Origin: Nicaragua

Build: Nicaraguan binder and filler with Maduro Corojo

Format: Toro

Size:  6″ x 54

Price: $9

This Toro pulled pretty loose, but resisted burning too fast, giving sweet mellow flavours of brown sugar and coffee. It gave off less smoke volume than I was expecting, but the smoke had a wonderful smell to it. Sometimes when I walk in a public place and catch the faint sweet whiff of a cigar, that is how I would describe the smell. As the cigar progressed past the half way mark there was a little area of slow burning, but after that the cigar started developing some wonderful richness and spice, becoming more chewy in flavour and reminding me of eating fresh baking. I started getting a little head rush just into the final 3rd and I finally put the nub to rest after just over an hour of great smoking.

Having entered the phase in my life where it seems most of my close friends and family are now married, and having children, I had lots to reflect upon while getting through this smoke. We’re thinking of you, Don, on this difficult day.  Here’s to the small pleasures, and sorrows, that we share with those we love.

I made a trip down to my local B&M last week to grab a DPG JJ (pictured), which I’ll be smoking on Thursday.  Also, Barry at acigarsmoker.com is generously donating $20 to the American SIDS Institute for every person who emails him (barry at acigarsmoker.com) a photo of themselves smoking a JJ (up to $500).  Don’t forget to pull out the camera in support of this great cause.

Continuing along our  Cigars in History series (via images from the Life Archive), we now cover 1960-1969, including JFK.  If you missed the earlier posts, you can find them here:

Whisky in History — Circa 1900
Whisky in History — 1901-1919
Whisky in History — 1920-1929
Whisky in History — 1930-1939
Whisky in History — 1940-1944
Whisky in History — 1945-1949
Whisky in History — 1950-1959
Whisky in History — 1960 onwards

Cigars in History — Circa 1900
Cigars in History — 1901-1919
Cigars in History — 1920-1929
Cigars in History — 1930-1939
Cigars in History — 1940-1944
Cigars in History — 1945-1949
Cigars in History — 1950-1959

All images © 2010 See Your World LLC. All Rights Reserved

PIO Cigars (previously PIO VI Cigars), a small boutique brand based out of Miami, has recently released the Resurrection — purportedly limited to 500 boxes in 100 brick and mortar stores.  Made in little Havana, Miami, the cigars feature Equadorian, Dominican, and Nicaraguan fillers, Ecuador binder, and a Connecticut Broadleaf maduro wrapper.  Thanks to Jarrod from Tex Cigars for sending me this stick.

At first glance, the cigar had a rugged, splotchy matte appearance, with veins featuring prominently and the foot a little bit abused.  That said, the cigar felt nice and firm, with no lumps or soft spots, and the prelight aroma was very floral.  The cigar lit easily, and burned consistently and smoothly throughout its duration.

Between draws the cigar continues to smoke considerably, filling the air with a peppery and earthy aromatic smoke.  I would call the cigar medium-bodied, with no noticeable nicotine buzz.  The smoke is chalky with bitter overtones, leaving the mouth considerably dry.

The cigar stood out as having a strong, white ash, with a dry bitter flavor profile.  All in all, for $8 a stick, I would probably buy a couple more if given the chance.  PIO was off the market between 2002 and 2007 due to a legal battle, so now that they’re back, don’t hesitate to try them out.  They may be hard to find in your local store, so try online for your best luck.

Whisky in History — Circa 1900
Whisky in History — 1901-1919
Whisky in History — 1920-1929
Whisky in History — 1930-1939
Whisky in History — 1940-1944
Whisky in History — 1945-1949
Whisky in History — 1950-1959

Cigars in History — Circa 1900
Cigars in History — 1901-1919
Cigars in History — 1920-1929
Cigars in History — 1930-1939
Cigars in History — 1940-1944
Cigars in History — 1945-1949

All images © 2010 See Your World LLC. All Rights Reserved

Origin: Nicaragua

Build: Nicaraguan binder and filler with Corojo 99′ wrapper

Format: Delicado

Size:  6″ x 50

Price: $7 CAN

After slicing off the cap with my Palio, the draw was a bit looser than I would have preferred. Sometimes with a larger cigar like this I worry that if the cigar smokes too fast and draws too easy it will be scarred by the head rush it gives.

As it turned out, this Viaje never threw excessive volumes of smoke, in fact it was quite conservative in its attack. It still had plenty of flavour, just never in thick oily quantities.  Those flavours were very typical, caressing the palate with well balanced earth and espresso that grew in intensity throughout the smoke until a slight creaminess at the end. The aroma had a floral edge not dissimilar from a Romeo cuban I smoked recently. There were a few burn issues that had to be fixed manually that you can see in the picture here.The ash itself was as dark as I’ve ever seen in a cigar with only slight white

accents.  Thanks to Texcigars for allowing us to try one of these pleasant smokes.  I would recommend a Viaje Oro to someone looking for a a cigar with textbook Nicaraguan flavours that isn’t too heavy. The thought occurred to me a few times that this cigar, with its band and lighter profile, may find an audience with women smokers. Check out this review at Her Humidor, and further reviews at Nice Tight Ash ,Stogie Life and Cigar Smoker’s Journal.

When I started smoking cigars, I dove in head over heals, spending copious time and money on my newfound passion.  I stocked my recently acquired humidor, purchased a quality lighter and cutter, and made frequent visits to my local tobacconist to absorb any knowledge I could.  I loved every moment of my new hobby, and began to genuinely appreciate the cigar smoking experience. I smoked quite a few cigars those first months.  Alone.  I didn’t think much about it at the time: none of my friends were regular smokers, so the word `herf’ (referring to a get-together to smoke cigars) was not yet in my vocabulary.

Some time later, some friend and I organized a blind whisky tasting at my place, and we decided to finish off the evening with a cigar on the patio.  The whisky tasting went off without a hitch, and the time had come to move outside for a cigar.  Only after each attendee had selected a cigar and took a seat on the patio did I realize my error – I neglected to set up an ashtray.  I quickly furnished a bowl from the kitchen, but the cigars wouldn’t rest on it properly.  I tried a plate, but the ashes blew around in the wind. We ended up holding our cigars in hand, dumping ash all over my patio.  The next morning, after sweeping off the patio, I began my quest for the ultimate ashtray

You can see the rest by ordering the magazine on the Cigars In Review Magazine website.  Also, the first TAG ad (above) appears in the magazine.  Let us know what you think of it.  And yes, that is me in the suit.

Whisky in History — Circa 1900
Whisky in History — 1901-1919
Whisky in History — 1920-1929
Whisky in History — 1930-1939
Whisky in History — 1940-1944
Whisky in History — 1945-1949

Cigars in History — Circa 1900
Cigars in History — 1901-1919
Cigars in History — 1920-1929
Cigars in History — 1930-1939
Cigars in History — 1940-1944

All images © 2010 See Your World LLC. All Rights Reserved