Today’s smoke is the Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Limited Edition. According to Uptown Cigar Company,

With a total of only 3,700 boxes made, this is the first limited edition cigar made solely by Master Blender Jaime Garcia. A Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper from a lower priming, a Nicaraguan Pelo de Oro binder, and 2 Cuban-seed Nicaraguan leaves for the filler, this full bodied smoke has a similar taste to the original Jaime Garcia, except the cigar is MUCH richer and more refined in depth and flavor.

The cigars come 16 in a box, with a twist. The Broadleaf wrapper is on 15 of the sticks, while 1 features a Connecticut share which might be the wrapper used in 2012.

Cigar: Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Limited Edition 2011
Size: 6.5 x 52 (Toro)
Wrapper: Connecticut Brodleaf, Viso Priming.
Binder: Pelo de Oro (Nicaragua)
Filler: Nicaragua (Cuban Seed)
Strength: Full
Cigars Smoked For Review: 2

Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Limited Edition

Appearance and Construction: The Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Limited Edition 2011 wrapper has the appearance of rich chocolate. Slightly toothy, a few small veins and a fair amount of oils gives this cigar a classic appearance. Perhaps it is due to the lower priming, but this Connectict Broadleaf has a nice color about it, and it really stands out. The roll is perfect right down to the cap. In the hand, the cigar feels a little light although there are no soft spots on this stick. The foot does seem a bit loose compared to other cigars in the regular release. There is a dual band system in place, with the traditional band above a second one with denoting that this is a Limited Edition.

Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Limited Edition Foot

Flavor & Notes: The foot of the JG RE LE, has a sweet chocolate like aroma to the nose with a nice amount of Nicaraguan spice present as well. The cold draw had a slight hint of spice, but the focal point was a dried fruit like taste about it. Intriguing to say the least, but definitely enjoyable. When you light up a Garcia cigar you expect that trademark spice, and as repetitive as it is I find it to be enjoyable as well.  A sweetness developed about an inch into the stick that bordered on cinnamon and some anise. In the second third of the cigar, the complexity begins to show with some of the dried fruit we tasted on the cold draw. The focal point was a nice strong coffee of the Cuban variety with continued anise and the addition of some leather. The last third of the cigar was some continued coffee notes that took more of an espresso like taste, with some wood and leather. The finish was long and enjoyable leaving me wanting another.

Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Limited Edition First 3rd

Smoking Characteristics: The cigar had a nice crisp burn-line even though it burned at a slight angle. Could this have been user error, sure I guess. The medium gray ash held for about 1.5″ at a time, and the draw was perfect. The aroma of the cigar was enjoyable as the cigar produced an abundance of smoke. In the 1 hour and 30 minutes it took me to smoke this cigar it never went out once on me which is always a good thing.

Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Limited Edition Second 3rd

Conclusion: Limited Edition cigars how I love and hate thee. I love how companies put to use some of the limited quantity tobacco and make a really good cigar. I hate how the price makes these cigars over-priced in a tax burdened state like New York, where these were $22.00. I also dislike how I will like a cigar so much only to have it disappear off the market. I totally loved this cigar, and despite the price tag I do not feel like I was ripped off. Definitely box worthy in my eyes.

Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial Limited Edition Last 3rd

Rating: 93
Price: $16.00 each, $230.99 a box @ Uptown Cigar Company

So despite dreading smoking this size, I am to say the least curious. Are they as good as Danny says or will my jaw hurt from the size. Thankfully, the cigar is made with in a belicoso tip/cap.

Cigar: Jaime Garcia Super Gordo
Size: 5.75 x 66
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Strength: Medium/Full
Cigars Smoked For Review: 2

Jaime Garcia Super Gordo

Appearance and Construction: Looking at this cigar the size just makes you scratch your head. Thankfully, the cigar is rolled into a belicoso shape so it will make it a bit easier to smoke. One thing that caught me off guard is the fact that the tip is pre-cut. I am not really sure to the thought process of this, but I wound up cutting it about another 1/8th of an inch. The Connecticut Broadleaf Jaime Garcia Super Gordo wrapper has some veins, but none that are really obscene. Upon close look of the wrapper there are some shade differentials but does that really mean anything? Despite the amount of tobacco used in this stick, it feels relatively light in the hand and is extremely well balanced in the hand. There are no soft spots and the cigar is rolled very well.

Flavor & Notes: The foot of the cigar has some of the most powerful notes to the nose I have ever experienced. With the slightest sniff notes of mocha fill the passages with a faint pepper that makes my nose twitch. The draw offers up some more of the mocha with a touch of caramel and cedar as well. Once the cigar is lit the spices are the focal point, but they do not overpower. As we work our way into the first third the cigar develops notes of leather and cocoa with some subtle spices.  The second third of the cigar becomes reliant on the pepper there are some notes of leather while some sweetness tries to hold on. The 2nd third of the cigar seems to have fizzled slightly, and doesn’t have the same richness as in the beginning. As we approach the final third of the cigar it becomes smooth unlike the first two thirds. Suggesting the cigars are still a little young and need time to consummate the marriage. Here the sweetness returns and the cocoa becomes more of a rich chocolate with some subtle caramel and leather notes while spices remain through the nose.

Smoking Characteristics: Like the cigar there was two tales going on in the burn process. On both my review sticks the burn line was incredibly crisp in the first third before become very jagged in the second third. I never bothered to touch up the cigar and in the final third it became razor sharp again. The same can be said about the ash, the first and final third had a smooth flake free ash, while the middle section was incredibly flaky. The draw was perfect when I clipped the additional 1/8th of a inch of the cigar. To no surprise, the cigar produced a wonderful volume of smoke with a nice aroma that filled the air.

Conclusion: Where do I begin. First off, both samples came from the same box. I try to buy samples from separate boxes, or separate stores but that was not an option here. Tobacco Plaza sold out of these by the time I got to the store, and Danny was nice enough to give me two from his personal box. When I smoke I like to keep the cigar resting between my lips drawing as needed. Much like a pipe smoker. With the size of the Super Gordo this was hard to do. I found myself biting the belicoso cap to keep it in my mouth and it became extremely wet in my first sample. So the second sample, the one used to write this review was smoked a little bit different then I am accustomed. Finally, the size. While the cigar was flavorful and enjoyable I was not comfortable at all with the massive ring gauge and being they already have a 60 ring gauge on the market I am not sure why they went this route. But then again, I am not the expert the Garcia family is. I am sure the size will sell well, but for me personally it left me a little less fulfilled then other vitolas in the line.

Rating: 87
Price: $8.50 a stick at Uptown Cigar (1-877-238-1172)

Disclaimer: None.

It’s hard to believe that I never reviewed this cigar when I picked up a box at the Miami Cigar Extravaganza back in December. With my sticks almost gone I figured I should act now as this cigar might be out of my price range when it is released in the summer of 2010. I heard, but cannot confirm that these cigars will retail near the $20.00 range.

The cigars are blended by Jaime Garcia who is the son of Jose Pepin Garcia. As far as I know this is the second cigar blended by him to go into production with the original My Father line being the first.

Cigar: Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial
Size: 6 x 56 (Toro Gordo)
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: Ecuador
Filler: Nicaragua
Strength: Medium / Full

Appearance and Construction (17/20): These un-banded beauties are a site to behold. The slightly coarse wrapper is virtually vein free and rolled to perfection right down to the triple cap. The Connecticut Broadleaf is a dark dye free wrapper has a fair amount of oils showing. This cigar is above all expectations I had for a pre-release limited to a single shop.  If I had one complaint it would be that it lacks any weight and feels like a piece of Styrofoam in the hand.

Flavor & Notes (27/30): The foot of the cigar offers intense mocha notes while the draw offers notes of mocha and cinnamon. A part of me doesn’t even want to light this cigar up because of how content I am at this point. Once the cigar is ignited some faint pepper along with a bitter dark chocolate begin to emerge. It isn’t long before they are joined by some leather notes as well. As we enter the second third of the cigar the pepper is gone, and what remains is leather, dark chocolate (less bitter now), and some coffee. Occasionally I got teased with some cinnamon as well. The final third of the cigar the coffee and leather remains while the pepper has returned especially through the nose which sent me into a sneezing frenzy. The cigar has a slightly bitter leather finish.

Smoking Characteristics (22/25): Once the cigar was lit it was easy for me to see why it felt so light. There were five pin holes visible in the burning tobacco. This did not effect the overall burn of the cigar, but you could see where there was room for more tobacco. The cigar had a bit of an easy draw, perhaps to easy which ties into the porous roll. The cigar smoked a little fast but burned nice and even. The dark gray ash held for long periods of time and the amount of smoke produced was enough to make me happy.

Overall (22/25): As I wrote this review I began to wonder why they didn’t make this a 54 ring cigar with a tighter roll. The cigar is a little bitter cigar in terms of flavor, so if that doesn’t fit your profile keep it in mind. I will however visit these again in fairness once it comes out to the masses. It is definitely a good cigar, but the rumour of $20.00 a stick has me worried since I would appraise it to be a $12 to $14 stick.

Rating: 88
Price: TBD (To Be Determined)