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Home » Dogwatch Cigar Radio

Half Ashed Episode 115: Ashton Symmetry with Bob

June 1, 2015 By Kip Fisher

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ashton symmetry cg

Ashton Symmetry

When the Ashton Symmetry was released in Fall 2014, it was the first new Ashton line in almost 10 years.  It, like most other cigars to carry the Ashton marque, is a Fuente produced product, and features a “cloud-grown” Ecuadoran habano wrapper.  Internally, it has some Dominican leaf from Villa Gonzalez and the Fuentes’ Un Buen Vecino farm in Estelí, Nicaragua.  It comes in 5 vitolas, including this corona gorda called the Prism, and retails for $11-12.50 depending on size.

Tune in with Kip and special guest Bob McDuffee to chat up what he’s been up to lately and a few rabbit trails just begging to be followed….

Cigar News

I’m a big fan of Fratello – one of the newer lines out there, owned by Omar de Frias.  The corona in his first lineup is a phenomenal cigar…and now he is coming out with a maduro.  It will have a soft launch with a handful of retailers in the next few weeks, and full availability at IPCPR.  The Bianco will come with a Mexican San Andres wrapper, Dominican binder and a filler blend containing Peruvian, Nicaraguan, and Pennsylvania broadleaf.  It’s coming out of Esteli, but there’s no mention of the factory.  It will be available in 20-ct boxes, in 3 vitolas – 6.25×44, 6×50, and 5×56.  A fourth, event exclusive 5×44 will also be produced.  The line isn’t a spinoff from their first line, which launched in 2013.  It’s an entirely new blend according to Omar. Subsequent picture

After going thus far with a single vitola (although two were planned since IPCPR 2014), Drew Estate is releasing an extension to the Nica Rustica line.  It’s a 7.5”x54 belicoso called the “Belly.”  It will have a Connecticut broadleaf wrapper over Mexican San Andres binder and Nicaraguan filler tobaccos.  It’s scheduled to begin shipping nationally in September, but will have a soft launch at an event July 30th in Louisville, KY.  Pricing is expected to be around $8/stick.

Fresh off our recent discussions about cigar companies making cigars specifically to be paired with or flavored by beverages (Drew Estate’s PVW, C&C’s Dram, Asylum’s Dragon’s Milk, etc.), Perdomo is throwing their hat in the ring.  They will be releasing the Craft Series, intended to be cigars for beer enthusiasts.  This line is very much akin to C&C’s Dram series – with the Dram intended to be paired with whiskey, and the Craft Series with beer.  It will include a CT-wrapped (Pilsner), Sungrown (Amber) and Maduro (Stout).  While I understand the idea behind these pairing series, I guess I’m a bit of a skeptic.  Most of my experience has shown good pairings to be more experimentation and happy accident than hard science…and it seems most folks’ ideas about what goes well together are different enough to make it inconsistent at best.  In any event, the line will come in 3 vitolas (5.5”x54 robusto, 6.5”x54 epicure, and 6”x60 gordo), and retail for $7-8.50 depending on vitola.

Pinar del Rio is releasing a whole new line, composed of surplus tobaccos from other blends.  They’ve emphasized that this is not the typical “Cuban sandwich” cigar, though.  It will be all long filler, but be rolled using this leftover tobacco.  The line will be an inexpensive bundle stick, retailing for about $2.75 to $3 per cigar, and will use the surplus from large purchases of leaf for other lines.  It will, however, consistently have an Ecuadoran Habano wrapper, Dominican binder and Nicaraguan fillers, and feature about 80% leftover leaf.  It’s called the “A Crop” and will come in 3 vitolas: 5”x50 robusto, 6”x52 toro, and 6”x58 gordo.

What Else We’ve Been Smoking

Bob

Had some really bad smoking Maduro’s from a well known Miami Cigar Company

Lighters – it’s hard to find a good lighter that will last, prices are too high for most lighters and yet the cheap ones are just that, cheap.

For the most part I am finding the quality of today’s cigars to be excellent to acceptable

Kip

Asylum’s new Nyctophilia robusto

Tatuaje Verocu Havana VI #5 4”x40

Don Arturo Destino al Siglo Familiar 6.5”x46

Next Episode

In the next episode (116), Craig will return to his duties and we’ll be smoking one of his selections – the San Cristobal Mercaderes 2007.  So come by Friday night and hang out with us in the chatroom during the show.  If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us via the Contact Page or the following emails: [email protected] or [email protected]. Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints.  We love to get your emails!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), find us on iTunes, or subscribe with any podcast app at our RSS Feed.  Video, as always, will be available at the Half Ashed YouTube Channel.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

 

Tagged With: Arturo Fuente, Ashton, Dogwatch Cigar Radio, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Fratello, habano, Nicaragua

Half Ashed Episode 113: Davidoff Nicaragua

May 20, 2015 By Kip Fisher

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davidoff nicaragua short corona

Davidoff Nicaragua Short Corona

I’m joined this week by longtime friend of the show and former Dogwatch Cigar Radio cohost Dale Roush.  A huge thanks to Dale for sitting in with me and catching up.  We’re smoking the Davidoff Nicaragua Short Corona, a 3.75″ x 46 beauty featuring a 10 year old Habano seed Rosado wrapper, and Nicaraguan binder/fillers.  This line debuted in summer of 2013, and retails for about $9.90 depending on local tax situation.  Tune in to get our thoughts on the cigar, as well as a chance to see what Dale has been up to and a bit of cigar news!

News

In a topic we talked briefly about last week as an outlying possibility for a developing trend, Camacho has announced their contribution to the world of barrel-aged cigars.  The Camacho American Barrel Aged will feature bourbon barrel-aged corojo as a core component.  It will also come with a 5-year old American broadleaf wrapper.  In fact, it almost exclusively utilizes American grown tobacco, including the broadleaf wrapper, binder and filler – including a maduro filler tobacco from Pennsylvania.  A single leaf of six year old bourbon barrel aged Corojo was added to the recipe.  They are promoting a national event tour to launch the line, beginning in Orlando June 8th and ending up at Tampa Humidor December 19th.  It will be shipping June 15th and retail for $10-12 per cigar.  I posted a story about it on the website with full tour schedule.

United Cigar, who we’ve spoken of several times in the past 2 months, is partnering with Selected Tobacco to extend the Byron line by two vitolas.  Both cigars are the largest Byron vitolas to date, and as a result each blend is tweaked a bit with a higher priming to maintain the strength and flavor required to match the larger ring gauge format.  The packaging has also been revamped and will include individual humitubes with the cigars.  MSRP has been set at a whopping $33 a stick.  Here are the details on the cigars.  See full story posted earlier.

The Serie Siglo XIX, was blended by Nelson Alfonso with a goal of best representing Cuban Cigars of the 19th Century is now available in a 6 x 56, known as the Grand Poemas.

The Serie Siglo XX – also blended by Nelson Alfonso – aims at representing Cuban Cigars of the 20th Century, and is also available in a 6 x 56 format known as Habanero.

A few weeks ago we reported on an upcoming event-only offering from Crowned Heads…just as an update, the name has changed from “Snake Oil” to “Blood Medicine.”  Turns out, Kendall Culbertson of Outlaw Cigar Co. owns the trademark for Snake Oil.  So, to maintain the peace, the Crowned Heads folks opted to just change the name.  Other details remain the same: it’s a 5.5” x 48 “super corona”; Ecuador Habano wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and filler.  It will not be available for stand-alone purchase, and will come through event special purchases.

The still-recovering Skip Martin is closing in on shipping the much-anticipated release of RoMa Craft’s Neanderthal this upcoming week.  The line carries a Mexican San Andrés wrapper, Connecticut broadleaf binder and fillers that include tobacco from Condega, Estelí, Jalapa and Pueblo Nuevo from Nicaragua; Dominican olor ligero and Pennsylvania “Green River Sucker One” double ligero. The line will be distributed initially in a single 5” x 52/58 vitola, but will also include extensions soon.  A shop exclusive/event 4.25” x 52 vitola will also be available soon for Riverside Cigar Shop in Indiana and Serious Cigars in TX.  These two sizes will retail for $12 and $9 respectively.

While cruising the social media nether regions today, I noticed an article halfwheel posted up that they’d found in the Cañon City Daily Record from Dale’s home state of Colorado.  It appears some folks in Cañon City CO are shooting for a ban on outdoor smoking in the Central Business District of the city.  The claim is that smokers spilling out of buildings (due to an indoor ban) are giving the area an inconvenient image.  Councilman James Characky, Jr. said. “I want to create an image of healthy, vibrant people, not an image of cigarette smoking, beer drinkers.”  The mayor has proposed limiting the ban to Main Street alone, rather than the entire district.

What Else We’ve Been Smoking

Dale

Man O” War Armada War Horse
Black Market Vandal Toro
Camacho Triple Maduro Robusto

Kip

A peculiar Tramp Stamp – Wrapper: Habano Ecuador, Binder: Nicaraguan, Filler: Nicaraguan

Next Episode

Next episode (114) we will be featuring the Unbanded #024 from zedman.  So come by Half Ashed Friday night at 9:30pm EST and hang out with us in the chatroom during the show.  If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us via the Contact Page or the following emails:[email protected] or [email protected]. Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints.  We love to get your emails!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), find us on iTunes, or subscribe with any podcast app at our RSS Feed.  Video, as always, will be available at the Half Ashed YouTube Channel.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

Tagged With: cigar, corona, Crowned Heads, Davidoff, Dogwatch Cigar Radio, habano, legislation, Nicaragua, RoMaCraft, Unbanded, United Cigar

Half Ashed Episode 052: One Year Anni with Bob & Dale!

February 12, 2014 By Kip Fisher

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new retouched ha logoWelcome to the One-Year Anniversary show for Half Ashed!  I apologize for the delay in getting the show posted.  I’ve had a bit of a bug the past 2 days.  This week we had Bob & Dale of Dogwatch Cigar Radio fame join us.  We love having those guys on; it’s always a blast just to hang out with the two of them.  We’re smoking the 400th Maduro from Orinoco Cigars – a cigar of which I’m already a big fan.  I believe Craig, Bob, and Dale are now as well.  So tune in, fire up, and relax….

As always, we’re constantly looking for suggestions about potential Cigars of the Week, and Unbanded cigars.  So if you have one drop us a line at one of the email addresses below. Be sure to check back in next Friday night at 9:30pm EST at Cigar Federation (details on locating the show will be on the front page that evening an hour before showtime), where you can catch us recording and participate in the chatroom.  If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following email addresses: [email protected] or [email protected].  Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints.  We love to get your emails!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), or find us on iTunes to subscribe.  Video, as always, will be available at the CigFed Half Ashed Video Archive.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an email to [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

Tagged With: cigar, Dogwatch Cigar Radio

Half Ashed 039: Dogwatch Revisited

November 3, 2013 By Kip Fisher

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dogwatch Cigar Radio logoDogwatch Revisited

Good afternoon everyone, and welcome back for this week’s Half Ashed.  For Episode 039, we bring back our friends and mentors Bob & Dale, formerly of Dogwatch Cigar Radio.  We’re smoking an unbanded submission from DC – who might have facilitated a dead-nuts determination of brand and make of this cigar by Bob McDuffee (you really gotta watch these guys…..).  In the news, we cover some items from Fuente (Casa Cuba!), some new New York City legislation, and the schedule for the upcoming “official” hard launch of Barry Stein’s KILO.

In the midst of all the much-anticipated and very welcome silliness that always comes with a visit from the Dogwatch brethren, we also review what each of us has been smoking this week – including a cigar that simply didn’t fill my sails with wind, and a handful of other items that came up in the conversation.  As is always the case, we love it when Dale and Bob can come by and spend some time hanging out.  They never fail to provide a great time of hanging out and chatting.  We’re definitely looking forward to the next time they’re available to come by – which may be as soon as December, so stay tuned for that.

Next week, our Cigar of the Week will be something….we just don’t know what that is yet.  We’ll surprise you with something good to smoke for sure.  So be sure to check back in next Friday night at 9:30pm EST at www.halfashed.com, where you can catch us recording and participate in the chatroom.  If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following email addresses: [email protected] or [email protected].  Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints.  We love to get your emails!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), or find us on iTunes to subscribe.  Video, as always, will be available at the CigFed Half Ashed Video Archive.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an email to [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

Tagged With: Arturo Fuente, cigar, Dogwatch Cigar Radio, Unbanded

Half Ashed Episode 038: Quai D’Orsay Imperiales

October 26, 2013 By Kip Fisher

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Quai D'Orsay ImperialesHello again, folks.  Welcome to another week of Half Ashed.  This week, we were forced to record on Wednesday rather than Friday by some scheduling conflicts.  Thanks to the folks who did join us in the chatroom….and if you’ve never joined us on Friday nights, you should!  Tune in here at halfashed.com around 9:30pm EST for the show streaming as we record every week.  Episode 038 features the Quai D’Orsay Imperiales, one of Craig’s submissions to our stockpile of Cigars of the Week.  Here’s what he has to say about it:

Perhaps the mildest Post Revolution Cuban cigar. This Julieta 2 (i.e. Churchill) is unique in its proliferation of “SOFT” flavors. They are predominantly syrupy and herbal with a toasty core. The toasty flavor comes across to me as a sweet wheat cereal like Life. To me, this defines the “change of pace” cigar and can even make you want to switch over to this “pace” more permanently. It is the perfect analogy for a relaxed week away from the office. Medium flavored, mild and slightly more body than light, these cigars are the proverbial “middle child”; they are low key, wonderfully kind and always standing in someone elses spotlight. In my opinion, it isn’t fair :)

In news, we cover stories from the New York judicial system, EP Carrillo, Drew Estate Charities, IPCPR, and revisit the Alec Bradley Royal Monkey Society.  We also discuss a few cigars we’ve been smoking since the last show, and have a couple of trivia questions from Craig.  Lastly, we wrapped up by covering a listener email from Maria Elena Gonzalez (thanks Maria!).

Next week, our Cigar of the Week will be a special Unbanded from Dan Crouch….and we’ll be joined again by Bob & Dale from Dogwatch!  We love having those guys sit in on the show.  It’s guaranteed to be a fun time, so be sure to check back in for that next Friday night at 9:30pm EST at www.halfashed.com, where you can catch us recording and participate in the chatroom.  If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following email addresses: [email protected] or [email protected].  Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints.  We love to get your emails!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), or find us on iTunes to subscribe.  Video, as always, will be available at the CigFed Half Ashed Video Archive.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an email to [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

Tagged With: cigar, Dogwatch Cigar Radio, IPCPR

Half Ashed Episode 032: A Visit with the Dogwatch Guys!

September 15, 2013 By Kip Fisher

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dogwatch Cigar Radio logoEpisode 032

Good afternoon, everyone!  Welcome to another week and another episode of Half Ashed, this being Episode 032.  Yes, we’ve managed to make it another week without being booed, chased, or otherwise kicked off the internet.  Craig was out of town this week, and I had the good fortune of getting Dale Roush & Bob McDuffee on as special guests.  Bob & Dale – or the godfathers of cigar podcasting as I like to call them, were the hosts of Dogwatch Cigar Radio for 8 years, ending the show at the end of 2012 with 410 episodes.  I owe much to them, including the impetus for Half Ashed, and truly appreciate them taking time out of their schedules to sit in with me to hang out and catch up.  It’s always a special treat to visit with the guys, and this week’s show is no exception.  Here’s a brief summary of some of the topics we covered…

Cigar of the Week

The Cigar of the Week was an impromptu unbanded stick I sent to the guys just to get their opinions about…not to ruin the surprise, you’ll have to tune in to find out what it was and what they thought of it.

News Items

    • The Cigar Federation charity raffle a total of $5,680!  That’s an amazing turnout, especially for a first run at something of this nature.  A big thanks to the guys over there who coordinated the raffle and put in all the work to make it happen.
    • It’s Padron’s 49th Birthday!
    • The Factory Fresh from Wynwood Cigars – we talked about the idea behind the Factory Fresh, and some of the pros/cons with such a project.
    • The Davidoff Nicaraguan…..good? meh?  worthwhile?  How does their first foray into a Nicaraguan cigar stand up to their typical Dominican offerings?
    • Some “Nanny news” from an NPR story Bob heard.
    • The “Royal Monkey Cigar Society.”  You’ll have to tune in to get that story!

Other Items

What we’ve been smoking….the guys haven’t let up since ending Dogwatch.  They’re still alive and kicking – and smoking plenty of cigars

Listener email – we take a question from Swede214 about tooth in a cigar wrapper….complete with visual aids :).

Wrap

Next week, we’ll return to a normal programming schedule.  The Cigar of the Week will be an Unbanded, number 009, from Jacob Pinkas (Thanks Jacob!).  If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following email addresses: [email protected] or [email protected].  Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints.  We love to get your emails!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), or find us on iTunes to subscribe.  Video, as always, will be available at the CigFed Half Ashed Video Archive.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an email to [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

Tagged With: cigar, Davidoff, Dogwatch Cigar Radio, Eiroa, legislation, Padron

Half Ashed Episode 031: Casa Miranda Chapter 2

September 8, 2013 By Kip Fisher

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barry stein of Miami CigarHello folks, and welcome to Half Ashed Episode 031, featuring the Casa Miranda Chapter Two and with guest Barry Stein of Miami Cigar.  Barry was slated to join us for the whole show, but we had a bit of a mixup with a Miami storm that took down the power grid in Barry’s neighborhood.  He was able to join us for a short time later in the show, when he went above and beyond the call of duty by driving down to Neighborhood Humidor and calling in on his phone.  We very much appreciate his doing that; it was truly a stand-up thing to do and not leave us hanging.  Check out the episode to get some great insight into Miami Cigar and their upcoming lines.

We cover the Chapter Two several times throughout the show, as well as a number of other cigars from this week’s selections – notably one other Miami Cigar offering, the Nestor Mirand Special Selection Exclusivo Regional.  The NMSS Exclusivo is a geographically limited edition, only to be available in the midwest and only in 2500 of each of two vitolas.  We also talked Barry’s upcoming release – the KILO – which you all definitely need to be on the lookout for.

Other topics included this week’s news and happenings, some trips you might want to consider taking in the near future, a minor rant from Kip – and our giveaway!  This month’s giveaway of some phenomenal cigars goes to…John C. Craig.  We’ll be getting those in the mail this week, so be on watch John.

Next week, we’ll have very special guests Bob McDuffee and Dale Roush, formerly of Dogwatch Cigar Radio.  Craig will be out of town, so it will be just Kip, Bob, and Dale.  Be sure to check back in then as these guys are the godfathers of cigar podcasting, and much of the credit due for the impetus to begin Half Ashed is owed to them.  If you would like to contact us in the meantime, you can reach us through the contact page or at the following email addresses: [email protected] or [email protected].  Please feel free to drop us a line if you have any questions you’d like answered, comments to make…or even compliments and complaints.  We love to get your emails!  Also, remember you can always go back and listen to previous episodes, which can be found in the Half Ashed Archive.  You can download this week’s audio directly below (right-click “Download” and save), or find us on iTunes to subscribe.  Video, as always, will be available at the CigFed Half Ashed Video Archive.

P.S. – If you have unbanded suggestions or contributions, you can get those to us by sending an email to [email protected].  This email address goes directly to my wife, so you can simply suggest an unbanded cigar for her to source, or send me an email to [email protected] if you have something you’d like to send in.  I will provide an address to send them.  Thanks!

Tagged With: Barry Stein, cigar, Dogwatch Cigar Radio, Miami Cigar, Nestor Miranda

Episode 003: Old Friends & the Cuenca 5

February 24, 2013 By Kip Fisher

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Half Ashed LogoThis week on Half Ashed, we’re joined by our old friends Bob McDuffee and Dale Roush, formerly of Dogwatch Cigar Radio.  Bob and Dale provided 410 Episodes of the first, longest-running cigar podcast in history.  Dogwatch was the context through which Craig and I met, and its much lamented conclusion was the impetus for the two of us to pick up the mantle and try to preserve the community it fostered – all the while (hopefully) continuing to provide a useful couple hours of cigar information and entertainment each week.  We’re much indebted to both Bob and Dale in that respect, as well as their generosity and help in getting Half Ashed off the ground and running. We wanted to have them on the show as the first of an ongoing segment in which we bring in various industry people – bloggers, manufacturers, retailers, etc. – for some discussion about their ideas and views concerning the world of cigars.  We want to provide an outlet for them to candidly discuss and reveal the unique insights that they have into the industry and provide us with an education on the same.

Our cigar of the week for Episode 3 is the recently released Cuenca 5 Anniversary, which I reviewed a few weeks ago.  It was my idea to have this as the cigar of the week, as it has made such a grand impression on me.  It’s not secret that I love the cigar, and I wanted to share it with you all.  We also spend a great deal of time talking with Bob and Dale, getting their ideas on what is wrong with the cigar industry, what is right with it, and some of their preferences in cigars when they just want to enjoy a good smoke.  In news, we cover what we think the ramifications are with Swisher International having designs on creating a premium cigar division within their company, some antismoking legislation being proposed by a Florida state Senator, and what we’ve been smoking this week.  We also make a couple of corrections from last week’s show, brought to our attention some of you – notably, we misspoke about the arrangement of some local/state ordinances during the IPCPR tradeshow last year.  Thanks to George Edmonson of Stogie Guys for helping us out in that regard.  Also, I managed to talk a good deal about an upcoming Fuente cigar without ever telling you its name.  That cigar is the Casa Cuba.  Thanks to the many of you who made me aware of that.  I see at least some of you were paying attention :).

Cuenca 5 AnniversaryUnfortunately, we went very long this week and had to cut out a good deal of content we had planned on discussing.  Under normal circumstances, we try to hold the show below two hours, but we were having such a good time conversing with Bob and Dale we managed to go over the 2:30 mark.  So, we’ll have a few more news items next week – as well as some discussion from the world of pipes and tobaccos spurred on by an email and questions from Stephen D.  We’re looking forward to that, in addition to next week’s Cigar of the Week – our first Unknown/Unbanded cigar!    Remember, you can suggest an unbanded cigar for us via email at: [email protected].  That is a forwarding account that goes directly to my wife, who can source the cigars and provide them to us without information.  You can also send us cigars to smoke blindly by contacting me: [email protected] for an address to ship them.

As always, you can find the video on Cigar Federation, on our YouTube channel, or simply through the embed below.  You may also download the audio below or find us in the iTunes store (be sure to leave us a good review!) to subscribe directly to an audio feed of the show as it publishes.  Thanks for tuning in!

Audio:

Tagged With: AJ Fernandez, cigar, Cuenca, Dogwatch Cigar Radio, IPCPR

CFC 2012 and a couple other newsworthy items

February 26, 2012 By Kip Fisher

CFC 2012It’s a dreary, rainy Sunday afternoon in my little corner of Central Florida.  So, what better way to spend it than to have a cigar and do a little daydreamin’ about returning to the Dominican Republic for CFC this week.  I am entering into full-blown all-Fuente-all-the-time mode for the next 5 days, until our return.  Come to think of it, that’s not entirely different than normal; a significant portion of the time I will reach for one of their products.  Admittedly, in recent years I have branched out to a great extent into other makers and have to say I am enjoying the variety and depth I’ve experienced in that time.  I have added numerous makes and models into my regular rotation.  Nonetheless, when smoking for for pure joy, with no need for close attention or review-writing…I love many Fuente cigars.  Today, I’m starting with what appears to be a standard Rosado Magnum R52.  I say “appears to be standard”, because this particular stick came from the CFC gathering last year.  Most of the cigars that were given out on that trip were limited/special/different in some way – and I did not make any notes about this one.  It appears to be the same size as normal production (5X52) and wears the same band, so I’ll say it is the same.  The only thing that gives me a hint about its origin is the little yellow sticker I placed on it with the date and where it came from.  It does have a more mellowed, almost caramel character to the finish that I don’t normally associate with these, but that very well could just come from the extra year of rest.  But, this is not a review, merely a ramble.

I did want to mention a couple of other happenings for those who might be available and interested.  I have no vested interest in either of these items, aside from being a fan of both.  If you live in South Florida, there is to be a Tweetup at the Charmed Leaf next Friday and Saturday (March 3 & 4).  There will be a number of boutique cigar manufacturers, bloggers, and cigar-related Twitter personalities in attendance. The Charmed Leaf is a brick & mortar tobacconist in Delray Beach, Florida that specializes in boutique, sometimes hard to find cigar manufacturers.  I have not yet been to their establishment, but the correspondence I’ve had with them about the upcoming event leads me to believe they are a class act and great folks to deal with.  There is no cost to attend, but they have some great package deals for cigars, etc. if you want to – check them out here.  I’m sure they have something you need to smoke and can’t get at your local shop.  The four members of The Cigarmy that will be attending CFC 2012 in the Dominican will be stopping by the Tweetup on Saturday, around lunchtime.  We love to meet new folks who share the same interests and enjoy a cigar or two.

The other item of interest has a broader circle of availability.  Dogwatch Cigar Radio is a cigar show and podcast, which is available live at showtime or later for download through iTunes, or other outlets – including apps for your smartphone.  For good reason, it is one of the longer-lived shows out there.  They just celebrated their 365th episode, which puts them just over the 7-year mark for producing the show.  Bob McDuffee and Dale Roush (and Bob’s fabulous executive producer – and significant other – Liz) put on a fantastic show, rife with great information and a friendly, open format.  The podcast is available for download weekly, but if you find yourself free on a Friday night around 9:00pm EST you should definitely tune in for the live show.  They also make available a chatroom during the live show, which is always friendly, fun, and accessible for anyone.  My wife and I have made this our Friday night ritual for the past several months.  They have a finger on the pulse of the industry, and always provide fresh, relevant content.  If you happen to be in the area for the Charmed Leaf event, Bob & Liz will be there as well on Saturday, I believe.  You can tune in to the live show by clicking the link above and selecting “Dogwatch Live” from the menu bar around showtime.

I will try to post at least a picture or two while we’re in the Dominican, but expect a full trip report some time next week.  As always, thanks for checking in and for your continued support while we get The Cigarmy off the ground – and if you have any comments or suggestions feel free to add them here, or drop me a line at: [email protected]

Tagged With: Arturo Fuente, cigar events, Dogwatch Cigar Radio

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