Cusano to Expand

Cusano is gearing up another production facility in the Dominican Republic, to be called DR Global,and primarily for Cusano's newer cigars.

In the first quarter of 2008, brothers Mike and Joe Chiusano will open a global distribution hub in Santiago, Dominican Republic, complete with a rolling gallery for making some of the company's newest lines.

Among the new lines to be rolled at DR Global will be the Cuvée Blanc and Cuvée Rouge. Cusano's cigars had previously been produced at Tabacos Dominicanos, Dominican Republic, by Hendrik Kelner. These include the Cusano Celebrity Series bundle cigars, enjoyed and reviewed here previously; M1, P1, MC, and CC. I seriously doubt I'll get to enjoy the fruits of this new venture, as the Cuvée range are well out of my budget.

h/t Cigar Aficionado

Favorite Cigar Smokers, no. 1

G.K. Chesterton: Writer, philosopher, and cigar smoker.

" Nobody who has an abstract standard of right and wrong can possibly think it wrong to smoke a cigar."

—G.K. Chesterton

from “On American Morals”

National Brand

National Brand toro
$2.35, Size: 6", Ring:50
Honduran wrapper, binder, and fillers

The National Brand cigar is a long-filler Honduran cigar at a short-filler price. The stick has a triple cap, and a mildly veined wrapper, which is pretty brittle. The cigar burns fairly straight, with a dove-gray ash, and medium draw. The cap area is sweetened, somehow, and so really tries to mask the fairly mild and non-descript Honduran filler. The sweetness makes me think that the makers are trying to hide a skanky blend, or make the smoker think that this is a long, fat Swisher. Which isn't bad for a poker game. Overall, this is an unexceptional cigar, but the sweetened cap may put some off.

Incoming Cigars for Christmas

I've got some new cigars heading my way, and I'll try and review one or two before Christmas. It's been cold out, and hard to get a chance to really smoke in comfort.

Here's what's coming:

Rocky Patel Vintage 1992 toro
Perdomo Lot 23 maduro churchill
Indian Tabac Cameroon Legends maduro toro
Sherpa toro
Pirate's Gold no. 2 maduro toro
Tierra del Sol (by Perdomo) maduro robusto

Th Rocky Patel cigars, and the Perdomos, would be priced $5 to $7 single retail, but they're much cheaper when bought by the 5-pack online or via CBid. They ran about $4/each including shipping.

The Sherpa, Pirate's Gold, and Tierra del Sol cigars would be in the $1 to $3 range, which is right up my usual alley.

If anyone has a preference of what they want to hear about first, let me know. I'm probably going to dive straight for the Vintage 1992 first, followed by the Tierra. The Perdomo churchill may have to wait for spring, unless I can get a local micro-herf together during the Holidays.

Cigar Review Contest

Ladies and Germs, start your cigars!(and don't forget to write a bit about them)The Cigar Inspector is having a cigar review contest, with the grand prize being a St Dupont X-Tend lighter! Smoke if you've got 'em.

Cusano CC

Cusano CC robusto

$3.50 , Size: 5", Ring: 50
Equadorian Sumatra wrapper, Dominican filler

This is a good, solid example of a cigar: Well made, easy draw, and good flavor. The CC has a smooth, medium wood/cedar taste, with a faintly peppery finish. It never gets overtly spicy, and consistently maintains it's flavor from foot to band. While a shade darker than a Connecticut wrapper, the CC's wrapper has a full-bodied flavor of its own. It reminds me of a Monticristi Cohiba (Dominican).

Cusano, with the assistance of Henke Kelner, is making some nice bundle cigars. They're as good as many in boxes, and are a good smoke for the price. There's a spot in my humidor for these.

Gurkha G-Series, Blend no. 44

Gurkha G-Series, Blend no. 44 cigarello
$16 for a tin of 10, Size: 4", Ring: 24ish

It's getting cold outside, so it's time to look for quicker smokes. I found a tin of these Gurkha cigarellos at the local shop and decided to give them a shot. These are long-filler, which isn't quite a challenge for such a short cigar.

The first one out of the tin had a draw tighter than slurping a milkshake through a coffee stirrer. The inch I smoked before abandoning hope was nicely flavored, medium-bodied with cedar and cocoa notes and subtle spice. The second cigarello from the tin was as tight as the first, even after a light massage and poking through it with an unwound paperclip. I smoked about an inch of it before giving up. 'Tis a shame, as it was a flavorful smoke, what little I could get.

The third time's a charm, and finally got one out of the tin that would draw. It's a nice-bodied, robust smoke that lasts about 20 - 30 minutes.