The Cigar Inn

18 years ago, the Sakih brothers: Billy, Gus and Bass, decided that it was time for them to turn one of their life’s passions into something that everybody could enjoy. That passion of course being cigars. But they didn’t want to put up an ordinary, everyday brick and mortar retail outlet. They wanted to build an experience. The true New York Cigar Experience.

Cigar Inn (web), located at 1016 Second Avenue (between 53rd & 54th), New York, NY 10022 is the premiere hot spot for all cigar aficionados residing in the metro area, or just passing through. From their always fully stocked retail space to their lounge which is sponsored by none other than Cigar Aficionado Magazine, the atmosphere of this top shelf establishment is one of a first class operation.

Read the full review of Cigar Inn (NY): Lounge & house blend review...

Amsterdam... what a great city. One of the most beautiful in Europe, in my humble opinion - I love the architecture, the atmosphere, the people - the only thing missing is a national cuisine! :) By the way, if you're planning to visit Amsterdam, I suggest you rent a flat because there are very few hotels, and those are pretty expensive! We had a 100 m² two-bedroom flat for 110 € / night, whereas a friend of ours found himself a 11 m² hotel room for 80 € / night.

For those of you who still want to smoke cigars in Amsterdam (some people forget about their hobby in this city), I selected a couple of places where you can find everything you need. The first one is called P. G. C. Hajenius, it's a huge cigar shop with a long history, located in the heart of Amsterdam (Google Maps >). Even if you don't smoke cigars, it's an interesting place to visit because of its art deco interior that hasn't changed since 1915. The walk-in humidor is exceptional, sellers are professional, you can even visit a tobacco museum. There is also a lounge where you can smoke your cigar and pair it with a selection of drinks:

If you find yourself quite far from the city center and crave a cigar, you can also get one from the Davidoff shop (Google Maps >) and smoke it in the Vondelpark nearby - I believe it's the biggest park in Amsterdam. Again, a walk-in humidor and a wide array of Cuban and non-Cuban sticks.

Of course, do not hesitate to post your favorite cigar places in the comments below.

Update: you might also want to visit the La Casa del Habano Amsterdam, located in The Conservatorium hotel (Google Maps >). Thanks patrickledden for the tip.

Today, July 22nd, is the annual "Smoke a JJ for JJ day". As some of you might know, in 2007 our friend Jerry Cruz from StogieReview.com lost his child, JJ "The Little Robusto" to SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). I am joining him this year in smoking a cigar in JJ's memory. I am lighting up a Ramon Allones Specially Selected, one of my all-time favorite cigars.

I am inviting all of you to spark up a Don Pepin Garcia Series JJ, a special edition Little Robusto or just your favorite cigar and think about the ones you love.

Living in the heart of Europe and having access to low cost airlines make it so easy to visit other countries that it would be a crime not to travel. And there are so many great places to visit in the old world! Rome is often one of the first destinations but for some reason it wasn't until February 2012 that I finally managed to land in the Ciampino airport. I was immediately greeted with a downpour, then a snow storm the next day (apparently it snows every 20 years in Rome, see how lucky I am?). Fortunately, Rome and Italy in general have something that can make bad weather enjoyable. Wine! After having spent two weeks in Venise and Milano last year and one week in Rome in 2012, I came to the conclusion that Italian white wines are damn good and perhaps more uniform in quality than French wines, although they'd have a hard time competing with top of the class French whites like Puligny-Montrachet. As for the red wines, Chianti Classico has a flavor profile that I adore, I just can't get enough of this region.

Emerging from two days of endless wine tastings alternating with short sightseeings under the rain/snow, I remembered that I needed to determine whether there was a place in Rome to buy some cigars. I did prepare my visit and knew that there was a La Casa del Habano in town, but I also wanted to check whether it was possible to find good offerings in regular tabacchi, smoke shops. I randomly entered three of them and was presented with a standard assortiment on tubed Partagas D 4 and Montecristo No. 2. Needless to say, no walk-in humidors. At this very moment my bored girlfriend told me that I had only one more chance left before she headed to the Colosseum without me. I quickly unfolded my map and we marched towards Fincato, the name of Rome's LCDH (exact address: Via della Colonna Antonina, 34, 00186 Roma, Italy Google Maps ->).

The place is classy and luxurious. I am immediately welcomed by a gentleman who tells me to go upstairs where the Cuban cigars sanctuary is located. Indeed, the walk-in humidor is impressive and has all the latest releases like the Ramon Allones Superiores, the Italian regional La Escepcion or the Partagas Serie E No. 2. All the regular cigars are also present - and you can buy singles, too. Overall, a great cigar shops and one I highly recommend if one day you set foot in the eternal city.

In the "Blog Highlights" series, we are taking a look back at the best cigar reviews & articles published on CigarInspector.com in 2011. Enjoy.

Cain cigar reviews

M. Germany and Zack reviewed three Cain cigars in September-October 2011. Zack started with the Cain Habano Double Toro, M. Germany soon followed with a review of the Cain Daytona. Finally, they joined their forces to do a dual review of the Cain Maduro Double Toro.

Aging Room Small Batch

Robustojoe reviewed a Dominican puro called Aging Room Small Batch, made at the Oliveros factory. "The Aging Room Small Batch M356 is the first truly outstanding cigar I’ve smoked in a long time."

"Off the Beaten Path"

M. Germany got a great idea to write about smaller cigar manufacturers: "Over the next several weeks, I will be rating and reviewing several cigars and companies that you most likely have never heard of." The "Off the Beaten Path" series turned out to be a very interesting guide to cigars that one can rarely find in online supermarkets or on B&M shelves. Have you heard about the Antillian Cigars Corp, Clints, Black Patch, Blue Mountain, El Sueno, Achievement?.. Now you did.

In the "Blog Highlights" series, we are taking a look back at the best cigar reviews & articles published on CigarInspector.com in 2011. Enjoy.

Avo 85th Anniversary 2011 Limited Edition

In the beginning of June, I purchased a couple of these cigars when I was in Geneva. The Avo 85th Anniversary LE 2011 is a damn fine smoke both in terms of presentation and flavors. At $17.50 it's not going to make it into my regular rotation though.

Padilla Habano Artisano

This is the kind of cigar that immediately catches your eye in the B&M. That's exactly what happened to Zack who just had to purchase the Padilla Habano Artisano, featuring three different leaves in its wrapper. Unsurprisingly, it didn't exactly taste as good as it looked.

Top cheap smoke: Arturo Fuente Flor Fina 8-5-8

Through the summer, we ran a contest which consisted in telling others about your favorite cheap smokes in a cigar review. You can click here to view all the submissions that were received. The winning review was about a cigar called Arturo Fuente Flor Fina 8-5-8 and it's indeed a great cheap smoke.

In the "Blog Highlights" series, we are taking a look back at the best cigar reviews & articles published on CigarInspector.com in 2011. Enjoy.

Cigar Cartoons

Back in March, we published our first cigar cartoon created by Jerry King. Since then, we published over 35 cigar cartoons and received a lot of positive feedback from our readers.

Raices Cubanas Candela "War"

Two boutique manufacturers, Illusione and Viaje, released their versions of candela wrappers. Aaron decided to find out which one is better. Discover who's the king of the candela.

Punch Rare Corojo 10th Anniversary

Jason reviewed the latest release from Punch, their Rare Corojo 10th Anniversary. Better than the regular Rare Corojo, this full-bodied cigar is a nice value for smokers who seek power over flavor.

In the "Blog Highlights" series, we are taking a look back at the best cigar reviews & articles published on CigarInspector.com in 2011. Enjoy.

Nat Sherman cigar reviews

In January, Nathan started his series (can two reviews be called a series?) of Nat Sherman cigar reviews. He started with the Westside 711 Gotham and, soon after that, reviewed the VIP Carnegie.

Liga Privada "Dirty Rat"

In February, Aaron started his reviews on the blog with a great write-up about the Liga Privada "Dirty Rat". This is how he described the flavors: "Wow!!! That’s all I can say about the flavor of this cigar. I’m more about the flavors than anything else, and this is a winner in my book."

Boutique cigars

Thanks to Robustojoe, we had the pleasure to read a great article about boutique cigars.

At this point in time, cigar making is going through a renaissance, and the boutique cigar business is the engine of its evolution.