Cigars   Avo # 7 Corona

Born in 1926, Avo Uvezian comes from a family of Beirut musicians and he first dreamt of leading the life of a musician. He worked hard studying the piano and eventually moved to New York to study at Julliard. His dream had been realized; he had established his career as a musician. In the early 80s Avo discovered his passion for fine cigars after opening a restaurant/piano bar in Puerto Rico. In 1982, he met master cigar producer Hendrik Kelner in the Dominican Republic. By 1988, the first AVO cigar was offered solely in New York. The two produced just 100,000 cigars in their first year and grew quickly to 750,000 by their third. Today, they sell over 3 million cigars annually. Quite a success story.

Panel Review: Look for a medium bodied smoke with a fair amount of spiciness. We all agreed that it's pretty much a great cigar for any time of the day! Note a handsome silky Connecticut Shade wrapper. We found it to be perfectly rolled with no soft spots and an easy draw. Look for a mellow, slightly spicy and flavorful experience. Pair it with a full bodied India Pale Ale.
Cigars   Cruz Real Special Edicion Robusto
All governments have the capacity to legislate some really stupid laws. And Mexico is no exception. There, cigar companies were at one time required by law to only use Mexican grown tobaccos in their cigars. The result? Most Mexican smokes were full-bodied, but lacking in complexity. Luckily for the manufacturers (and cigar smokers), that law was recently amended and the tastes of quite a few Mexican cigar lines did as well. Cruz Real was the first to modify their blend and we think the result was phenomenal. Many that once snubbed their noses at the brand and Mexican cigars in general, are now making them a must in their humidor. While they still use Mexican binder, Cruz Real now blends it with Dominican and Mexican filler tobaccos and encase it all in a coveted Connecticut Shade wrapper.

Panel Review: You could say this sucker packs a punch! It's not for the timid and you might want to find a nice place to sit down when you enjoy it. Note a perfect burn and plenty of smoke volume that should put a smile on your face. While the Connecticut Shade wrap wasn't the smoothest we'd ever seen, it really didn't seem to make a bit of difference. Overall, a well-constructed cigar all around. Many panel members smoked it to the nub.
Cigars   La Luna Fuerte Torpedo

Last year, a small Miami-produced brand quietly took the honor of being one of the most popular "boutique" brands on the market. Most hoped that the devoted followers of the La Luna brand, appropriately nicknamed…"Lunatics", would continue to keep the secret to themselves so that there would be plenty to go around. Got some bad news. The word is out. La Luna's owner, Gael de Courtivron, doesn't really have a long family history in the industry. In fact, there is really no cigar heritage to speak of. He does, however, have 20 years as a professional drummer under his belt, which means he's good with his hands! And that may in fact make him a more qualified candidate to own a cigar company than most! Not convinced? Well, you'll just have to smoke it yourself then and see why we were so passionate about featuring this cigar.

Panel Review: What a wonderful cigar! There are some instances when you can tell, just by looking at them, that they're going to put a big ol' smile on your face. And this is certainly one of those smokes. Immediately note the handsome box pressed shape of this sweet oily maduro. It's well made, complex and full of flavor. We all agreed that we wanted a box for ourselves to further "rate" the brand!
Cigars   Maya Maduro Toro
When Columbus discovered the Americas, he made the equally important discovery of tobacco! Okay, so many would dissagree…But they're probably not reading this newsletter! The Central American Mayan Indians were the first to smoke cigars and the line you'll sample this month is to commemorate their creation. The Maya line is imported from Honduras and hand-rolled with a blend of Cuban Seed Honduran tobaccos, wrapped in an Ecuadorian grown Connecticut-seed wrapper.

Panel Review: Look for another very full-bodied cigar in the Maya Maduro Toro. This smoke has a definite spicy character to it. We found the wrapper to be pristine and the draw perfect. You're in for a real flavor-packed smoke!
Cigars   Oliveros Gran Reserva Torpedo
Founder of Oliveros, Oliveros Perez, is a Spaniard that began his cigar-manufacturing career in Cuba back in 1927. In 1962, Perez left Castro's Cuba, the country he called his second home, but took with him select premium tobacco seeds to to continue the Oliveros tradition. Planted in the Dominican Republic, those very seeds were cared for with the same skill and passion that characterized Perez himself. His work has been recognized around the globe; he has even been invited to teach the process of seed germination and development at the Institute del Tobacco in the Dominican Republic.

Panel Review: You'll find this well-constructed Torpedo to be mild to medium-bodied. Note a very woody aroma and taste with some toasty notes evident. As we got into it further, coffee bean and nutty characters emerged, making it a fine after dinner cigar. Overall, a complex and very appealing cigar well deserving of its many accolades.