Diamond Crown Robusto #5

Harsens Island, Michigan is located at the top of Lake St. Clair near the mouth of the St. Clair River. Less than an hour from Detroit, the only way to get there from the mainland (other than boat or small plane) is by five-minute ferry ride. With no fast-food restaurants, no gas stations and only one bar open year-round (two in the summer), Harsens Island nonetheless remains popular for its hunting, fishing, wildlife, freighter watching, and a host of other sights. The largest freshwater delta in the Great Lakes Basin, the majority of the island and surrounding areas are protected wetlands. With only 1,300 year-round residents occupying 19 square miles, and because of the absence of any bridge, the island retains an isolated charm. And the locals like it that way!

If my fellow cigar-smoking brethren are reading this and exclaiming, “Dang, that sounds like a great place to have a family cottage – I’d go there every weekend and smoke cigars!” You’d be correct. And that is how I came to find myself this past Memorial weekend, Saturday night; just a mile from my cottage at the Sans Souci (French for “without a worry”) Bar located along the shipping channel of Harsens Island, with a Diamond Crown Robusto in my hand just begging to be smoked. (Note: As of May 1 the State of Michigan smoking ban went into effect. You can’t smoke inside the Sans Souci, of course, however outside of the bar just beyond their property line you can smoke at one of the many picnic tables located along the waterway).

Pre-light/pre-cut inspection proudly displayed a solid fireplug of a stick with a smooth, shiny golden wrapper. This 5-year old wrapper undergoes multiple fermentation processes, giving it a unique taste filled with sweet, rich flavors. The cigar band is an unassuming affair of muted red, yellow, and gold colors, with the titular crown in the center. Mouth salivating, I made my customary perfect cut and took a pre-light draw. The cold draw flavor profile presented itself as a bit nutty with a touch of cedar. I had a good feeling about this cigar. When Diamond Crown cigars first came out they wanted to be a thick cigar for the experienced aficionado, so all Diamond Crown cigars were created with a minimum 54 ring gauge. They claim the larger ring would “allow for their proprietary blending of 6-7 individual tobacco leaves; an extremely complex mix of Dominican tobaccos.” That sounded good to me. Grabbing my trusty Xikar double-jet torch lighter, I settled in and lit the fuse…

Ah sweet nectar, once again I suckle at your teat ™! Introductory puffs rewarded me with a mouthful of rich creamy smoke that coated the palate. I detected almond with maybe a touch of black cherry vying for my attention. I ambled into the sweet spot, and a buttered toast note entered the mix along with hints of black pepper. For a supposedly medium-bodied cigar this Diamond Crown Robusto was bursting with flavor. The draw remained ideal and the burn rapier-sharp as I entered the home stretch. Just beyond the break wall, barely visible in the moonlight and a stones-throw away, an iron ore freighter slipped silently up the channel. A ghostly behemoth bound for the Great Lakes and parts north. Into the finish I was rewarded with a smooth blend of toast, wood, cedar and coffee. As I savored the final puffs beneath a canopy of stars, I settled into a nice peaceful repose, reflecting upon the true meaning of Memorial Day: commemorating the men and women of our military who have made supreme sacrifices on our behalf.

To sum up: At around $12 for a 4 ½ inch Robusto the Diamond Crown begins to creep beyond my fiscal comfort range. However, for a medium-bodied cigar it boasted a tapestry of delicious flavors; it had some depth but was not overpowering. A gift from the missus, this particular stick rested for near 90 days in my humidor, and had no construction, draw or burn issues. While probably not an everyday smoke for me – and that’s based solely on price – I will most certainly revisit this brand again.

Grade: A-

Happy Memorial Day!

Los Blancos Sumatra Robusto

This was a gratis stick (“gratis” is Latin for “free” by the way…) courtesy of David Blanco himself – Vice President of Los Blancos Cigar Company – back in Jan. ’09 as a replacement cigar for a rare dud (re: no draw) given me by a friend. A polite, well-worded e-mail to the company was followed by a prompt reply back from Mr. Blanco, then all I had to do was provide him the name of my local tobacconist and go in and pick out a Los Blancos Cigar of my choosing. David took care of the rest. You gotta love that kind of customer service! Not being greedy, I chose the Los Blancos Sumatra Robusto; a double-banded sparkplug of a cigar that was a welcome reprieve from the very mild cigars I have been smoking lately. I let this Robusto nap in my humidor for almost a year-and-a-half. Last night the hot weather broke here in the metro Detroit area, and a cool breeze was blowing in from the south. Seemed like a perfect night for a solo contemplative patio smoke. With my trusty dog “Stogie” at my feet, I settled in with a cold beer.

Pre-light assessment displayed a good-looking medium-brown cigar with a slightly sandy wrapper. The red-and-gold regal looking bands (one at the head and one at the foot) have some type of shielded blue crest on them. Fancy. The company website boasts: “These cigars are masterfully blended with tobacco from the Blanco’s family’s fields in the Jalapa (Nicaragua) and Jamastran (Honduras) Valleys. These complex elements are then united using a Sumatran wrapper imported from Indonesia and combined into perfectly balanced cigars.” Sounds good to me. I made the guillotine cut and took a pre-light draw. The cold draw flavor was slightly peppery with a woody fragrance. I had a good feeling about this smoke. I lit the fuse…

Ah sweet nectar. Once again I suckle at your teat ™. Launching pad puffs greeted me with a wonderfully rich bouquet of cedar aroma. Also, cocoa and a slight nuttiness made their presence known. Into the sweet spot the cigar settled comfortably into a solid medium-bodied smoke. Creamy leather bottom notes poked out from the velvety smoothness. Into the finish, as I exhaled though the nose a subtle coffee flavor was detected. The draw was excellent and the cigar burned like a champ, holding a decent size ash throughout the smoke. I smoked it to the nub, as I usually do with a good cigar. To the south, strobe-like flashes of lighting hinted at a storm brewing somewhere off in the distance. I enjoyed the last few puffs of my cigar, and all was well with the world.

To sum up: Wonderfully rich and complex for a medium-bodied cigar. Well constructed and with a classy band, this cigar would really stand out in any humidor. Seems fairly priced in the $6.00 range for a single. I will certainly try the other cigars in the Los Blancos line-up; Criollo, Connecticut, Maduro… If you like your medium-bodied cigars to provide a complex variety of flavors you will want to give this a try.

Grade: B+

Good day sirs!

Davidoff Short Perfecto (5 x 50)

Most aficionados consider Davidoff to be the Mercedes Benz of cigars. I’d have to agree, but as I can no sooner afford to smoke a luxury cigar as I can to drive a luxury car, any Davidoff cigar is, to me, a rare treat. This little fireplug – a gift from a benevolent doctor friend – has been hibernating in my humidor for five long months. After a day spent putting in some yard work, I finished up just in time to beat the rain. So I decided to reward myself with a treat. I figured the Davidoff Short Perfecto (5x50) would be the perfect (pun intended) cigar to enjoy as a cool-down garage smoke.

Pre-cut/pre-light inspection ritual displayed a firm, light-brown torpedo-shaped cigar with a smooth wrapper. The subtle yet unmistakable white band with the Davidoff name in gold script glistened in the fading light. I slowly ran the stick under my nose, and with eyes closed took a whiff. Anticipation is half the fun. With my trusty Xikar cutter I deftly snipped off just the very tip of the head. The cold draw was tight, but I knew this to be typical of torpedo-shaped cigars until a few puffs in when the burn opens up the foot. The pre-light draw tempted me with notes of grass and wheat. Supposedly, sometime in the past couple of years Davidoff quietly changed the blend of these cigars, switching from a Connecticut grown wrapper to an Ecuadorian shade grown wrapper. Be that as it may, it’s sometimes hard for me to keep track of the vagaries of blends and wrappers and whatnot. But as I’ve said many times in the past: I know what I like when I smoke it. With that in mind I propped up my feet on a milk crate, settled in and lit the fuse…

Ah sweet nectar, once again I suckle at your teat ™! A few opening-bell puffs and I was immediately reminded of Davidoff’s unique flavor and aroma. Kind of like a creamy buttered toast. True to form, as I smoked this torpedo the foot opened up and the draw adjusted itself to ideal. Into the sweet (thick) spot and some pepper notes announced their presence through the nose, then earth tones and wood. It was truly a rich balance of tobacco flavor. The cigar burned consistently throughout the 45-minute smoke, although the ash was a bit flaky and the final puffs slightly harsh and gritty. As I savored the last few draws, a calm post-exercise euphoria settled over me. And all was well with the world.

To sum up: Like a $50 steak, the $13-a-stick Davidoff Perfecto is worth trying at least a few times in your life. Perhaps for a holiday or special occasion. Davidoff Perfecto’s really do have a unique blend of tobaccos and a distinctive wheatgrass flavor, even sublime I would say. However, I feel the Davidoff “good life” cigars are too cost-prohibitive to be a regular smoke – at least for me anyway.

Grade: B+

Good day sirs!