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(The) Contest Day 24: Cain Special Release 550

Created with a special batch of Ligero, the Nicaraguan puro was one of two limited edition STUDIO TOBAC raffle cigars limited to just 80 boxes of 10 cigars. We’ve already put up the Cain Daytona NUb 460, the other event cigar, and here’s your chance to complete the pair. Brooks smoked one recently to somewhat [...]

Review: Drew Estate BOTL.org 2012

In July of 2010, Pinar Del Río released 4,000 cigars for the  BOTL.org (Brothers of the Leaf) forum. Dubbed the Pinar Del Río BOTL.org Small Batch 2010, the cigar was sold at Burning Leaf Cigars in Illinois, a store forum user Tim Podwika worked at. In 2011, Podwika left the store to start Podman Cigars. He had [...]

(The) Contest Day 23: Drew Estate Cigar Safari Blend (Brooks)

So here’s the deal. I smoked it. Brooks smoked it. You should too, but maybe give it a few months. The Corona Gorda has a great pigtail, but flavor-wise, this probably isn’t Brooks’ greatest, at least now. I know from prior experience some times things from Cigar Safari need time, and as of now we’re [...]

(The) Contest Day 22: León Jimenes Don Fernando No.4

It’s the grandaddy of the Fernando León and not even close to the same cigar, arguably the best cigar to come out of La Aurora’s factory. It’s understated—almost chameleon like—nearly impossible to tell apart from a standard León Jimenes Corona. It was the cigar of the late Don Fernando León Asensio and for the few [...]

(The) Contest Day 21: Illusione Singularé 2010 Phantom

Dion Giolito makes a lot of good cigars and by our estimations, this might be his best. The Singularé Phantom was an unbelievable cigar in a year full of phenomenal creations and set the bar extremely high for the following vitolas of the now annual line. While the Singularés were once an under-the-radar cigar, it’s [...]

(The) Contest Day 20: Liga Privada Único Serie Velvet Rat

There’s not much more I have to say about Velvet Rat that wasn’t in my review, for me, it very well might replace the Dirty Rat as my favorite Liga Privada, even if I think the Dirty Rat is a more complex and overall better cigar. There were only 400 Velvet Rats sold this year, so [...]

(The) Contest Day 19: OpusX Angel’s Share Phantom

Prerelease OpusX. Check. Non-production vitola. Check. Phantom. Check. It’s a brand new OpusX in my personal favorite vitola, Fuente’s Lancero. For more info on the Angel’s Share, read Brooks’ review of the Robusto. For more info on this cigar and how you get one, good luck. Good luck. We mean it. The Facebook post is [...]

Review: Herrera Esteli Toro Especial (Prerelease)

At IPCPR 2012 in Orlando, Florida in August, Drew Estate introduced a new brand made by Willy Herrera, formally of El Titan de Bronze fame. Herrera joined the Drew Estate team in June of 2011 and has been working on the blend bearing his name ever since. The press release about his arrival gives all of the [...]

Review: Cain Daytona NUb 460

Today we’re taking a look at the Cain Daytona NUb which was only available in raffles at STUDIO TOBAC events. The NUb size was first introduced back in 2008 and slowly started being introduced as available sizes in the Cain line. First, the Cain Habano and Maduro blends were released in NUb form and the [...]

(The) Contest Day 18: Drew Estate Cigar Safari Blend (Charlie)

It’s not the infamous el niño diablo Lanceros, but it is a custom blend by your’s truly. Much like Brooks’ blend at Joya de Nicaragua, neither one of us have smoked this yet, so thanks for being the guinea pig. There’s a lot of Nicaraguan tobacco in what appears to be a 5 x 44 [...]