Macanudo Maduro Gigante Macanudo, America’s best-selling premium cigar brand, is adding two new large-ring frontmarks to its lineup. Making their retail debut this week are Macanudo Cafe Gigante and Macanudo Maduro Gigante. Created in response to consumer demand for large-ring offerings, both the Macanudo Cafe and Macanudo Maduro Gigante cigars measure 6” x 60. Each […]
Cigar Review: Macanudo 1968
Macanudo 1968 Up until a few years ago, the Macanudo brand within the General Cigars’ family has primarily been associated with cigars that are traditionally on the milder side in terms of strength and body. In 2008, Macanudo was commemorating their 40th anniversary and decided to do a special cigar to mark the occasion, thus […]
Assessment Updates: Joya de Nicaragua My Uzi Weighs a Ton; La Gloria Cubana Artesanos Retro Especiale, and A.Turrent Puro Corojo
As always, when I smoke a pre-release cigar, I feel it is premature to give it a firm assessment rating – therefore, I do a pre-review to provide some initial feedback. With some follow-on smokes completed, it’s time to assess some more cigars. With this installment of “Assessment Updates”, I look at Joya de Nicaragua’s […]
Month in Review: October 2011
The month of October was probably one of the more exciting months in the cigar industry. This month marked not only the heart of the Fall release cycle for cigars, but some major releases. Overall, this was a great month to be a cigar enthusiast. Let’s take a look at some of the releases that […]
Cigar Pre-Review: La Gloria Cubana Artesanos Retro Especiale (Part 52 of the 2011 IPCPR Series)
La Gloria Cubana Artesanos Retro Especiale The year 2010 was a great year for the La Gloria Cubana brand of General Cigars. During that year, La Gloria Cubana underwent a transition to a forward thinking brand while keeping to old school traditions of the brand founded by Ernesto Perez-Carillo Jr. This was evident in three […]
Cigar Pre-Review: CAO OSA Sol (Part 49 of the 2011 IPCPR Series)
CAO OSA Sol The CAO OSA Sol marks the first new blend released under the CAO brand since it was integrated under the General Cigars portfolio last year. When I previewed the CAO OSA Sol, I was on the record saying I think the brand is in good hands. Late last year, it was announced […]
Cigar Preview: Line Extensions to Macanudo Cru Royale (Part 36 of the 2011 IPCPR Series)
Macanudo Cru Royale Poco Gordo At the 2010 IPCPR, Macanudo introduced two new blends to their line – Macanudo Vintage 1997 Maduro and the Macanudo Cru Royale. These cigars continued a trend started back in 2008 when Macanudo introduced the Macanudo 1968 – bring cigars in the medium and full range into their portfolio. The […]
Cigar Preview: Macanudo Vintage 1997 Maduro Line Extension and Metal Band Update (Part 21 of the 2011 IPCPR Series)
Macanudo Vintage 1997 Maduro Remember back in March when I said those metal bands on the Macanudo Vintage 1997 Maduro were going away? In fact, I even posted a picture of this cigar sporting the new paper band. Well, not so fast…. At the 2011 IPCPR trade show an important announcement was made on this […]
Cigar Preview: La Gloria Cubana Artesanos Retro Especiale (Part 15 of the 2011 IPCPR Series)
La Gloria Cubana Artesanos Retro Especiale 2010 was a banner year for Team La Gloria Cubana of General Cigars. Not only did they release three cigars that made my 2010 Top 30 Cigar of the Year countdown, but they broke new ground in the world of cigar engineering. If you take a look at the […]
Cigar Preview: CAO OSA Sol (Part 7 of the 2011 IPCPR Series)
CAO OSA Sol Following the acquisition of CAO Cigars into the General Cigar Company family, there were many concerns about the future of this brand. Those concerns would be amplified with the departures of Tim Ozgener and Jon Huber – two of the most creative minds in the industry. However, late last year when it […]