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Page 1 of 2  Plus: A 13-year-old cigar company you’ll meet for the first time today!Los Angeles, April 18 – Partagas. H. Upmann. Fonseca. Ramon Allones. Arturo Fuente. All of these are cigar brands named for their founders, individuals who had a specific vision of what a blend should be, how a cigar should be made and what kind of enjoyment they wanted to deliver to those who smoked their brands. That spirit is alive today in brands large and small and this week we sampled brands from two men with their own ideas of what cigars should be. Jesus Fuego has been in the tobacco game for a long time, but his cigar lines are just now drawing attention after he expanded his sales efforts outside of Florida. The much younger Luis Falto turned his passion for cigars into a business and is now breaking into the U.S. market with his self-named lines. We tried both to see what these new brands could offer. J. Fuego Gran Reserva – Corojo No. 1 series: [Honduras: available in 5 sizes] With a family tradition in tobacco that dates back more than 100 years, Jesus Fuego oozes with enthusiasm for his cigars and he has a right to be proud. His Gran Reserva Corojo No. 1 series was displayed to a national retail audience for the first time last summer at the Retail Tobacco Dealers of America (now IPCPR) convention and trade show and by the end of the four days, people were asking for him by name. His Gran Reserva series was the reason why. Made in Honduras, the Gran Reserva line looks delicious. The extra-dark brown, Honduran-grown Corojo wrapper is flawless and the feel of this cigar is firm and oily. It is described as medium-to-full in body, but we found it to be medium-bodied with a toasty aroma. The flavor is rich and caramelized, with a long finish that leaves a welcome sweetness on the tongue. The concentration of flavor can be so tantalizing that it is easy to over-smoke this cigar in search of even more richness, but that’s a mistake. This blend, with a Costa Rican binder and Costa Rican, Honduran and Nicaraguan filler, smokes slowly and asks for your patience. The taste pattern stays consistent throughout, although the intensity recedes in the second half. If you have the discipline, the larger sizes – Elegante (7 1/2 inches by 50 ring) and Grande (6 1/2 x 58) can be very rewarding, but the pint-sized Corona (4 1/2 x 46) is not to be underestimated, especially as an after-lunch selection if you have time. The Gran Reserva Corojo No. 1 series comes in uniquely-packed boxes of 21 cigars, each with three layers of seven cigars inside. The prices are reasonable but toward the high end, at suggested retail of $7.00 for the Corona up to $10.00 for the Grande, not including local sales and tobacco taxes. Overall grade: A: Exceptional. |
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Did you know?
“Although the preferred humidity setting for cigars is 70%, temperature control of 70-75 F is equally important.
