One of the busiest companies at the 2019 IPCPR Trade Show was Southern Draw Cigars. For the most part, Southern Draw focused on brand extensions (additional blends for existing brands, and line extensions (new vitolas for existing blends). One of the new brand extensions came to Southern Draw’s 300 Hands brand in the form of […]
Cigar Review: Trinidad Espiritu Series No. 1 Toro by Altadis U.S.A.
William Cooper Reviews No Comments 88-90, Altadis, Review, Trinidad, Try a Sample
When it comes to the Trinidad brand in the Altadis U.S.A. portfolio, it’s been one that hasn’t quite had the impact of other Cuban brands that Altadis U.S.A. sells in the U.S. such as Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta, and H. Upmann. Over the years, there have been several releases. Most recently in the past ten […]
Cigar Review: 7-20-4 Factory 57 Robusto
William Cooper Reviews No Comments 7-20-4, 88-90, Buy One, Review
In 2014, Kurt Kendall introduced the 7-20-4 Factory 57 line into his portfolio. Factory 57 joined the original 7-20-4, 7-20-4 1874 Series, and 7-20-4 Hustler lines. An ongoing theme with Kendall’s brands has been nostaglia. 7-20-4 is a brand founded in 1874 by R.G. Sullivan that was named for the Manchester, New Hampshire address of […]
Cigar Review: BOTL Corona Gorda (2019) by Drew Estate
William Cooper Reviews No Comments 88-90, BOTL.org, Buy Multiples, Drew Estate, Review
In 2019, Drew Estate brought back one of its more popular limited releases, the BOTL. The name BOTL stands for “Brothers of the Leaf” and is a forum for the cigar community. The story of the BOTL cigar goes back to 2010. The story has it that a man by the name of Tim Podwika […]
Agile Cigar Review: Brick House Mighty Mighty Maduro by J.C. Newman
William Cooper Agile Cigar Reviews, Reviews No Comments 88-90, Agile Cigar Review, Assessment Update, Buy One, JC Newman
Agile Cigar Reviews are cigar assessments where we use a lightweight, shorter format. These will never take the place of our comprehensive reviews. They are only used on blends we have previously assessed. This might be a blend we are re-scoring or giving a score for the first time. It might be a blend we […]
Cigar Review: Montecristo Línea 1935 Maltés
William Cooper Reviews No Comments 88-90, Habanos SA, Montecristo, Review, Try a Sample
In 2015, the Montecristo brand celebrated its 80th anniversary. This was commemorated with two releases – one from Altadis U.S.A. with the Montecristo 80th Anniversary No. 2 and another by Habanos S.A. with Montecristo 80 Aniversario. Two years later, Habanos S.A. would launch a regular production line that continues to pay homage to when the brand was […]
Cigar Review: OneOff +53 Super Robusto by Illusione Cigars
William Cooper Reviews No Comments 88-90, Illusione, OneOff Cigars, Review, Try a Sample
Back in 2017, Illusione Cigars owner Dion Giolito announced he was bringing back a brand known as OneOff. OneOff was a brand that achieved a cult status in the marketplace. Eventually, the brand fell dormant and pretty much disappeared from retail shelves. It was a brand that had always intrigued Giolito. As it was a […]
Cigar Review: Rocky Patel A.L.R. (Aged Limited & Rare) Toro
William Cooper Reviews No Comments 88-90, Review, Rocky Patel, Try a Sample
At the 2018 IPCPR Trade Show, Rocky Patel Premium Cigars (RPPC) launched a brand known as Aged Limited & Rare (or A.L.R. for short). This is a project that traces back to 2015. At the time RPPC founder Rocky Patel was working on the blend, he felt that the blend could develop further if the […]
Cigar Review: Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Edición Limitada 2019 LC50
William Cooper Reviews 1 Comment 88-90, Buy One, Crowned Heads, Review
In the Spring of 2019, Crowned Heads announced the sixth installment of its Las Calaveras series. Las Calaveras is an annual limited edition release that first made its debut back in 2014. At the time Las Calaveras made its debut, it was significant because it marked the first time Crowned Heads would produce a cigar […]
Cigar Review: La Aurora 1985 Maduro Robusto
William Cooper Reviews No Comments 88-90, Buy One, La Aurora, Miami Cigars, Review
Back in April 2019, La Aurora Cigars announced the fourth installment of its Time Capsule Series with the release of the La Aurora 1985 Maduro. The La Aurora cigar factory was founded in 1903 and it is the oldest factory in the Dominican Republic. La Aurora Cigars often commemorates milestones in the history of the […]