Cigar Tasting

Balmoral Añejo xo Gordito Wrapper: Brazil Binder: Dom.Rep. Filler: Brazil, Nicaragua,  Dominican Republic Strength: Medium Short 102 mm x Ø 58 (23.02 mm)€ 8.10 The start toys with deep woody notes before the first third delivers an excellent volume of smoke and more organic, complex and tasty notes. The second third continues with good strength and an intense aftertaste with toasted

Flor de Selva Doble Corona 191 mm x 52 (20,64 mm) 10 € Delectable last year, the Double Corona was given the coveted 5-band status. This year, its performance earns it the title of Best Honduran 2017. Full-flavored and eloquent from the get-go, it offers a pleasantly woody (cedar) range of flavors with a sprinkling of peppery notes. Reasonably full-bodied, its

  Don Tomas For its affordable prices and its energy Rock bottom prices for the Clasico range (Honduras) with consistent, enterprising cigars that get the job done, no muss, no fuss. The N° 4, a 4-band cigar, comes particularly recommended. Plus, the brand is innovating with an excellent Nicaraguan range that is just as affordable. Bravo! Oliva For its high-quality

No, it’s not the latest hare-brained experiment, there really is salt in your cigar, and in your wine too. Let me explain…   By Bernard Burtshy   SALTINESS is one of the four basic tastes (or five, if we count Japanese umami), and salt is, and always has been, a precious commodity. Salting is one of the oldest methods of

Chemically speaking, nothing distinguishes a pleasant smell from an unpleasant one. Why, therefore, do some people say that cigars “stink”? By Bernard Burtschy “Bad smells” are unclassifiable You barely need to perceive an unpleasant odor to elicit an immediate reaction of disgust. Whether the source be a dog, a toilet, or a cigar, the response to this type of stimulus will

The purveyor of many a fine smoke, CAO needs no introduction. A big innovator, this brand regularly launches very well-crafted and original ranges, each with a singular style and a refined concept. The result is sophisticated and attractive cigars that outlast their initial buzz and become classics. One of CAO’s specialties is rooting out exceptional varieties of tobacco from all

  CAO PILON Robusto Blend Made in Nicaragua Wrapper: Ecuador Binder, filler: Nicaragua Dimensions: 127 mm × 52 (21 mm) Format: Grand robusto Price: €6.30 A bold and powerful start, but the first third, though lively, has a fragile balance of toasted and nutty flavors that struggle to impose themselves with such pronounced strength from the outset. A deeper and

BALMORAL XO Lancero   Limited edition Blend Made in the Dominican Rep. Wrapper: Brazil Binder: Dominican Rep. Filler: Brazil, Nicaragua, Dominican Rep. Dimensions: 178 mm × 40 (15.87 mm) Format: Grand corona Price: €11.50 A very woody and elegant start, perfectly coherent with this attractive, all-too-neglected format. The flavors are more organic and earthy, with notes of bark in the

Par Bernard Burtschy Derrières les odeurs se cachent bien souvent des molécules de synthèse qui ont remporté la bataille sur les arômes naturels. Ne les confondons pas, et ne simplifions pas ce qui est complexe. Le nez chimique Il est prodigieux de penser que nous pouvons détecter jusqu’à 400.000 odeurs et en mémoriser environ 10.000 ! Les molécules naturelles qui constituent les

AVO We rarely hear about Avo. A range made by Davidoff group in the Dominican Republic it is fairly scare in our retailers. Named for the Armenian-American jazz pianist, Avo Uvezian, the brand produces complex cigars with essentially Dominican tobacco. Launched in the USA at the tail end of 2015, the new range – Avo Syncro Box-Pressed – was the