When La Sirena Series A came out, I went into a bit of a kick on the vitola. I picked up some cigars here and there and placed them in my humidor, why I do not know. You really need to have the time to invest in smoking a cigar that is over 9″ long. Well one of those days has arrived with the start of college football season. So with Penn State on the tube I pulled out today’s smoke (which was smoked on Saturday, but posted today, Monday).
According to the illusione website…
Posted in Cigar Reviews 
Tags: 1, Cigar Review, criollo, Dark Prince, dion giolito, Honduras, illusione, nicargua, Size A 
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News recently rocked the cigar world that Jose Blanco was stepping down from his position at La Aurora and retiring. Now that the dust has settled we got to catch up with Jose Blanco who is currently enjoying himself on a European vacation. During our brief conversation, one can read between the lines and say he left the door open a bit for a return to the cigar industry and this might not be the end of his career.
Posted in News Tags: alec bradley, avo, Benji Menendez, Camaco, davidoff, Drew Estate, Fonseca, Guillermo Leon, illusione, Interview, IPCPR, Jose Blanco, Jose Seijas, joya de nicaragua, La Aurora, Litto Gomez, Michael Herklots, Nat Sherman, Nestor Miranda, padron, partagas, Pepin Garcia, pete johnson, rocky patel, Smokers Rights No Comments »
Ah the power of social media, and what one can learn on Twitter. Dion Giolito who’s bio reads, “Cigar Brand owner – illlusione – Cruzado – Epernay – Cuchillos Cubanos – Stray Dog – Singularé 2010 EL. Straight-up boutique cigars for heavy cigar enthusiasts” shared with the cigar community his changes for the Cruzado Packaging. From a band tweak to slimmer boxes for the retailers the subtle changes seem to be a huge plus.
Posted in News Tags: Cruzado, Cuchillos Cubanos, dion giolito, Epernay, illusione, packaging change, Redesign, Singulare, stray dog 4 Comments »
This past week I took a flight out of New York to escape for a while with some friends in the mountains of Santa Fe, New Mexico. A place I’ve been to once before that had me eager to return. With the mountains in every direction and low humidity I was able to kick back and relax while taking part in the re-branding/re-opening of Primo Cigar Shop. The shop which is open daily from 11-7 features a walk in humidor full of the top brands and a large selection of pipes and pipe tobacco is truly heaven on earth when the surroundings are taken into consideration.
Posted in Events & Recaps Tags: ashton, cigar lounge, Cigar Shop, EP Carrillo, illusione, La Aurora, macanudo, Miami Cigar, Montecristo, my father, New Mexico, padron, perdomo, Pipe Tobacco, Premium Cigars, Punch, Santa Fe, Torano 3 Comments »
For the last six years Michael Herklots has opted to celebrate his birthday differently then many. Instead of making it a day about him, he chooses to give back to the experiences that made him the person he is today. As a graduate of Killingly High School he knows first hand how funding isn’t always there for the students as states struggle to pass budgets that often remove programs. Each year he has put together a stellar fundraiser that makes those in attendance happy to give to the cause.
Posted in Events & Recaps Tags: alec bradley, Arielle Ditkowich, Carnegie Club, casa magna, Charity Fundraiser, Christopher Lenzo, davidoff, De La Concha, Diamond Crown, Eataly, ECCJ, Greycliff, Guillermo Leon, illusione, Killingly High School, Kurt Van Keppel, La Aurora, La Sirena, Mario Batali, Michael Herklots, My Father Cigars, Nat Sherman, Quesada Cigars, Rebecca Moss, Renaldo Snipes, Spiff, Tony Darrow, xikar No Comments »
Those who love to collect cars for road racing will all tell you about American muscle cars. Cars like the Challenger, Charger, Ford Mustang, Shelby Mustang and the Ford Cobra. Never has someone talked about an American Puro as a collectible cigar. in fact I am not sure if anyone has ever created an American Puro. According to Pete, the American Puro has existed for years.
La Casita Criolla which translate to “The Creole Cottage” is made up of 100% Connecticut Broadleaf tobacco. This can cause some confusion which Pete cleared up some via his Facebook page some months ago.
So this past week was an eclectic mix of weather, with snow on Thursday and 62 degrees and sunny today, Sunday. Hopefully spring is here to stay, and as I look at the five day forecast, I see upper 50s and low 60s for NYC. This is the perfect time of year to visit your local Brick & Mortar and stock up on cigars. In fact if you live near Garden City, Long Island take a ride out to Tobacco Plaza for the March Madness final, get deals on Alec Bradley, and enjoy some good food and great company. Tobacco Plaza is located at, 218 Lakeville Road, Great Neck, NY 11020. As of now I plan to be there as well so I look forward to seeing you!
The Sunday Links:
Posted in Sunday Links Tags: candela, EP Carrillo New Wave, illusione, La Aurora, San Lotano Habano, Tatuaje Invisible Man, viaje 1 Comment »
I really should read the book, How to Make Friends and Influence People. Every now and then someone or something comes along that gets under my skin. The result is I go off on a tangent, and someone gets mad at me. It leads to jokes about my brake lines being cut, and me having to go into damage control to save my ass. Today’s cigar is just that. Today’s company is just that.
For me Viaje is the most annoyingly frustrating cigar company out there. How many limited edition sticks will they copy from someone else? At least with other companies, tracking them down is easy. With Viaje I know no one locally who carries these. In fact I know of one shop that won’t carry Viaje because he considers the owner of Viaje to be a plagiarist.
Posted in Cigar Reviews Tags: Andre Farkas, candela, Cigar Review, illusione, limited edition, st patricks day, tatuaje, viaje, White Label Project 8 Comments »
Top O’ the morning to you lads! For the most part I have never met a candela I like with the exception being the Arturo Fuente 858. At one time candela wrappers were easy to find and I remember them having a little section in a local Humidor during the cigar boom, and for the most part they did nothing for me. I wanted to smoke one of these last week when the Jets beat the Patriots but I had to put it off as I was sick.
It seems like everything Dion touches lately turns to gold and the candela is no exception. It feels like Dion has brought back the candela as these cigars have been sought after by collectors, connoisseurs and everyone in between. As soon as some online retailers get them, they are gone and Dion has assured us via twitter that as long as there is a demand for the green, he will produce them.
Posted in Cigar Reviews Tags: 88, candela wrapper, dion giolito, Honduras, illusione, nicaragua 5 Comments »
Note to manufacturers, cigars with white bands and light colors are hard to photograph. That being said the Singulare is the latest offering from Dion Giolito in terms of a new brand. Sadly finding these locally have been hard and I had to rely on my friend Izzy from Uptown Cigar Company to send me some for review. The reason they have been so difficult is a few retailers I visit were hesitant to order these after the Nosotros which they deemed to be a failure. While I am not sure if I agree with that it is the reasoning behind my difficulty in getting these sticks.
Having met Dion in New Orleans I didn’t get much time to talk to him about these but the sticks are a limited edition, and come in boxes of 15 of which only 1000 boxes were made. I cued up some Social Distortion and I lit up the cigar and below is my opinion on them.
Posted in Cigar Reviews Tags: Cigar Review, illusione, limited edition, nicaragua, Phamtom, Singulare 2 Comments »
So while at IPCPR there were a few people I wanted to run into and one of those was Dion Giolito from illusione. I had gone by his booth a couple of times at the trade show to say hello but each time I went by there the booth was packed with people ordering like crazy which I was happy to see. While I am a fan of the cigars I am also a fan of Dion himself as a business person. The way he interacts with his fans is inviting, and he has never been shy to answer a question or two.
At IPCPR we got to talk a little bit during a quick lull and he gifted me with a 4/2g box press. These cigars are currently…
There are so many updates that I decided to come back a day early. Here are some memories and information about new cigars. The list is long and will continue tomorrow as well.
I guess everyone wants to know how IPCPR and to be honest I found it a little overwhelming even with crowds much lighter then normal. I pretty much took a lot of time to be a spectator and I wandered the floor looking at new products and only taking the time to introduce myself if the person was not busy. After all this is a show for retailers first, press second.
Well by this time next week I will be in New Orleans for IPCPR and the Big Easy will never be the same. Tops on my list will be Cafe Du Monde in the morning before the trade show and of course the Twitter Brother Of The Leaf Cocktail Hour where we will be presenting Jerry Cruz with checks that were raised during the JJ4JJ fundraiser.
And now for the Sunday Links which will be on hiatus next weekend.
Posted in Sunday Links Tags: casa magna, Epernay, illusione, Nestor Miranda, rocky patel 3 Comments »
As we get closer to IPCPR information on new cigars slowly start to emerge. La Aurora Cigars has a new brand coming out. Tatuaje Cigars has a few size extensions. Alec Bradley has a Connecticut Shade due to hit the shelves. Miami Cigar has a new cigar debuting at IPCPR. CAO has the La Traviata Maduro due to hit the shelves. This list is starting to grow on a daily basis and as stuff becomes more official you can be assured we will have the news about it.
For now though these are the items of the week:
