David Savona Most Recent Comments: See Also: The CRA Freedom Tour—Day ThreePosted: 02:33 PM ET, August 22, 2008 Chicago: It’s one of my favorite places in the entire world. Now that we no longer can do a Cigar Aficionado Big Smoke, I don’t travel here very often, so I was happy to get back to the Windy City.
After joining up with the rest of the team at the hotel lobby, those of us who weren’t too exhausted from the road headed out to Jack Schwartz and Iwan Reis, a pair of great Chicago retailers. We puffed away on cigars (naturally) and I joined Litto Gomez in a La Flor Dominicana 2000 Series No. 3, a great small smoke. Jack Schwartz is a small shop with a phenomenal selection, and a couple of smoking chairs plus a rail with chairs. Iwan Reis is a gargantuan shop, with a new smoking lounge that’s very spacious. Half the cigar industry was in there yesterday—Christian Eiroa, Nick Perdomo, Tim Ozgener, Litto Gomez, Jorge Padrón, Robert Levin, Peter Baenninger, Ernesto Perez-Carrillo, Jose Oliva, Rocky Patel, Jonathan Drew, and the CRA organizer Keith Park.
Being in Chicago means I need to stop in the Italian Village, a homey, old school red-sauce Italian near the financial district. I ordered pasta arribirata with meatballs. The sauce was great, and the meatballs were absolutely perfect.
The last time I went to Italian Village I smoked right at my seat, but that’s all gone now. My brother called me in the middle of lunch. When I told him who I was with, he asked if I was smoking a cigar. I told him we couldn’t smoke in Chicago restaurants anymore. “That’s why you’re on the tour, right?” he said.
That’s precisely why we’re on the tour, and that late afternoon we rallied 500 cigar smokers to the CRA cause. Half the group went to Up Down Cigars, run by the wonderful Diana Silvius-Gits. I went with the other half to 8 to 8 Cigars.
The crowd was inspired at 8 to 8, and the store was packed with cigar smokers. Read more
The CRA Freedom Tour - Day TwoPosted: 02:50 PM ET, August 21, 2008 Wednesday morning in New York City’s LaGuardia Airport had the elements of a mini Big Smoke, minus the cigars. Sitting in a lounge, waiting on a delayed flight to Milwaukee were Jorge Padrón, Jonathan Drew, Litto Gomez, Ernesto Perez-Carrillo, Robert Levin, Peter Banninger, Charlie Toraño and Eric Newman, along with myself. We were chatting about Tuesday’s dinner that kicked off the Cigar Rights of America tour, and eager to take off on the second leg of the show. We were also eager to fire up cigars, but we couldn’t. Talk about punishment—each guy in the group was carrying dozens of cigars, but we couldn’t light up…yet!
When the plane touched down in Milwaukee, half of us went straight for the Starbucks counter in the airport. Almost every cigar guy I know is a coffee guy as well, and half this group needs espresso like an old car needs motor oil. Refreshed, we headed to our hotel.
We lit up right outside the hotel. Jorge Padrón handed me a tidy Padrón Serie 1926 No. 6, and I was ready to go. The game plan was to get a quick bite then head to Western Lakes golf course for the CRA event where a group of Milwaukee-area cigar smokers were about to have the cigar night of their lives.
So why Milwaukee? The immediate area is home to a group of very motivated cigar retailers who joined together to create a group called C-SAW (the Cigar Store Alliance of Wisconsin). They fought tooth-and-nail to squash a Draconian cigar tax that would have made premium cigars extremely expensive.
The C-SAW group did a great job of getting out the word on CRA, and about 225 people joined us at the golf course. They puffed cigars and tucked into a few hearty brats. How could you come to Milwaukee and not have a bratwurst? It was my first visit to the city, so I made sure I had one.
I know everyone in this group very well, but spending time on the road is causing us to bond even more. Read more
The CRA Tour - Getting StartedPosted: 03:46 PM ET, August 20, 2008 Last night I joined about 300 people who lit up smokes in the name of fighting for their right to enjoy a fine cigar. We stood atop the Hudson Terrace rooftop lounge on the West Side of Manhattan, getting the Cigar Rights of America Freedom Tour started in style. With an open bar and plenty of fine cigars, the cigar industry got things going in fine fashion.
“It’s humbling to see the amount of people here who are passionate about their right to smoke cigars,” said Michael Herklots, general manager of the Davidoff shops in Manhattan, while holding a smoldering cigar in his hand. His and other shops in New York City and Philadelphia sold tickets to the show.
The lions of the cigar industry were the stars of the night—Carlos Fuente Jr. spoke about the passion of making cigars, and the right for consumers to enjoy them in peace. “Long live the cigar—and long live our freedom!” he said.
Christian Eiroa, maker of Camacho Cigars and the one credited by his fellow comrades with thinking up the idea for the tour, asked the crowd: “When was the last time you smoked a cigar in a bar? There’s a very important aspect for us being here.”
Litto Gomez, the hat-wearing maker of La Flor Dominicana cigars, said “Are we going to let the anti-smoking people continue to kick our asses?” The crowd shouted “No.” Gomez promised: “The CRA is going to put up a big fight.”
The CRA was formed by Keith Park, owner of God of Fire cigars and Prometheus, and Jeff Borysiewicz, owner of Corona Cigar Co. Backed by most of the best-known premium cigarmakers in the world, the CRA is a consumer organization hoping to fight for the rights of cigar smokers across the United States.
“Our biggest enemy is complacency,” said Jorge Padrón, maker of Padrón Cigars.
It was a beautiful night, with just a hint of the coming fall in the clear air, and each manufacturer auctioned off rare boxes of their cigars to the happy crowd. Read more
Some Musings From ManoloPosted: 11:45 AM ET, August 19, 2008 Yesterday Manuel Quesada, known to all in the cigar industry as Manolo, came by the office with his daughter Raquel. They’re in town from Santiago, Dominican Republic, for tonight’s opening gala of the Cigar Rights of America Freedom Tour.
We spent a little time smoking their phenomenal new Fonseca Cubano Viso Fuerte. Forget everything you know about Fonseca cigars. This one is different. It’s high-octane and deliciously rich, with a hint of raisiny sweetness. That extra sweet taste comes from a little bit of Connecticut broadleaf filler that Manolo has in there. Lovely stuff.
Manolo said the new cigar is off to a robust start, but he wasn’t terribly pleased that he was short of supply due to the high demand for the smoke and difficulty of obtaining the wrapper from Nicaragua. (Every silver lining has a cloud somewhere, right?) If you see one of these cigars around, give them a try.
Right before we had lunch, we started talking about aging cigar tobacco, and I remembered an old conversation I had with Manolo in the Dominican Republic many years ago. Back then, I thought aging cigar tobacco simply meant that you left bales of fermented tobacco in a room, alone, unwatched. Not so. Even while the tobacco is aging, it needs work—the bales need to be moved around to balance temperatures, the tobacco needs to be fumigated (every three months, says Manolo) left tobacco beetles have a field day with the precious leaves…you get the idea.
I thought it was worth mentioning here: even a seemingly easy part of making cigars—letting tobacco age—isn’t that simple. It’s just another thing that needs to be done properly to ensure that your cigars taste and perform the way you expect, each and every time.
Going on TourPosted: 11:44 AM ET, August 08, 2008 Back in my college days I was the lead singer in a rock band. My hair was a lot longer, I was a lot thinner, and I certainly was a lot braver because I howled my brains out in front of packed houses all the time. (OK, the houses weren’t really packed, but let’s say I sang in front of dozens of people here and there. You get the point.) We won the Battle of the Bands, but we never made it to the big time and never had a tour.
In two weeks I’m going to live the dream and go on tour—only this time it’s a cigar tour rather than a rock tour. The Cigar Rights of America is drumming up support for cigar smokers’ rights, and to get the organization started some of the most familiar faces in the cigar world are heading on the road for a series of smoker nights. And I’m going with them.
Carlos Fuente Sr. and Jr., Ernesto Perez-Carrillo, Avo Uvezian, Jorge Padrón, Rocky Patel, Litto Gomez, Robert Levin, Tim Ozgener, Manuel Quesada, Charlie Toraño, Jose Oliva, Jonathan Drew, Pete Johnson, Keith Park, Nick Perdomo, Christian Eiroa, Eric Newman, Peter Banninger and Paolo Garzaroli have signed up for the tour. It starts on August 19 in New York City, then on August 20 the team splits up, with half the group (including myself) going to Milwaukee, the other half going to Minneapolis. We’ll all be in Chicago on August 21, split into two groups for a pair of events, and then we’ll fly en masse to Orlando on the 22nd for the final stop on the tour.
Each stop will have plenty of great smokes and a place where you can actually smoke them. Some of the tour events include dinner and all have music. Visit the CRA website for detailed information.
If you can, you really should try to make it to one (or some) of these smoker nights. Not only will you get a chance to meet some of the best cigarmakers in the world, you’ll be supporting the right to enjoy your cigars in the future. Read more
A Pleasant Surprise From the Trade ShowPosted: 04:37 PM ET, July 30, 2008 I’m back in the office after the IPCPR trade show (and a little vacation), and I sat down today and went through my huge Humidipak bag that I had stuffed with goodies from the show. I smoked three new cigars, and one was a really nice gem that I didn’t expect.
First, I lit up the new G.A.R. from George Rico, who makes Gran Habano cigars with his father, Guillermo. G.A.R. stands for George A. Rico, and I was looking forward to trying it because I really enjoy the Gran Habano brand.
This one looked great, with a dark, oily wrapper, which looked wonderful on this thick cigar, but I really didn’t enjoy it. It’s musky and very, very earthy, and it was missing the refinement and balance a good cigar needs. I need to try another at some point.
The Gurkha Black Dragon, which is made in Honduras by the Toraños for Beach Cigar, has a real odd look. The wrapper is a pretty dark (probably Mexican San Andres Negro) but the last 3/4 of an inch is exposed binder. I’m not a fan of this style of cigarmaking. The start (which has no influence from the wrapper leaf) is rather dry and one dimensional, but once you get down to the wrapper leaf, it takes on a pleasant, sweet, nutty flavor with a nice little kick to it. It turns out to be a good cigar—I’d prefer it without the gimmicky exposed bunch.
The last cigar I smoked was the Arganese CL3 Torpedo. We just wrote this cigar up in the latest Cigar Insider, which has part one of our coverage from the trade show. The cigar is a Dominican puro, and the wrapper, according to the company, is sungrown in the Dominican Republic from corojo seed.
It sure doesn’t look like sungrown wrapper, but I couldn’t care less—this thing is hands-down the best Arganese cigar I’ve smoked. It’s balanced, nutty, and semi-sweet, with a bold, spicy backbone to the smoke. Read more
A Long Awaited Favorite Debuts at IPCPRPosted: 10:13 AM ET, July 21, 2008 I remember when Ernesto Perez-Carrillo first told me about his La Gloria Cubana Artesanos de Miami. I’m pretty sure it was in New York at Cigar Aficionado’s Night to Remember dinner two years ago. I was sitting at the General Cigar table, we got to chatting, and he handed me a prototype and told me it was a new project he was working on.
I know Ernie and his Miami factory very well—that spot on Calle Ocho was the very first cigar factory I ever visited, when I was on my rookie trip for Cigar Aficionado magazine. (At the time, he handed me some ballsy El Rico Habano lonsdales that were so strong they nearly ended my cigar career, or so it seemed! But that’s a story for another blog.) So let’s just say I was eager to smoke the new cigars.
They’re finally ready. At last week’s trade show, I sat down with Ernie and Michael Giannini of General to take a look at the final product. “It’s going to come out this week,” Ernie said, opening a box of Churchill-sized smokes called Elegantes. The packaging is gorgeous, with a newly designed La Gloria band and bright, clear and regal artwork. Take a look at the video I shot:
I lit up an Elegante and listened to Mike. “This is the original boutique guy in the industry,” he said, nodding to Ernie. “Before anybody knew what boutique was.”
The Elegante, which measures 6 7/8 by 49 ring, is leathery, with lots of hardwood notes, coffee, and a long and smooth finish with a touch of cedar. Absolutely great cigar. Ernie outdid himself.
I found another great cigar at the SAG booth, run by Manuel Quesada, maker of Fonseca cigars. I don’t know what’s gotten into the old, mild cigar guard at this show but they all seem to be boosting their blends. First General took Macanudo and injected some serious flavor, now Manolo has taken the traditionally mild Fonseca blend and turned it into a flavor powerhouse with the Fonseca Cubano Viso Fuerte. Read more
A Lovely Fuente and Other New CigarsPosted: 02:41 PM ET, July 17, 2008 I know it won’t be easy to get sympathy here, but sometimes I have a hard job. And my job is never tougher than when it comes time to get info on new cigars from the Fuentes.
Now the Fuentes are great people, and Carlos Fuente Jr. and Wayne Suarez are dear friends of mine. But they just don’t release new cigars all that often, and when they do they don’t really want to talk about them. When I went to their booth the other day with James Suckling, I felt a little like a White House reporter trying to get information from a Bush administration press secretary. We talked about our families, we talked about our lives, but what about the new cigars?
Finally I saw something—a red, heart shaped cigar box under glass. Hmmm. Next to it was a mini-box of perfectos that looked like big Short Stories. Hmmm. With Fuente Fuente OpusX bands, and a secondary band reading 2006. Hmmm! What’s that? I asked. Turns out it’s a new size of Fuente Fuente OpusX called Love Story. Carlito originally made it for his parent’s 55th wedding anniversary. I was able to twist his arm and get him to talk about it while Suckling filmed. Check it out.
Carlito said it will probably be out for the holidays. I didn’t get a chance to smoke one, but I hope to soon. Fuente makes incredible shaped cigars, so I’m sure this will be something to remember. (And they actually have some other new smokes coming out. I'll explain fully in upcoming issues of Cigar Insider.)
I did smoke another My Father cigar from Pepin Garcia, when Suckling and I sat down with him and his son, Jaime. This was one of the best cigars of the show, hands down. Pepin showed me the My Father Lancero, which has a short pigtail. I’ve never seen a cigar in Nicaragua with this level of construction. Read more
Monday at IPCPRPosted: 08:32 PM ET, July 14, 2008 The International Premium Cigar and Pipe Retailers trade show began today at 10 a.m., and I’ve been smoking since opening bell. I have a notebook full of scribbles on new cigars that I’m going to share with you.
My first smoke was the new Aroma de Cuba Edicion Especial from Nicaragua that I wrote about online and in Cigar Insider. I was asked in the forums if this meant an end to the original Aroma de Cuba, which is made in Honduras. Nope. “It’s not a replacement for the original,” said Ashton vice president Sathya Levin. “We wanted to strengthen and round out the La Aroma de Cuba brand.” He handed me a short robusto. It’s made by Pepin Garcia with a middle priming Ecuador wrapper grown from Cuban seed, and Nicaraguan filler and binder. It was mild to medium bodied, a bit floral, with a honeyed character to it, and some creaminess. Very tasty. Just what the doctor ordered for the morning. There’s also a new Ashton ESG, a pyramid size, but it’s not going to be ready all that soon. They hope to have it out for the holidays.
Here’s a shocker—Davidoff now has a maduro cigar, the first Davidoff white label ever. It comes in only one size, a longer (and darker) version of the Special R. The wrapper is Nicaraguan leaf. It has some sweet coffee notes, a smack of vanilla and a bit of a mushroom note on the finish. It starts shipping today, and will have a suggested retail of $15.50.
C.A.O. has a bunch of new smokes. I tried a robusto format of the new Lx2, a Nicaraguan puro with quite a kick. I liked it a lot. I think it’s the strongest C.A.O. I’ve ever had. There’s plenty of licorice and black pepper, with syrupy coffee, like a good café Cubano on the finish. I found it pleasant, rich and balanced. The company also has two samplers, including one called C.A.O. Champions that has 10 of the cigars that were rated highest in Cigar Aficionado. It comes in a snazzy red vinyl case. Read more
Trade Show Blog—First SmokesPosted: 12:04 PM ET, July 14, 2008 First things first—I keep calling this IPCPR trade show by its old name, RTDA, so from now on I’m just going to say “trade show.” Problem solved.
It’s Monday morning here in Las Vegas, and in one hour the trade show begins. I arrived last night on a delayed flight from New York and met up with a big group of cigarmakers eating outside at Bouchon, Thomas Keller’s restaurant in the Venetian Hotel. I tucked into a plate of steak frites, ordered a Martini and fired up my first cigar.
Michael Chiusano, owner of the Cusano and Cuvée brands, gave me smoke No. 1. It’s the new Cusano 59, which is the final incarnation of the Cameroon-wrapped perfecto I smoked with him early this year in the Dominican Republic. It’s a fine smoke, much as I remembered—very toasty, just a bit sweet on the finish and with a pleasant, earthy spiciness. It was a nice starter smoke.
After the steak, I was ready for a strong cigar, and I found something I absolutely love. Pepin Garcia handed me his latest, My Father, in about a 6 3/4 inch long size with a tapered head. I cut it and lit it, and immediately I felt a big blast of power. Wow! I think this may be Pepin’s strongest smoke ever, or maybe almost as strong as the Tatuaje Cazadore he makes for Pete Johnson. Here are my notes, straight from my notebook: Big!! Spicy!! That’s some cigar.
There’s a lot more to say, but I have to get to the show. James Suckling is firing up a blog now as well. We’re going to keep you covered from top to bottom on this show, so stay tuned.
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