Cigar Blog

This weekend Rocky Patel showed up at Famous Smoke Shop headquarters for an in-store event on Saturday. By the time I got there the place was pretty packed; most of the customers were seated outside. Rocky was his usual gracious self, shaking hands, schmoozing with fans, and signing boxes.

Knowing I was going to stop by to pay my respects, I brought with me a Cargo, a new Rocky Patel cigar Hal had passed on to me from the IPCPR show. It was a 6" x 58 monster with the coolest-looking red, retro band. It immediately reminded me of a Havana cigar you might have bought at the neighborhood cigar store during the 1940's and 50's (see the photos).  It doesn't say by Rocky Patel on it, but then, it doesn't have to.

This is the first time in eight years that I will not be attending the IPCPR trade show, which is taking place as I write this. I'm not trolling for sympathy. The reason I bring that up is because each year from the show I announce my "first cigar of the show," and every year it's a cigar from General Cigar Corp. The first few years were just a coincidence, and it eventually became a tradition. So, even though I'm not at the show this week, in the Cigar Advisor tradition, this past Sunday I smoked the new Macanudo Maduro Vintage 1997 Perfecto.

Among the attendees at the recent Famous Smoke Shop Cigar Expo 2010 were Flor De Gonzalez Cigars. And among the cigars they handed out was their new 90 Miles selection. I was given a couple of 90 Miles Churchills by Yadi Gonzalez and promised her I'd review sometime before the upcoming IPCPR trade show. So here goes…

The 90 Miles Churchill weighs-in at 7" x 48. Made in Nicaragua, the blend consists of an all-Nicaraguan longfiller core with a Rosado-hued Habano wrapper grown in Ecuador.

The wrapper was a bit veiny with only one obvious protruder, but it had a nice healthy sheen overall. The cap clipped off cleanly in a perfectly round circle.

This past Saturday, George Sosa, national sales director for Alec Bradley Cigars, and regional sales rep, Barry Blonder, stopped by the Famous Smoke Shop retail store for an in-store event.  I'm sure they were glad to be inside, too. Pushing 98 degrees with killer humidity, I think it was the hottest day of the summer so far in the Lehigh Valley. Yet, despite the heat, the store had a pretty good turnout.

George offered me an Alec Bradley Family Blend VR1, a 5½" x 50 Robusto, and if my memory serves me correctly, that was the original and only size offered until April of this year when they expanded the line to five sizes. I hadn't smoked one in a while, so it was good to kick back and chat with George and Barry and some of the regulars while enjoying this rich-tasting, medium-bodied cigar.

One of the perks of working in the premium cigar business is you get to sample cigars that are being tested for future release - maybe even one of the next "Top 25 Cigars."

Such was the case a few weeks ago when Rocky Patel and his posse rode into town for the Famous Cigar Expo 2010. After the event closed shop, I had the chance to hangout with Rocky, et. al., who offered me an attractive-looking, square-pressed cigar with a white sample band imprinted with the working title, "L#5 HABANO."