Size: 5″ x 60

Vitola: Robusto

Wrapper: Maduro

Origin: Honduras

Age: 3 months

The Di Fazio Maduro is a medium bodied chocolatey offering from this small boutique outfit from Miami.

This super big ring gauge cigar took a while to light due to it’s girth, the draw was a little tight with a punch – so I clipped it instead.  The wrapper is dark and rustic looking with minimal veins and a lot of tooth.

Once lit, this cigar still gave me draw problems.  I tried to look past these construction issues and focus on the flavors if I could.

The burn was OK at first, but it began to tunnel.

Flavor wise, this as a good typical Maduro.  A subtle sweetness with coffee and chocolate undertones and a bittersweet finish.  There was also a touch of leather and hickory.

Sadly, I could not finish the cigar, as the draw was way to frustrating.  But, the flavors were very nice, this has the potential of being a very good middle-of-the-line Maduro.  Their other product drew well, so I will assume this was an aberration, but will have to adjust my score accordingly.

Thanks to the great folks at Di Fazio cigars for the opportunity to try their product!

Rating: 79 (C+)

Size: 5″ x 60

Vitola: Robusto

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut

Origin: Honduras

Age: 3 months

The Di Fazio Connecticut is the mild offering from this small boutique outfit from Miami.

This super big ring gauge cigar took a while to light due to it’s girth, but it gave me time to admire the gorgeous Connecticut shade wrapper.  A flawless satiny leaf!

Once lit, this cigar gives off tons of smoke, with a nice woody creaminess, with a little tea on the finish.

The burn is right on, which is always difficult for a cigar this size.

There are some citrus undertones that pop up every now and then as well as a little white pepper to keep things interesting.

The finish is nice and long, another difficult feat for a milder Connecticut wrapped cigar.

For a “mild” cigar, this really has a lot of flavor and complexity.  Thanks to the great folks at Di Fazio cigars for the opportunity to try their product!

Rating: 88 (B+)

Di Fazio Cigars is a new boutique to the biz.  Established in 2008, the Di Fazio family has set a goal to deliver a fine super premium to the cigar aficionado.

Using a combination of tobacco from the DR, Nicaragua and Honduras, the Di Fazio family wants to blend the perfect cigars for every occasion.  They currently have three offerings: the mild and creamy Connecticut, the rich and sweet Maduro and the complex Picoso.

Here’s a write-up from Cigar Aficionado:

Carmelo Di Fazio, a 41-year-old Miami television executive with a lifelong love of fine cigars, has entered the cigar business. Born in Venezuela of Italian descent, Di Fazio is a self-described dreamer who loves to smoke cigars. He created his company, Di Fazio Cigars Corp., last year.Di Fazio cigars are rolled at the up-and-coming Fabrica de Tabacos Raices Cubanas S. de R.L. factory in Honduras, the boutique operation that also makes Illusione and Alec Bradley Tempus cigars, among others. They come in three varieties—Connecticut, Maduro and the intriguingly named Picoso.

The Connecticut blend has a Connecticut-seed wrapper grown in Ecuador, with Indonesian binder and Honduran and Nicaraguan filler. The maduro has a Nicaraguan wrapper, Honduran binder and Honduran and Nicaraguan filler. The Picoso, which takes its name from the Spanish for “spicy,” is the boldest blend, and is a Honduran puro.

Di Fazio Connecticut – this smooth, but flavorful cigar is offered in 4 sizes with a flawless Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper.

Di Fazio Maduro – the rustic and flavorful maduro wrapper comes in three sizes.

Di Fazio Picoso – Spanish for “spicy”, this oddly named line is a Honduran puro and comes in 4 sizes with a rosado hued Honduran wrapper.

If you seen one in your local B&M, pick one up and give it a try, the Di Fazio family has assembled a marca for every palate!

Size: 6 3/4” x 52

Vitola: one bloody sharp Torpedo

Wrapper: a spooky Habano Maduro

Origin: Transylvania via Nicaragua

Age: Centuries, but pulled right outta the coffin!

The most sought out cigar for the Halloween season has risen from it’s coffin and come to terrorize the neighborhood!  The Drac, the second in the Tatuaje Monster Series, is a dangerous looking torpedo with an upside down band at the foot – which when flipped over to read the band, the cigar looks like a fang!

As I mentioned this is another limited cigar, with a few more available than last year’s Frank.  There are 1300 coffin’s available of 13 cigars each.  But these are really hard to find.

As I hold this cigar, I get an ominous feeling that this cigar is going to have a lot of bite!

Its dark Habano wrapper is very nice looking and smooth to the touch, not much tooth on the wrapper.

As I light the cigar, I expect to get a kick of Pepin pepper and spice, but I get a smooth earthiness mixed with leather and tobacco notes.

There is a bit of white pepper in the exhale, but this is definitely smoother than I thought it was going to be.

As I smoke further I begin to get an idea of what this blend is all about.  Like the vampire, it lures you in to its lair, and then “Bam!”  The flavors really begin to pick up.  A little more spiciness, some cayenne mixed with cinnamon, with a nice cocoa aftertaste on the finish.

What is especially strong is the aroma, very peppery and meaty, the burn is almost dead even, and I only need to touch it up once to get to the finally few inches.

The last third comes not out of Transylvania, but Hershey, PA.  Milk and dark chocolate fleet in and out as the intensity of the flavors build to a diabolical crescendo.

I liked this cigar, but compared to the Boris, it still fell short for me.  There was really nothing specific to complain about, just a preference to the Boris over the Drac.  That said, the Drac was still  a very good cigar overall.

Rating: 89 (B+)

Size: 7” x 49

Vitola: Churchill

Wrapper: Rosado Ecuadorian Sumatra

Origin: Nicaragua

Age: 2 months

This is a pretty popular cigar right now, it’s also pretty hard to find.  This is the first of the Monster “Out-of-Costume” Series from marketing mastermind Pete Johnson of Tatuaje cigars (Havana Cellars).  The “Out-of-Costume”  (OOC) series concept is to take the last year’s Monster Series cigar, put it in new packaging, sans coffin-shaped box, a name it as the actor who famously played the Monster.  So, since last year’s Monster was The Frank (after Frankenstein’s Monster), the first OOC will be called Boris – after Boris Karloff.  The Boris cigar is slightly shorter than The Frank, and has a different wrapper.  The Frank had a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper; the Boris has an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper.  Of course these are super-duper limited; only 1000 boxes of 10 were made.

As an aside, I’d like to point out what my local owner did with the Monster Series this year.  Instead of selling boxes of Boris and Dracs to whom ever showed up first,  he broke them up into little samplers, giving many more people an opportunity to try a cool limited cigar.  Nice job, Hal!

So due to their limited availability, I could have squirreled it away only to peak at it and giggle with glee, but instead I just smoked it.  It is a cigar after all (plus I have a few more).

This was a very dark cigar; I was hard pressed to find any Rosado like shade to it at all.  The wrapper was a little “rustic”, good rich color and tooth, but fairly veiny.  The cigar gave a little in the middle, which found me hoping it wasn’t under filled and/or would tunnel on me.

The Boris took a light easy and delivered ample smoke in the first few puffs.  The burn was nice and slow, so I was able to sit back and enjoy the flavors.

One thing that struck me at first was that there was no Pepin “bite” to the cigar.  Most cigars wunderkind Don Pepin Garcia blends have a distinct bite to them.  It’s almost like that feeling you get in your mouth when you bite into a tart Granny Smith apple.  I’m not a fan at all of this, so it was a pleasant surprise to find it absent.

The first third was full bodied but not overpowering, rich with black coffee, leather, white pepper and a bit of almond on the finish.
Midway though, my fears were realized when the cigar began to tunnel on me.  The middle was clearly under filled, so much that I could almost squeeze the cigar completely together.  But I labored on and it corrected itself after an inch and a half.

The second half of the cigar was exceptional.  After the tunneling was over, the burn corrected itself and the cigar mellowed a bit in oomph but ramped up in flavor.  Tons of bittersweet cocoa, espresso and leather exploded across my palate at every puff.  The aroma was earthy and meaty, and the finish was very long with licorice abound.

I smoked this one to the nub, savoring every puff.  What a great tasting cigar!

So the construction had issues, but the flavor made up for it.  This was a better cigar than The Frank by a mile.  So if you were lucky enough to get a Boris – find a nice cozy chair on Halloween and smoke it!

Rating: 91 (A-)

Size: 6” x 52

Vitola: Toro

Wrapper: Nicaraguan

Origin: Honduras

This review is for a special cigar and good cause.  Cigar Rights of America is a great organization that helps give voice to the cigar smoker in Washington.  One of the ways that the CRA has raised money is through a sampler of cigars donated by the industry’s leaders such as General, Ashton, La Flor, Davidoff, Don Pepin, etc.  Sign up, become a member and order your sampler here.  The cigar that General has donated is a special edition Punch that was made in Honduras and features tobacco from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua.  Here’s more about it from CRA:

Punch cigars continue to enjoy critical acclaim and a devoted following among tenured smokers. As an exclusive offering to the CRA, General Cigar developed a unique blend if this celebrated brand. Featuring spicy blend of Nicaraguan and Dominican tobacco, punctuated by a Nicaraguan binder and enveloped in a brawny Nicaraguan wrapper, Punch CRA cigars are handcrafted in Honduras.Debo Mukherjee, Vice President of Marketing for General Cigar commented, “It is with great pleasure that we have donated 5,000 handcrafted Punch cigars to continue our support of CRA. As a Founding Sponsor, we continue to stand behind the organization and its ongoing effort to protect the rights of premium cigar smokers.”

This was the first cigar I choose to smoke and review from the sampler because I thought it would be the least impressive, and I’ve never been a huge fan of General.  Was I wrong?

This is a great rustic looking cigar.  The wrapper is a tawny brown with minimal veins with lots of tooth.  It gives a little to the touch in the middle, which makes me wonder if this is going to burn and draw well all of the way through.

It clips great, I light the cigar easily and the first thing I notice is quite surprising – no harshness.  Usually cigars made by the two big guys, General and Altadis, are sub par compared to other premium handmades.  They are usually rushed out of the factory and quite young and unbalanced.  But this was very nice!

There was lots of wood and leather from the onset with a rich hearty core of tobacco.  Initially I got lots of smoke, but the burn was progressing too quickly for my liking.

About halfway down, it began to tunnel – that soft spot I mentioned earlier – but quickly corrected itself.  The burn was relatively straight and even throughout the smoke, but it did require some occasional “touch-ups”.

The last few inches were rich and intense, full-bodied but not strong, tons of coffee, leather and wood abound.  There was also a nice lingering cocoa note on the finish, which was long.

Not only was this cigar good – it was great!  This was one of the best cigars I have ever smoked from General, and one of the best tasting cigars I have tried in some time.  It had the perfect balance of flavors and strength, the only detractor was the construction and it was not that complex.  After this, I can’t wait to try the rest from the sampler!

Rating: 90 (A-)

There are several core cigar flavor components used to describe flavors one can taste while enjoying a cigar.  Most of the flavors are derived from a scale used to describe wines (popularized by Cigar Aficionado, whose owners also publish Wine Spectator), as they share a lot in common.  I have parceled things up into core flavors and within the core flavors, there are certain specific flavors that I will try to describe in detail, including what type of cigar in which these flavors are generally found.

But before I go further, there is often a lot of discussion around describing cigar flavors.  Some feel that such descriptions are pompous and unnecessary.  I do agree that sometimes these descriptors can sound a bit silly (i.e. Pencil lead in a cigar???).   But just like with wine, I think those that write about cigars use some sort of poetic license when trying to describe what they taste.  Does anybody want to read a magazine where the cigars are reviewed as such: Cigar 1 – tasted like smoke, liked it; Cigar 2 – tasted like smoke, hated it…?  Just like in a good book, adjectives and descriptors are used to help paint a mental picture for the reader.

So without further ado, here are the Core Cigar Flavor Components:

Plants – this component does not have as many colorful descriptors as some of the other core Components, but every cigar has at least one flavor from this section.

• Grass – often found in milder cigars most notably those that are Connecticut Shade wrapped.  Candela cigars because of the retained chlorophyll also often carry this flavor.
• Hay – very similar to grass but with that extra barnyard component.
• Moss – a lot of mild cigars, generally from the DR and Honduras, can exhibit this flavor.  It’s a cross between earth and grass with a bit of must.  Puros Indios cigars have this flavor component.
• Tea - one of those elusive flavors.  Reportedly present in heavily aged cigars.
• Tobacco – no stretch here that tobacco tastes like… tobacco.  Usually this is used to describe a cigar that has a strong “tobacco core”.  Cuban Partagas comes to mind.
• Wood – This is a big component in tasting cigars.  To me most cigars have some sort of woody component to it.  This is most easily detected in milder cigars that are wrapped in Connecticut Shade leaves.
  • Cedar – A lot of cigars are cedar-aged (in humidors or en cedro) or boxed in cedar cabinets, so this is often a flavor that is imparted on the cigar after the leaves have been fermented and aged in the barns.
  • Oak – Some specialty cigars are oak cask-aged and some have this flavor naturally.  It’s reminiscent of tannic qualities in wines, and is often accompanied with a dryness on the palate.  Try the Aurora Barrel-Aged cigars for this flavor prominently on display.
  • Smoky – when used it is referring to the flavor of smoked wood like hickory or mesquite.
• Vegetal – a general descriptor for a “green” plant-like flavor.

Spices and Herbs – this section will be a little broad in what is considered a spice or herb, but I see it as a good area to describe kitchen/baking flavors.

• Anise – see licorice.
• Cardamom
• Cinnamon – mostly the “hot” cinnamon variety, a similar feeling to eating a Red Hot candy.  Cigars loaded with ligero can express this flavor.
• Clove
• Cumin – kind of smoky and woody (some say musky).
• Licorice – great flavor found once the sweet spot of the cigar is reached, often detected on the finish.
• Pepper – A cigar with lots of strong tobacco or one with lots of ligero can a lot of pepper flavor to a cigar.  Pepper qualities can be found in a lot of Corojo wrapped cigars (Camacho, Don Pepin, Tatuaje, etc.) as well as the heavy ligero cigars like the Joya de Nicaragua Antano and the La Flor Dominicana Ligero and Double Ligero.  Look for further embellishment like white, red and black pepper.
• Spicy – This is kind of a weird one.  It’s used liberally to describe a cigar that has full flavor, or is very strong, a peppery cigar or a cigar with a lot of the “kitchen” spices (cloves, cinnamon…).  I tend not to use this as it can mean different things to different people.

Earth and Minerals – these flavor components have an elemental feel to them and are probably more a reflection of the country, region, soil composition and the fertilizers used in growing the tobacco plants.

• Barnyard – a combination of several flavors: grass, hay and earth often with some mustiness thrown in.
• Earth – a cigar that is described as earthy can have a few flavor components to it like soil (dirt), must, and even some deep vegetal flavors like moss and loam.  I find this component most in Nicaraguan cigars.
• Lead – tastes like, well, lead.  Embellished as pencil lead.
• Mineral – a general “mineraly-ness”, mostly lead.
• Must – this is a tough one.  It’s kind of earthy and dusty but also has an aged feel to it.  The best example is Cuban cigars.  Cuban cigars = must.
• Salt – hopefully this isn’t the actual transfer of sweaty armpits carrying the bales of tobacco to our mouth… but this can be found in some cigars most notably Cubans, especially Punch.

Fruits – Unlike wine tasting, fruit flavors are not as prominent.

• Cherry – I’ve heard this described occasionally and have only tasted it in a few cigars, and mostly in the finish.  It’s usually a very subtle flavor to detect.  Try La Flor Dominicana cigars, especially the Double Ligero line to pick up cherry.
• Citrus – usually a way to describe a cigar that has a certain “bite” to it.  It can be both from improper fermentation and also from the tobacco itself.  Most Don Pepin Garcia cigars have an acidic (or citrus) flavor component to them.
• Raisin – can’t say I really have ever picked up raisin notes, but many have.

Nuts – a prominent flavor in lots of cigars.  A surprisingly wide variety of nuts can be detected in cigars.  “Roasted” can often be thrown in front of these flavors to add a smoky element to them.

• Almond – a great flavor found often on the finish.
• Cashew – this one is a bit of a stretch for me but I’ve seen it before in Cigar Aficionado…
• Marzipan – a sweet almond flavor.
• Peanut – every now and then I can get a peanut note in milder Connecticut Shade cigars.  Peanut butter is also used descriptively.
• Pistachio – another CA fave.
• Walnut – a nuttiness that’s a little dry on the palate.

Flowers – In my opinion this is where wine and cigars diverge.  Some cigars have a general “perfuminess”, but no flower flavors here.  Maybe rose in the aroma if you’re stretching it.  Others believe there are many cigars that have floral qualities, so it is included.

• Floral – a general “perfuminess”.

Other – this is a pretty broad category that will be used to describe a lot of other flavors or sensations that really don’t fall into the other categories.

• Bread – an often disliked flavor.  Can be further embellished as toast or dough.
• Char – a combination of flavors: meaty and smoky.
• Caramel – creamy caramelized sugar!  Some Cameroons and H2000 wrappers can exhibit this flavor.
• Chocolate – this is a flavor I pick up more in the finish than in the initial inhale/exhale and is found often in Connecticut Broadleaf wrapped cigars.  This can be further detailed as dark or milk chocolate and cocoa.
• Coffee – great flavor most often found in the finish and sweet spots.  Can be embellished further as mild coffee, espresso, roasted coffee beans, café au lait (coffee w/ a creaminess), etc.
• Cream – not really the flavor of milk, but the general description of the type of flavors.  Most creamy cigars are mild and most are of the Connecticut Shade variety.
• Honey – not sure where to put this, so ot goes here.  Described often in aged cigars.
• Leather – one of my favorite cigar flavor components.  Leather “taste” really shows up in the exhale and finish and is tasted mostly through the nose.  For some reason the Rosado shade yields the most leather flavor, so look for this in Opus X and Partagas Spanish Rosados.
• Meaty – the flavor of grilled hamburger comes to mind.  A lot of rich maduros, especially from Nicaragua, can have this flavor.
• Mocha – A combination of chocolate and coffee flavors.  This shows up often in the last third of a cigar once you reach the “sweet spot”.
• Sweet – there’s artificial sweet (sweet-tipped) and then there’s natural sweet.  The natural sweetness is used to describe a cigar that has a general sugary flavor whether it be something like caramel, cocoa or marzipan.  Many maduros are often described as sweet.

Not-Really-Flavor Flavors – this is a pretty broad category that will be used to describe a lot of other flavors or sensations that really don’t fall into the other categories.

• Acidic – see “Citrus” in the fruit section.
• Ammonia – not really a flavor, it’s actually what you are tasting – ammonia.  Ammonia is a by-product of tobacco fermentation and improper fermentation and aging will result in a lot of ammonia left in the cigar.  A huge turn-off for cigar lovers.
• Chewy – again, not really a flavor, more of an experience.  A cigar where the smoke has an apparent texture to it in your mouth would be considered “chewy”.
• Dry – just like wines and tea, a cigar that has that tannic quality that dries out your mouth and teeth.  Found mostly in Connecticut Shade cigars – think Davidoff.  Cigar Aficionado hates this, but I’m a big fan.
• Harsh – not really a flavor per se, but definitely used to describe a cigar that may have one or several of the following components: ammonia, pepper and spice.  Usually used to describe a cigar that is too young or unbalanced/muddled.

So that’s all I can really think of.  Let me know if you think I have missed some or can describe some of the above better!

It’s only $47,000.

S. T. Dupont Vandom Pink Gold Lighter

And if you were wondering, yes those are diamonds, 192 of them.  Learn more.

Sounds simple, right?  Well it depends.  Taste is defined as, “form of direct chemoreception and is one of the traditional five senses.  It refers to the ability to detect the flavor of substances such as food, certain minerals, and poisons.”  But when taste partners with the sense of smell… that is how the brain perceives flavors.  So we’re really talking about two senses here: taste and smell.  But from here on out we’ll just lump together into “taste”, ok?

There are two and half ways to taste a cigar.  Yes, two and a half.  The first is using your tongue (taste).  The second is using your sinuses (smell) and the half is on the finish (like with wine).  Taking the time to be aware of all of your tasting “tools” will help you further enjoy cigars!

So let’s start with the tongue.  The tongue, to me, is actually kind of limited.  It can only detect sweet, sour, salt, bitter and umami.  Let’s tackle these one by one.

• “Bitter” traditionally is used to describe something unpleasant, but in combination of other flavors it is very nice.  Flavors that can fall under bitter are: coffee, chocolate and citrus.

• “Sour” is different than bitter in that sour detects acidity.  Cigars generally don’t fill those sour taste receptors, but an improperly aged cigar can taste sour.

• “Sweet” is considered a pleasurable taste sensation, but considering the fact that two variant taste receptors have to be activated for the tongue to detect sweet, this is rarely achieved while smoking a cigar, unless sugar is added artificially to the tip of a cigar.

• “Salt” is activated in the presence of Sodium or other alkali metals.  Interestingly, saltiness is famously picked up in Cuban cigars, and Cuban  soil has a high concentration of lithium (an alkali metal close to Sodium).  Who knew there was so much science in cigars?

• “Umami” means meaty or savory.  This receptor is activated by amino acids, basically things high in protein like meats and cheeses.

The Tongue

So that’s it for the tongue?  Well, not really. The tongue can of also pick up things like temperature, metallic-ness and dryness – handy things when smoking cigars.  There are also supertasters – folks that have a heightened sense of taste above the average person.  This is due to, simply put, having more taste buds than the average person.  This is most common in Latin America (no surprise there), Asia and Africa.  Only 25% of people of European descent are supertasters.

Supertasters vs. Nontasters

Let’s move on to the sinuses, nose and olfactory senses.  Olfaction, or the sense of smell, contributes to our perception of flavor.  So while our tongue can detect only 5 distinct qualities, the olfactory system can detect hundreds.  So when you smoke a cigar, you should smell it, right?  Now, you can smell the smoke from the cigar in the air, but that’s the aroma and does not contribute to the flavor.  You can smell the cigar when the smoke in your mouth.  But to REALLY smell the smoke, you need to exhale through your nose, bringing the smoke up through your sinuses – this is often referred to as Retro-hale.  If you’ve never done this, then you’ve been selling yourself short and missing out on a lot of cool flavors and complexity. This is the way to smoke a cigar.

The “finish” is another key part in enjoying a cigar.  The finish is a fancy term for aftertaste.  Aftertaste is the persistence of flavor long after the substance has passed over the taste receptors.  So as far as cigars are concerned, the finish should be enjoyable and the longer the flavors remain the better.  For some reason certain flavors from cigars are more prominent on the finish than others, like coffee, cocoa and licorice.

Here are a few other important facts, statements and suggestions about cigar tasting:

• Every cigar does not taste the same to everyone.
• The wrapper accounts for most of a cigars flavor but can range anywhere from 20-80% of the total flavor from the smoke.
• What you drink can change the flavors and intensity of what you are smoking.  I like drink water the first time I try a cigar to get the flavors “unfiltered”.
• If you are smoking multiple cigars, try drinking apple juice in between to cleanse your palate.
• If you are smoking multiple cigars, smoke the mildest first.
• Try not to overwhelm your palate.  Smoking very strong cigars all the time makes it harder for you to enjoy mild or medium cigars.
• A cigar’s aroma (the inhale) can have different qualities than the exhale (or retro-hale).

So in summary to really “taste” a cigar, you incorporate the initial tastes from your tongue and sinuses as well as the finish.  So it’s a function of the sensory organs and time.  So sit back, relax and try tasting a cigar – maybe truly for the first time.