Origin : United States
Format : Robusto
Size : 5 x 50
Wrapper : Nicaraguan Corojo Oscuro
Filler : Nicaragua
Binder : Nicaragua
Hand-Made
Price : ~$6-7 each
More info about purchasing Don Pepin Garcia JJ cigars...

Today was yet another beautiful day in my tundra paradise. Not feeling like a particularly long smoke I reached for the Don Pepin Garcia JJ White Label that has been resting in my desktop for just over a month. I had been looking forward to this one for a while because I cannot seem to find enough smokes in the shorter vitolas.

First inspection shows a wrapper that is a bit more vein laden than I would like. Some of them are quite pronounced begging to affect razor edged burns. Despite this, the seams are unpronounced and the cap is nice and secure. Moving to the foot I notice two fairly pronounced dents that can only be described as pencil eraser sized divots. This leads me to believe that this one is under filled. Pinching from the head to the foot reveals a solid cigar with slight give. Unfortunately, there are two very significant soft spots. One is 2 inches from the foot and the other is right about where the larger band is located.

Read the full review of Don Pepin Garcia Series JJ Robusto...

Origin : Miami, FL
Format : Robusto
Size : 5 x 50
Wrapper : Nicaragua
Filler : Nicaragua
Binder : Nicaragua
Hand-Made
Price : ~$10-11 each
More info about purchasing Tatuaje J21 Reserva cigars...

Please welcome Joe K, our new reviewer. Here is a short intro that he wrote:

Joe K calls the upper Midwest home, currently residing in Wisconsin with his wife. Although he smoked cigars on and off throughout the past 8 years or so, it was not until this past year that he grew a certain affinity for them. While traveling, he mentioned to a business associate that he was looking for some cigars for his mates in light of his upcoming nuptials. That business associate generously gave him a La Riqueza #3. Finding it and the following two so enjoyable, Joe went out and bought a box of the La Riqueza #3's the very next day. Most enjoyable for him are Medium to Full bodied smokes that offer a lot of complexity and flavor changes.

Today, he reviews a Tatuaje J21 Reserva. Enjoy!

If I can say one thing about Tatuaje, it is that they are very confident in their product. Instead of relying on overly flashy bands and packaging, the cigars are allowed to do their own talking and the J21 does not stray. The standard solid brown background, adorned with the Tatuaje signature and Fleur de Lys, is very unassuming. The only indication that this is a unique smoke is the addition of a second “Reserva” band, which adds some definition but is still remarkably simple.

Having received this stick from a fellow BOTL who somehow managed to let this one sit for a while, I was not surprised to notice the buildup of plume on this cigar. A very nice sheen presented itself on the surface of the wrapper due to the delicious oils coming forward. A prominent smell of pepper came through when testing the foot.

Read the full review of Tatuaje J21 Reserva...

Origin : USA
Format : Robusto
Size : 5 x 50
Wrapper : Connecticut Broadleaf (Maduro)
Filler : Nicaragua/Mexico
Hand-Made
Price : $147.99 for a box of 20 

The PIO Resurrection line is a new release from PIO cigars based in Miami, FL. Alberto Medina came back to the cigar market after some legal issues with the PIO Overture 1996. The Resurrection line comes in three vitolas: a Churchill, a Torpedo, and the featured Robusto. The cigars are box-pressed which can be seen by the cigar’s perfect square shape.

Read the full review of PIO Resurrection Robusto...

Origin : USA
Format : Churchill
Size : 7 x 50
Wrapper : Sumatra
Filler : Nicaragua
Binder : Nicaragua
Hand-Made
Price : $214.99 for a box of 25
More info about purchasing Cuban Crafters Medina 1959 cigars...

Thank you to Cuban Crafters for providing me with a sampler to try.

The cigars are rolled by a team of 10 rollers in Miami, rather than at Cuban Crafters' main facility in Nicaragua. This line seems to be the most premium offered by Cuban Crafters and has earned some nice reviews around the web, so I was looking forward to giving them a try.

Read the full review of Cuban Crafters Medina 1959 Miami Churchill...

Origin : Miami, FL
Format : Torpedo
Size : 6 3/4 x 52
Wrapper : Nicaraguan Habano Maduro
Filler : Nicaragua
Binder : Nicaragua
Hand-Made
Price : ~$13 each
More info about purchasing Tatuaje cigars...

Pete Johnson, brand owner of Tatuaje, has been releasing annual special edition cigars around Halloween he calls the Monster Series. One of this year's releases, and the subject of this review, is the Drac-2009. Before I go any further, let me address some major issues which have surrounded this cigar. The Dracs were shipped in painted and lacquered, coffin shaped boxes which have been at the root of the primary complaint. There have been numerous complaints about a terrible odor emanating from the box and even some about that odor and even a flavor having been imparted to the cigars themselves. The Drac is a Halloween themed cigar which of course, had to be released by 31 October, but according to Pete Johnson the box maker in Nicaragua wasn't able to complete the boxes until shortly before the release date. This resulted in the boxes not having time to air out before they were packed, wrapped in cellophane, and ultimately shipped. When opened by B&Ms or individual buyers at their final destination, the trapped odor from the paint and lacquer has poured out. The second complaint about these cigars is that many of the wrappers were damaged when the boxes were opened and the cigars were still "wet."

Read the full review of Tatuaje the Drac...

Origin : Miami, FL
Format : Torpedo
Size : 7 x 49
Wrapper : Nicaragua
Filler : Nicaragua
Binder : Nicaragua
Hand-Made
Price : ~$11-13 each
More info about purchasing Tatuaje Cojonu cigars...

This cigar is the fourth in the Cojonu series and was released earlier this year. They are rolled at DPG's El Rey de Los Habanos factory in Miami, FL.

Read the full review of Tatuaje Cojonu 2009...

Origin : USA
Format : Corona
Size : 5 1/8” x 42
2006 Wrapper : Aged Nicaraguan Corojo Ligero (Cojonu Wrapper)
2009 Wrapper : Nicaraguan Sun Grown Broadleaf
Filler : Nicaraguan
Binder : Nicaraguan
Hand-Made
Price : $10+
More info about purchasing Tatuaje cigars...

2009 has seen an exciting expansion to the Tatuaje brand with lots of new cigars including some new additions to the Reserva line of the Brown Label Tatuajes. Pete Johnson’s seemingly ever broadening use of the sun grown broadleaf wrapper found its way onto two new Tatuaje Reserva cigars. The Reserva Regios and the Reserva Noellas. The new Reserva Noellas are particularly intriguing to me because this is not the first time there has been a Reserva Noella.

Read the full review of Showdown: Tatuaje Reserva Noellas – 2006 vs 2009...

Origin : USA
Format : Lancero
Size : 7.50 x 42
Wrapper : Nicaraguan Corojo
Binder : Nicaragua
Filler : Nicaragua
Hand-Made
Price : ~$10 each
More info about purchasing Padilla Miami cigars...

The cigars for this review were kindly provided by CigarsDirect.com, your source for premium cigars.

This review concerns the new Padilla Miami, rolled at the Fabrica de Tobacos de Padilla in Miami. It sports a new band (you can see the old band in Jerry’s review) but it seems like the blend hasn’t changed and the moving was caused by Padilla’s desire to reduce costs by controlling the production (Don Pepin Garcia, the previous blender, being quite busy with other cigars might have also played its role). I haven’t tried the old blend so I will not be able to compare the two – consider it as a regular review.

Read the full review of Padilla Miami Lancero...