La Palina El Diario From the times I have listened and talked to La Palina Cigars founder Bill Paley, one thing is clear to me – he has a goal to build the best possible cigars in the market. Last year, Paley launched La Palina Cigars – resurrecting the brand of his grandfather Samuel Paley. […]
Cigar Pre-Review: E.P. Carrillo Core Line Maduro – Pre-Release Sample
William Cooper Pre-Review, Uncategorized 1 Comment E.P. Carrillo, EPC, Pre-Review
E.P. Carrillo Core Line Maduro – Club 52 Vitola Back when Ernesto Perez-Carrillo Jr. was with La Gloria Cubana, one of my favorite cigars he blended was the La Gloria Cubana Serie R Maduro. That cigar has become one of my favorite “go to” cigars since I became a cigar enthusiast. Earlier this year, when […]
Cigar Pre-Review: My Uzi Weighs a Ton – Pre-Release Sample 6 x 60
William Cooper Pre-Review, Uncategorized No Comments Drew Estate, Joya de Nicaragua, MUWAT, My Uzi Weighs a Ton, Pre-Review
Joya de Nicaragua My Uzi Weighs a Ton – Pre-Release Sample A few days ago, I posted some preliminary information on the forthcoming release on a new Joya de Nicaragua cigar called “My Uzi Weighs a Ton”. I happened to be at a Drew Estate event at Cordova Cigars in Pensacola, Florida and Jonathan Drew […]
Cigar Pre-Review: A.Turrent Triple Corojo
William Cooper Pre-Review, Uncategorized No Comments Altadis, Pre-Review
A.Turrent Triple Corojo – Gran Robusto Vitola A. Turrent’s Triple Corojo recently made its world debut at the June 4th Cigar Dave remote broadcast in Charlotte, North Carolina. This follows the “Triple” theme that was set by last year’s triple maduro – the A.Turrent Triple Play. For the case of the A. Turrent Triple […]
Cigar Pre-Review: PDR 1878 Reserva Dominicana Capa Habana (Pre-Release) aka “PDR 1878 Blue Label”
William Cooper Pre-Review, Uncategorized 2 Comments Pinar Del Rio, Pre-Review
PDR 1878 Reserva Dominicana Capa Habana Last year, Abe Flores of owner and master blender of Pinar Del Rio introduced his “PDR 1878” line of cigars. This has proven to be a solid set of value-priced cigars around the $5.00 to $7.00 range that has gotten the attention of consumers. This year, at IPCPR Flores […]
Cigar Pre-Review: EO 601 La Bomba – Pre-Release Sample
William Cooper Pre-Review, Uncategorized No Comments 601, Pre-Review, Rocky Patel
La Bomba (pic in front of an 601 Red box) Every year, there are a few cigars that are some of the most anticipated new releases for the year. In 2011, there is little doubt that EO Brands’ 601 La Bomba falls into that category. For the past few months, I’ve been following this cigar […]
Cigar Pre-Review: Pre-Release of the Swag Limitado 99
William Cooper Pre-Review, Uncategorized No Comments Oliveros, Pre-Review
Swag Limitado 99 Pre-Release In my motto – “it’s all about the cigars – the smoke, the craft, and the people”, it really is the people that make the cigar industry the best industry in the world. Over the past few months, I’ve gotten to meet some great people. Fabian Barrantes, Director/VP of Marketing of […]
Cigar Pre-Review: Felipe Gregorio W20
William Cooper Pre-Review, Uncategorized No Comments Felipe Gregorio, Indie, Pre-Review
One reason why I have opted for a “Pre-Review” as opposed to a full review is because there are times I am missing information to do a detailed assessment. My detailed assessments include I liked the cigar or not, but it also includes information about the blend and the vitolas available for the cigar. The […]
Cigar Pre-Review: Fonseca Especial
William Cooper Pre-Review, Uncategorized No Comments Pre-Review, Quesada
The name Manuel Quesada is well-known to the cigar community. And when you’ve met him, you know about the passion that he brings to the table. In the past couple of years, Quesada has been associated with the highly successful Quesada and Casa Magna brands, but it was the Fonseca line where Quesada had his […]
Pre-Review: San Lotano Habano
William Cooper Pre-Review, Uncategorized No Comments Pre-Review, San Lotano
Last month, I was blown away by A.J. Fernandez’s new San Lotano Connecticut stick. To quote what I said, “might be one of the best Connecticut Shade wrappers I have ever had!” Therefore I was very excited to try another San Lotano stick that was released this year. I decided to give the San Lotano […]