Cain Nub Maduro

In the history of the world, there have been several meetings of disparate elements that formed something amazing; Barley, hops, and yeast to make beer, tungsten and electricity to make light, and peanut butter and chocolate to make peanut butter cups. Well, Sam Leccia has done it again, this time combining the Nub Maduro with the Cain ligero blend to make the Cain Nub Maduro.


The wrapper on the Cain Nub Maduro was a rich brown color, with some minor veins. There's a nice spice left on the lips, maybe a little spicier than the habano version's wrapper. The first cigar I tried seemed a little over stuffed, giving a substantially firmer draw than others in the Nub line, even the new Cain Nub Habano. The second was freer, but still had a nicely resistive draw.

Upon lighting, the serious spice starts, along with bold flavors of earth, leather and coffee. This maduro version is still powerful, but a touch milder (or smoother, maybe) than the Habano; I was able to run the smoke through my sinuses with more comfort than the Habano version. The flavors stay pretty steady from the beginning to the end, only varying a little in intensity; Bold start, mellows a little into the mid-point, and then a little spicier into the nub.

The Cain Nub Maduro is another fine, fine cigar from Sam Leccia and Oliva.

Cain Nub Habano

Well, the Fourth of July weekend found me in possession of some powerful fireworks: Cain Nub, in both Habano and Maduro. Saturday night, while the citizens of my neighborhood were engrossed in some July 3rd premature ecrackulation, I was in the garage with the short powerhouse Cain Nub Habano.

The greyish brown wrapper had some demur veining, and lefts a little peppery tingle on the lips. Earth and leather dominated the pre-ignition aroma.

After clipping the cap, I noticed that the draw seemed fairly free, like most in the Nub series. A free draw might seem to be an invitation to suck this cigar down with all speed, but with a ligero-heavy blend, do this at your own peril.

So, I got this cigar lit and took a couple introductory puffs. Mmmm, earthy leather, nice spice. I took another puff, and went to jet it through my sinu..WHOAH! I felt like someone socked me in the nose. There's some spice in that smoke. In short, the Cain Nub starts off hitting you with both barrels.

After the first inch, it got easier to get the smoke through the sinuses, either because I got acclimatized to the amount of spice in the smoke, or that it mellowed out a bit. I think that it mellowed a little, but still kept up a bold flavor with a smooth spice riding shotgun.

I purposely paced myself slowly on this smoke, and enjoyed it immensely.

Cain Habano torpedo

Woof. The Cain Maduro was quite the mouthful of nicely substantial flavors. I've really come to appreciate Nicaraguan tobaccos, and Oliva Cigar grows some of the best. Along with the great flavors, Oliva has made very reasonably priced cigars, with the Cain line running $7-8 on the B&M shelf. Great flavors + reasonable prices = lots of Oliva boxes in the Humidor of the Apokalypse.

Another great thing is that there's a hustlin' Oliva sales rep on the Great Plains, and we've been getting the new releases of Nub and Cain with really timely speed. It used to take some considerable time for new cigars to get to Nebraska, but not anymore. I just picked up a pair of the Cain maduro 550, and it's only been a week since IPCPR.

Cain is billed as "Straight Ligero", but is really about 82% ligero, but who's quibbling? The boxes have the ligero origins: 25% Esteli, 27% Condega, and 30% Jalapa ligeros. It's a powerful cigar, and they burn for a long time, like the cigar version of the Everlasting Gobstopper. But, with power comes great responsibility. So, after a couple sirloin steaks, I felt sufficiently forearmed to tangle with the Cain Habano.

Cain's habano wrapper was medium brown, with a couple moderate veins and slight oil sheen over its toothy surface. The cigar felt solid and substantial, like a 20MM AA cartridge. While smoking, the burn line was pretty straight until the final third, and the silver-white ash dropped after about 1.5 inches.

Right away earthy wood, with a pronounced peppery Habano tone. Even my wife, catching a whiff as I smoked on the deck, remarked that it smelled spicy. Definitely medium-full bodied. The Habano heat ducked into the background after the first half-inch, leaving the solid, earthy wood and leather flavors to dominate.

In the second inch, the flavors turned leathery, along with the mild spice in the background, but still kept up the full strength. This was not a hard cigar to enjoy at all. As the final inch burned away, the spice got a bit stronger and the burn line started wobbling a bit.

Overall, for all the power of the cigar, the flavors were fairly smooth, and with a subtle spice in the finish. What a cigar!

Verdict:

Good flavor, good price, I bet with some age, these will be sublime.

Cain Maduro torpedo

I've said that I'm lucky, but in all reality, I'm incredibly blessed. Loving wife, healthy children, sustaining employment, and an Oliva cigar sales rep that gives me a holler when he's coming to town. Cory's latest largesse was a pair of the new Cain torpedos, natural and maduro. I am most unworthy.

Cain's bold, earthy flavor profile is intimidating, but it's a smooth smoke that will take a couple hours to savor. The Mexican-wrapped, Nicaraguan cigar is just extraordinary:



Thanks again, Most Honorable Bringer of Premium Smoke. With friends like you, who needs Cigar Aficionado?

A hearty 'shank you' to Sony Music for nuking my first edition of the video. If you would rather Danzig languish in deepening obscurity, that's fine.

Oliva Omaha Event and Nub Maduro 460

Good things come to those who wait, baby. Boy howdy, do they. Oliva Cigars had their first ever Nebraska event at Ted's Tobacco in Omaha, and it was a blast. A special thanks goes to Cory Horinek, our region's Oliva rep, whose enthusiasm has really been a shot in the arm for Oliva fans here in the Plains.

I had the pleasure of tagging along with Social Cigar pals Ditch Digger, Liriel, and internet cigar veteran Uncle Booga, and we made the roadtrip a party on wheels. We made some purchases, scored some killer swag, and smoked some wicked tasty cigars:



The Nub Maduro 460 is another shining example of killer Nicaraguan maduro, sweet and smooth. Though there's no info on the Maduro on the Nub site, several sites are claiming the wrapper is Brazilian. The wrapper tastes less peppery than the wrapper on the CAO Brazilia or MX2, and tastes more like the maduro Nicaraguan wrapper of the AB Maxx.

The wrapper's that delectable dark brown that bodes sweetness, and the cigar felt fairly firm, but also felt a little light in the hand. The draw was a little loose, so I had to pace myself when drawing on the cigar. Despite the loose draw, the cigar burned fairly evenly, only requiring a minor touch-up.

Once lit, the flavors are immediate; Leather, cocoa, a touch of cedar, and a mild spice in the finish. The flavors don't change much, except maybe in intensity, over the duration of the smoke. But, with such pleasant flavors, that's not an issue for me.

At $7, this is a tasty smoke and a great addition to the Nub line.

Nub Habano Torpedo

This cigar is so fat, the band has stretch marks.

Sam Leccia's brainchild, the Nub skips the customary cigar introductions, and gets straight to the sweet spot. Judging from the reviews I've read, and the amount of Nub events I hear about, Oliva Cigars have backed a winner.

Cigars Direct sent me this particular specimen, and I'd been itching to try the Habano line. The Nub Cameroons I had smoked last summer were good, but mild, and didn't wow me.

This cigar is so fat, when I clipped the torpedo's point, the open area looked as big as the foot on a churchill.

The Habano's wrapper is a rich brown hue, with fine veins and an aroma of earthy leather.

First light: Nice, earthy leather tones, with a mild spice on the lips and in the sinuses. Hints of nuts occasionally too.

The earthy leather flavor continued, along with the mild spice for the duration of the smoke. The burn line was a tad wobbly, but I didn't fret about it until the cigar extinguished 1/2" after getting started. I'm glad I filled my lighter before starting out...

This cigar is so fat, it wants Kirstie Alley to be its "skinny friend".

The smoke wasn't particularly thick, and the cigar needed lots of torch touch ups to stay well lit. Maybe with a couple days of drybox time, this stubby cigar would stay lit better.

In the end, as much as I liked the flavors, the high-maintenance factor turned me off. I'll smoke others another time and see if the assessment changes.

Oliva Serie G Cameroon Double Robusto

I smoked an Oliva Serie G Cameroon-wrappered double robusto for lunch, chatting with the region's Oliva super-rep, Cory Horinek. The Omaha event is June 6th, and I'm stoked. Daddy's getting a box of these Serie G cammies for Father's Day.

I usually smoke the maduro lines that Oliva offers, but I felt like switching it up today, and I'm glad I did. I love a Cameroon wrapper almost as much as I love maduro, and the Oliva G is a great blend to sport it. Bright, woody flavors with coffee and gentle spice, the Serie G is shy of medium-bodied, but nowhere near being a wimpy cigar either.

The double robusto (5x54) size smokes nice and cool, so the flavors don't get harsh.

Oliva Master Blends I torpedo

This is a cigar WAY beyond my usual means, and only came into my possession as a gift from my Oliva sales rep, Cory. This is an incredible gift, and I'm grateful. Cory has taken the territory by storm, and is plotting event mayhem in every corner. Oliva is in great hands here.

Back to the cigar, the silver-brown wrapper was mildly veined, and emitted a light leather/hay aroma. A pinch along the cigar's body was slightly yielding, but never soft, and the draw was perfectly balanced.

Toasted and lit, the cigar became an orgy of leather, coffee and mild, earthy spice with occasional caramel and vanilla notes. The flavors weren't too powerful, but they were quite smooth, the body of the cigar being a solid medium, waxing full near the nub. In this way, it reminded me of a Padron Anniversary cigar; great flavors, never overpowering, and incredibly smooth. A Master Blend indeed.

I have had the good fortune to buy a couple Master Blends III robustos, being $9 each, and will be reviewing them soon. If they age as well as this Master Blends I, I'm going to need to put a half-dozen down for a six-year nap, and see what happens.

Oliva Connecticut Reserve robusto

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Through the first half, the Connecticut Reserve is a mild cigar, but at the half, Oliva flexes some medium strength leather and earth. Another great cigar from Oliva.

Taking the Spendy Cigar Plunge

I was in to shop today, picking up a couple cigars for some friends, and I spy a box that read "Work of Art". "Hmmm," says I, and open the box to behold some dark, shapely cigars. I grabbed a pair, and put the box back on the shelf, when I notice that the box beneath it reads "Reserva no 55 Xtra Viejo". Those looked good too, so I snagged a couple of those too.

On my way out of the humi, I spied a beautiful box that read "Master Blends" and grabbed a pair of those as well.

So, I got a wee shock at the cash register, but methinks I still may have scored some decent cigars. What do you think?

Flor de Oliva Maduro

Flor de Oliva maduro robusto
$9/5-pack, Size: 5", Ring: 50
Nicaraguan wrapper, binder, and filler

Yeah, I got goaded into jumping to the Flor de Oliva by the guys at Cigar Jack. After reading their review, and subsequent comments, I decided to smoke one that's been cooling its heels for a week in the humidor.

The maduro wrapper was a dark, chocolate color, with a texture in between toothy and slightly oily. There's a couple pronounced veins, but they didn't look terribly bothersome. After a squeeze, I was left with the impression of a firmly packed cigar.

The first one out of the humi had been unwrapped for a few days, and both layers of cap looked like they were going to peel off. So, I wet the cap generously for a while before punching it, in hopes of avoiding a messy start. The draw was right between medium and almost tight, which wasn't surprising given how firm the cigar felt. The burn line was fairly straight, with first silvery ash staying for almost two inches.

An aroma of mild cocoa rises from the wrapper, and is present in a cold draw. Upon lighting, the flavor is a smooth, mild-bodied mix of roast nuts, hay, and a little cocoa, and there it stays through the first half. At the turn, the flavor changes to a mild, white pepper with the same hay overtone. The pepper flavor lingers on the palate for a medium finish.

This is a better quality cheap, Nicaraguan cigar in terms of smoothness of flavor and burn. Still, I'd rather spend the extra dollar on an Oliva Serie G maduro.

Oliva Serie G Maduro

Oliva Serie G maduro bellicoso
$3.50 (B&M), Size: 5", Ring: 52
Cameroon wrapper, Nicaraguan binder and fillers

I got together with some colleagues for a "city limits" mini-herf, gathering at a pub just beyond the reach of the city's smoking ban. I brought a couple goodies, including this Oliva Serie G and a Gurkha Grand Age (below). I had yet to smoke anything by Oliva, so the Serie G seemed a good place to start.

The Serie G's maduro Cameroon wrapper was dark, smooth, glossy, and had an aroma of cocoa and nut. Box pressed into a squarish presentation, the wrapper seemed supple enough to stand a little pressure, and felt nicely packed.

After nipping the cap, a cold draw found flavors of cocoa and leather. The draw was mildly restrained, but not terribly tight, so the rollers seemed to have done a good job. The silvery white ash, dropping after an inch, and fairly straight burn also attested to the decent construction.

Once the foot started glowing, the smoke had a mild body, with toast and nut flavors to start. Father in, hints of sweet cedar, still mild, appeared. Near the mid point, a leathery flavor established itself. Cedar and leather flavors strengthened to become almost medium-bodied in last third. I didn't notice any pronounced sharp or spicy flavors, just mellow, rounded ones.

Oliva's Serie G maduro is a pleasant mild-medium cigar. I'm going to scrounge a few more for safe keeping.