking medium brown with a nice reddish hue. It has some mild veins, a lovely looking oil, and is topped off with a beautiful tight cap. The Big Bad John is quite the large cigar to hold in hand, and has a very nice weight to it, and no soft spots that I can detect.

Flavor and Notes: The wrapper of the Big Bad John has notes of molasses, grain, and a nice rich mineral tone. The foot has the scent of grain, earth, molasses, spice, and a rich cedar. To prepare smoking the Big Bad John I choose a straight cut. On the cold draw there are flavors of earth, wood, and grass.

Smoking Characteristics: The first few puffs of the Big Bad John provide me with a blend of a slightly muted spice, tea, toasted nuts, and a very slight cedar. The draw is a bit on the loose side, and provides a medium to full body of smoke with each puff, but offers little resistance. After the first few puffs the spice kicks up just a little bit, and the toasted nuts become more present as well, the tea and cedar remain as undertones joined with a bit of a wheat flavor. A bit into this third, the draw does tighten up and the smoke production increases. The strength during the first third is a solid medium to full.

Into the second third of the Big Bad John, the mix of spice, tea, toasted nuts, cedar, and wheat all continue. During this third, a light mineral tone joins the blend, and the wheat becomes much more present. The first ash on the Big Bad John holds firmly till about the 2 inch point without flaking at all. The second ash holds till about the inch and a half point, which is still quite solid. The strength remains in the medium to full range. The burn has required a few small touch ups, but nothing major and I’ve found this to be common with larger gauge cigars.

During the final third of the Big Bad John. the flavor profile has the most significant shift. The spice and tea fade completely, but the wheat becomes much richer and the toasted nuts much more present. The cedar remains as an undertone, and the flavor now has a nice meatiness to it, and is quite hearty. The strength remains medium to full, and the ash still holds firmly well past the inch point. The burn has required no additional corrections at this point. The Big Bad John smokes cool to the nub, remaining firm, and I savor every last puff.

Conclusion: The Big Bad John was a wonderful cigar with an excellent evolution which kept me quite entertained. The final third was by far my favorite. It had a nice rich complexity to it. My only complaint about this blend is that it is only available in a 60 ring gauge, I tend to prefer 44-52, and generally don’t smoke above 56 unless it is for review. Yet, despite that, I could see myself picking up some more of these, this might be the exception to my rule.

Rating: 91

MSRP: $10.95

Make sure to check out Rocky Patel on Facebook, on twitter (@RockyPatelCigar), and check out their website here.

Size: 5 x 50
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: San Andres Mexican
Filler: Brazilian Mata Fina, Nicaraguan (Condega, Jamastran Valley, and Ometepe)
Strength: Medium to Full
Body: Full
Flavor: Full
Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

Construction and Appearance: The Rocky Patel II-XXVI features two bands. The main band has the regular Rocky Patel RP logo in the center in black on white. The rest of the top band is a series of checkered grey and silver squares on a while background and has a nice modern feel to it. The second band has a silver and black border, is white in the center, and has “II-XXVI” written in black in the middle.

The wrapper of the Rocky Patel II-XXVI is absolutely gorgeous. It is seamless in construction and has few visible veins. The wrapper has a very rich oily look to it.  The cap is nice and tight and very neat. The cigar feels heavy in hand and there are no soft spots that I can detect.

Flavor and Notes: The wrapper of the Rocky Patel II-XXVI has notes of sweet chocolate, coffee, and a light spicy rye. The foot has the scent of chocolate cake (that actually is the first thing I could smell specifically, not just chocolate, but chocolate cake), earth, hay, and coffee. To prepare smoking the Rocky Patel II-XXVI I choose a straight cut. On the cold draw there are flavors of sweet cocoa, espresso, earth, and a little wood.

Smoking Characteristics: The Rocky Patel II-XXVI kicks off with a rich white pepper and a mix of spices with a touch of a bittersweet dark chocolate in the first few puffs. After the first few puffs the pepper and spice calm down. They are still present in the blend, but now the primary flavors are bittersweet chocolate, oak, and espresso. The draw is excellent with the perfect amount of resistance and each puff providing a nice full body of smoke. The smoke is smooth and cool with a touch of sweetness on the finish. In the first third the strength is just above medium.

Into the second third of the Rocky Patel II-XXVI, the white pepper has become a very subtle undertone along with the spice. The chocolate flavor is now much sweeter and has lost some of the bitterness with the espresso and oak remaining. The lack of evolution and complexity I have experienced at this point is completely overshadowed by the boldness and richness of the flavor. Each note in the blend is well defined and come together for a wonderful overall profile. The strength remains at just a bit over medium at this point, but has increased slightly from the first third. The burn has required one small correction, and the ash holds firmly well past the inch point.

During the final third of the Rocky Patel II-XXVI, the spice returns to the flavor profile blending well with the rich sweet chocolate, espresso, and oak. Likewise in this third, the white pepper returns, except it only lingers on the palate along with a bit of dark chocolate, providing an excellent finish. The strength in this third increases to the medium to full range, allowing for a nice buzz to set in. The draw remains excellent, easily providing a full body of the rich, cool, smooth, creamy smoke. The ash remains very firm, and the burn requires no additional corrections. The Rocky Patel II-XXVI smokes cool to the nub, remaining quite firm.

Conclusion: The Rocky Patel II-XXVI is easily my favorite offering from Rocky at this point in time. The flavor profile, while not overly complex, is very bold, full, and rich. It easily keeps me entertained for the entire smoking experience. The construction is excellent with an ideal draw and firm ash. Overall I would consider the Rocky Patel II-XXVI a box-worthy cigar.

Rating: 92

MSRP: $12.95

Once again it is time for the Sunday Links, where I assemble my favorite stories from other cigar blogs and post them here just for you.

Seth over at Seth’s humidor posted a review of the Viaje Zombie Super Shot, check it out.

The guys over at Casas Fumando posted about the Drew Estate Cigar Safari for 2013, read about the third day here.

Shawn over at Nice Tight Ash posted another “Smoked up” where he does quick reviews on several cigars, take a look.

Enjoy!

Here is the Cigar Almanac for the week of May 18th:

Reviews from this week in 2012:

Flor De Las Antillas

PDR Flores Y Rodriguez Cabinet Seleccion Capa Habano 

Blanco Nine JT Limitado

Romeo by Romeo Y Julieta 

Quesada Q D’etat Howitzer

Reviews from this week in 2011:

La Sirena Series A

Zino Platinum Z Class

Studio Tobac ST – DS001

Reviews from this week in 2010:

NHC Seleccion Limitada

Rocky Patel Decade Limitada

Cain F Nub

Reviews from this week in 2009:

Avo Maduro #2

Tatuaje Regios Reserva

Reviews from this week in 2008: 

This event raises money for the Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center which offers culturally diverse education programming designed to stimulate student’s interest in sports and its relationship to academic excellence. Oliva was the exclusive cigar at the event and the golfers enjoyed a variety of great Oliva cigars including Connecticut Reserve, Serie V, and Serie O. One lucky golfer, former Cy Young winner and perfect-game pitcher David Cone was awarded a box of the latest offering from Oliva, the Oliva Serie V Melanio cigars.

Everyone agreed that this was a great event, a great cause, and great cigars.

*******

Studio Tobac is a division of the Oliva Family of Cigars that has produced their own cigars since 1995. Every process of cigar making (growing and manufacturing in Esteli, Nicaragua; sales and marketing in Miami, FL) is directly supervised by a member of the Oliva family. Oliva takes pride in crafting cigars with uncompromising quality and exceptional value. These cigars are some of the highest rated in the industry.

*******

For more information please go to:

www.olivacigar.com

Yet in the mean time check out the links I enjoyed from other site this week, plus our Cigar Almanac.

Coop over at Cigar Coop reviewed the new Espinosa Maduro, see what he had to say.

The guys over at Stogies on the Rocks reviewed one of my favorites, the Feral Flying Pig, check it out.

Toasted Foot did a review of the La Aurora Preferidos Diamond, find out how it stacks up.