Reviews by Keith

When you're inside CI headquarters, even if you're not looking for cigars, boy, cigars sure do find you. This place is a 49,000 square foot playground chock full of handmades, and resistance is just about futile. That's the position I found myself this past Sunday. I ran to the office with a plan to get a few things done and a promise to my wife to speed back home without delay. But on my desk was a box of 5 Vegas Series 'A', the Archetype size. Ooooooh. This toro is gorgeous. A pitch black Costa Rican wrapper, oils beading off, individually wrapped in cedar sleeves. Rolling it between my forefinger and thumb, my thoughts were racing. Risk the scorn of wife and family by not coming home, or stick around and light one up? This ethical dilemma continued for a moment before I succumbed to the inevitable charms of the 5 Vegas 'A'. After all, I asked myself, am I not human....do I not bleed? Having justified it in my mind, I lit it up. Oooooh. 3 cigars later, not only did I spend a productive afternoon at the office but I enjoyed every second of it.

This is a cigar that you could smoke all day: after one is done you just want to light up the next ....and it continues like that, it's like having one long cigar. The most distinctive thing about the 5 Vegas Series 'A' blend is the undeniable smoky, charred character - so appealing. The interplay of the Costa Rican maduro wrapper with the complex long leaf filler blend creates an almost decadent cigar. In body it's somewhat heavy, and it offers a very rich and dense flavor profile, including dark chocolate, almost espresso-like notes. The charred character and toasty aroma imbeds itself in your nostrils and by the end, you're ready to spark another....and another. To me, this blend is cigar heaven.

Oh, and how about this: looks as though we'll be receiving two new special sizes in the next couple months, the Apocalypse (6"x58) and the Atomic (4.5"x54). Dream the impossible dream!

The idea for Java was conceived in Allentown, PA. I know that ain't sexy, and you might rather believe it was divine inspiration one day in Central America when Jonathan Drew and Rocky Patel were inspecting tobacco plants in the vegas of the Jalapa Valley....but it's the truth.

It was May 2, 2004, and all the major cigar manufacturers were here in Pennsylvania for CI's annual mega-herf called CigarFest the day before. Any cigar maker worth his salt came to the event, attended by a ton of raving cigar nuts. Anyway, the day after the event a small group of cigar makers - the cigar glitterati - were sitting in the lobby of some crappy hotel waiting to catch flights. Among the group were Rocky Patel and Jonathan Drew. These two guys became so absorbed discussing a new project they were trying to collaborate on that they changed their travel plans to extend their Allentown odyssey for an extra day. They spent the next 24 hours in that crappy hotel talking and brainstorming. See, Drew Estate is the king of infused cigars, known for ACID, Kahlua, Natural, etc. And at that time, Rocky's RP Vintage was just starting to skyrocket in popularity, and Rocky was searching for a new product to add to his line. He wanted an unconventional, subtly flavored cigar unlike anything else on the market, and Drew Estate was the only maker that could pull that off. After the idea was conceived there was months of blending, and Java was born. How do you describe this kind of cigar? This may sound like a distinction without a difference but Java is not a flavored cigar per se. It's imbued with the flavor of gourmet mocha. Not injected, sprayed, or one of the other countless ways they make most of the cheap flavoreds. Instead over time the flavor is allowed to absorb into the tobaccos prior to rolling. The result is a cigar with more nuances, one that's more refined, slightly sweet with mocha-like flavors. It's not a syrupy, gooky mess like many flavored cigars end up. Instead Java retains a crisp tobacco flavor that is not overwhelmed by the infusion of mocha. To me, this cigar is like a sorbet. I like to cleanse the palate between my voluminous consumption of more conventional cigars.

As the saying goes, "beauty may only be skin deep, but ugly goes right to the bone." But this is one beauty that's got a pretty face and delivers the goods, in all respects from substance to flavor to construction to price. Bold statement. If you're a maduro nut, the new El Mejor "Espresso" blend will wow you. I received a small advance shipment a few weeks ago (the full shipment to arrive next week) and I gotta tell you, I was blown away. Keep in mind, I approached this blend with caution at first based on my experiences with the old El Mejor. See, the old El Mejor - the original green label - always flummoxed me. When it was good, it was truly great....and if you were patient enough, 6-12 additional months of rest in your humidor without exception turned a great smoke into an almost legendary smoke. Yep, that's right old friend....bordering on legendary. But the thing is, it tended to be spotty. For some reason the consistency just wasn't there from shipment to shipment: see, some months they were simply stunning while others you went home disappointed. Inconsistency like that is a killer. A cigar can be the greatest in the world when it's on, but if it's only good half the time that's a sure way to frustrate a brand's loyal following (and I know because I read the countless letters!). Recognizing this, the green label has been phased out until those consistency problems were ironed down. No doubt it will be resurrected some day hence, but the point of my telling you all this is so you don't confuse the two.

Having bored you to tears, let's move on to the new El Mejor Espresso ("maroon label") line: Espresso is made by none other than Nestor Plasencia in Esteli, Nicaragua. At first glance this thing is really gorgeous: it offers a jet-black, smooth, chocolately Mexican maduro wrapper that's very appealing, thick, oily and black as night. And combined with its crisp, hospital-corner-esque, tight square-pressed finish, the Espresso series looks like a chocolate candy bar. Spark it up and it's got an initial smoky flavor and charcoal-like aroma. It settles down into a cool-burning cigar delivering deep, rich flavors including subtle nuances of cocoa and black coffee, even a touch of sweetness. smoother than you'd think, this lush, medium-bodied blend features a creamy texture and aromatic character. emitting incredibly viscous gobs of billowing smoke with each pull. The packaging? Well, it ain't sexy, just plain mazos of 20, nothing ornate. But the cigar speaks for itself and the incredibly reasonable price tag reveals nothing about the quality of the smoke inside. Highly recommended.

Until a year or two ago, I never viewed Natural as a serious, conventional cigar. In most consumers' minds it is so closely tied to Drew Estate's insanely popular, highly-infused ACID brand that the popular misconception holds that Natural is also such an "imbued" cigar as well. To be sure, Natural is made with unconventional tobaccos from such sources as Haiti and Turkey, as well as more common Dominican and Nicaraguan tobaccos. But just the same, the Natural line can stand on its own two feet as a legitimate traditional cigar. Unusual? Yes, but a bona fide brand that conventional smokers will come to love. I'm a believer! Can I get an amen?

With Root, the tobaccos have been heavily fermented to offer a distinctly rich, deep leathery flavor. The notes of dark coffee and ripe smokiness are undeniable. It pumps out voluminous gobs of buttery, creamy smoke. Soft to medium-bodied in strength, ample in flavor. My personal favorites in the Natural line: Root, Dirt, Pimp Stick. Buy them early and often.