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Saturday Jan 07, 2023
Saturday Jan 07, 2023
Coming in at #3 is the Tatuaje T110 Reserva. Back in 2009, Tatuaje Cigars released a powerhouse of a Petit Robusto cigar known as the Tatuaje T110 (which is believed to mean Thermonuclear 110 with 110 being the approximate length of the cigar in mm). It was a shop exclusive to a retailer in Hawaii. Known for its high priming blend, the cigar achieved incredible cult status. Eventually, in 2011, Tatuaje Cigars’ owner Pete Johnson would create a regular production blend based on it known as Fausto. The Tatuaje Fausto has certainly had its share of success, but the T110 blend still maintained a legendary status despite not having been released in many years. All of that would change in 2021 when Pete Johnson not only would bring back the original Tatuaje T110, but introduced several offshoot blends (all on a national basis) – the Tatuaje T110 Capa Especial and the Tatuaje T110 Reserva in 2021 and the T110 Tuxla in 2022. Today we take a look at the Tatuaje T110 Reserva.
While the original Tatuaje T110 blend consisted of an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, the T110 Reserva uses Connecticut Broadleaf. The remainder of the blend features all Nicaraguan tobaccos. As mentioned the T110 is a Petit Robusto and it measures 4 3/8 x 52. Production comes from the My Father Cigars factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. This recent wave of T110 releases was a limited production and it's unclear when we will see these again.
The Tatuaje T110 Reserva delivered notes of coffee, chocolate, earth, wood, citrus, herb, and mixed pepper. While flavors such as coffee, chocolate, and pepper are known to Broadleaf, there were some intangibles that gave this cigar a unique flavor profile. In terms of the boldness level, the T110 Reserva is not overwhelming. It starts out medium strength before progressing to medium to full strength. At the same time, the flavors were on the upper end of medium to full-bodied. Some aging seemed to dial the boldness back on this cigar, but not at the expense of the flavors delivered.
This is the second cigar from Tatuaje to land on the 2022 Countdown. Tatuaje has had a very successful run over the years on the Countdown. This is not only the seventh year a Tatuaje has placed on the Countdown, but this is the fifth top ten, and fourth podium (aka Top 3) spot. Finally, this is the third cigar on the 2022 Countdown to come from the My Father factory. Nicaragua continues to dominate the Countdown. Of the 28 cigars that have been unveiled, 19 have come from that Central American country.
Full Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-ord
Friday Jan 06, 2023
Friday Jan 06, 2023
Coming in at #4 is the Powstanie Wojtek (Voy-tech) Toro 2020 edition. The Wojtek is a limited edition line offered by Powstanie Cigars. Powstanie is a brand owned by Mike and Greg Szczepankiewicz, the owners of Cigar Hustler. Powstanie pays homage to the Polish roots of the Szczepankiewicz brothers. The name Powstanie refers to the resistance movement in World War II Poland against German occupation of the country. As for the name Wojtek, it means “war bear” and refers to a Syrian Brown bear that was actually enlisted as an honorary member of the Polish army during World War II. In 2020, the second installment of the Wojtek was released in a form of a rounded Toro – which is the cigar that lands on this year’s Countdown.
The Powstanie Wojtek is highlighted by a barber pole wrapper consisting of an Ecuadorian Habano and San Andres Maduro leaf. The remainder of the blend consists of an Indonesian binder and Nicaraguan fillers. The Toro size measures 6 x 52. Production comes out of Fabricas de Nica Sueño in Estelí, Nicaragua.
The Powstanie Wojtek Toro produced a flavor profile consisting of coffee, cocoa, cedar, red pepper, and citrus. Along the way, the Wojtek 2020 delivered a medium to full strength, medium to full-bodied cigar experience. This cigar had a nice amount of boldness, yet it wasn’t overpowering. The other two sizes of Powstanie Wojtek were the perfecto in 2019 and the box-pressed Toro in 2021, but the rounded Toro from 2020 was the belle of the ball.
The Powstanie Wojtek is the highest placed barber-pole in the history of the Cigar Coop Countdown. It also marks the second year that Powstanie has placed a cigar on a Cigar Coop Countdown. In addition, this cigar gives the Nica Sueno factory its highest placing ever on a Cigar Coop Countdown. Meanwhile, if you are keeping score at home Nicaragua continues to dominate the 2022 Countdown (note: the video inadvertently referred to this as the 2020 Countdown). 27 cigars have been unveiled thus far with 18 coming from that Central American country.
Full Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-or9
Friday Jan 06, 2023
Friday Jan 06, 2023
Coming in at #4 is the Powstanie Wojtek (Voy-tech) Toro 2020 edition. The Wojtek is a limited edition line offered by Powstanie Cigars. Powstanie is a brand owned by Mike and Greg Szczepankiewicz, the owners of Cigar Hustler. Powstanie pays homage to the Polish roots of the Szczepankiewicz brothers. The name Powstanie refers to the resistance movement in World War II Poland against German occupation of the country. As for the name Wojtek, it means “war bear” and refers to a Syrian Brown bear that was actually enlisted as an honorary member of the Polish army during World War II. In 2020, the second installment of the Wojtek was released in a form of a rounded Toro – which is the cigar that lands on this year’s Countdown.
The Powstanie Wojtek is highlighted by a barber pole wrapper consisting of an Ecuadorian Habano and San Andres Maduro leaf. The remainder of the blend consists of an Indonesian binder and Nicaraguan fillers. The Toro size measures 6 x 52. Production comes out of Fabricas de Nica Sueño in Estelí, Nicaragua.
The Powstanie Wojtek Toro produced a flavor profile consisting of coffee, cocoa, cedar, red pepper, and citrus. Along the way, the Wojtek 2020 delivered a medium to full strength, medium to full-bodied cigar experience. This cigar had a nice amount of boldness, yet it wasn’t overpowering. The other two sizes of Powstanie Wojtek were the perfecto in 2019 and the box-pressed Toro in 2021, but the rounded Toro from 2020 was the belle of the ball.
The Powstanie Wojtek is the highest placed barber-pole in the history of the Cigar Coop Countdown. It also marks the second year that Powstanie has placed a cigar on a Cigar Coop Countdown. In addition, this cigar gives the Nica Sueno factory its highest placing ever on a Cigar Coop Countdown. Meanwhile, if you are keeping score at home Nicaragua continues to dominate the 2022 Countdown (note: the video inadvertently referred to this as the 2020 Countdown). 27 cigars have been unveiled thus far with 18 coming from that Central American country.
Full Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-or9
Thursday Jan 05, 2023
Thursday Jan 05, 2023
Coming in at #5 is the Espinosa Laranja Reserva Azulejo Gordo. The Azulejo is the third installment of Espinosa's Laranja line. This is a line that focuses on Brazilian tobacco. The original Laranja made its debut in 2014. It featured the famed Laranja wrapper, which comes from a Habano seed and has a distinct orange tint. This was followed in 2019 with the Laranja Escuro which featured a dark (aka Escuro) Brazilian Mata Fina wrapper. This time the Brazilian tobacco used is Arapirca, a tobacco the company has not used often. In this case, this tobacco is used as the binder. Azulejo is named for the color of a blue-glazed tile that was used on Spanish and Portuguese edifices. Blue is also one of the colors featured on the Brazilian flag.
In addition to the Brazilian Arapiraca binder, the blend uses all-Nicaraguan tobaccos and is finished with an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper - another leaf Espinosa has been making more use of these days. It's the 6 x 60 box-pressed Gordo size that lands on the 2022 Countdown. Production comes from AJ Fernandez’s San Lotano factory in Ocotal, Nicaragua and the cigar was blended by Hector Alfonso.
The Espinosa Laranja Reserva Azulejo Gordo delivered a fantastic combination of coffee, leather, citrus, cedar, and pepper. This cigar delivered on the upper end of medium strength and medium body. It's not only something very different from Espinosa, but it really is an innovative flavor profile when it comes to the Sumatra wrapper.
The Espinosa Laranja Reserva Azulejo Gordo is the third cigar from Espinosa Cigars to land on the 2022 Cigar of the Year Countdown joining the Las 6 Provinces LV and Warhead VII. It's also the third cigar to come out of AJ Fernandez's San Lotano Factory. The year 2022 has been a big one for Espinosa Cigars when it comes to the Countdown. Not only is this the third cigar to place on the Countdown from the Company, but this year has marked ten consecutive years at least one Espinosa Cigar has placed on a Cigar Coop Countdown. If you are keeping score at home Nicaragua continues to dominate the Countdown. Of the 26 cigars we have unveiled, 17 of them have come from Nicaragua, and three have placed in the top ten - including two top tens from Espinosa.
Full Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-oqu
Thursday Jan 05, 2023
Thursday Jan 05, 2023
Coming in at #5 is the Espinosa Laranja Reserva Azulejo Gordo. The Azulejo is the third installment of Espinosa's Laranja line. This is a line that focuses on Brazilian tobacco. The original Laranja made its debut in 2014. It featured the famed Laranja wrapper, which comes from a Habano seed and has a distinct orange tint. This was followed in 2019 with the Laranja Escuro which featured a dark (aka Escuro) Brazilian Mata Fina wrapper. This time the Brazilian tobacco used is Arapirca, a tobacco the company has not used often. In this case, this tobacco is used as the binder. Azulejo is named for the color of a blue-glazed tile that was used on Spanish and Portuguese edifices. Blue is also one of the colors featured on the Brazilian flag.
In addition to the Brazilian Arapiraca binder, the blend uses all-Nicaraguan tobaccos and is finished with an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper - another leaf Espinosa has been making more use of these days. It's the 6 x 60 box-pressed Gordo size that lands on the 2022 Countdown. Production comes from AJ Fernandez’s San Lotano factory in Ocotal, Nicaragua and the cigar was blended by Hector Alfonso.
The Espinosa Laranja Reserva Azulejo Gordo delivered a fantastic combination of coffee, leather, citrus, cedar, and pepper. This cigar delivered on the upper end of medium strength and medium body. It's not only something very different from Espinosa, but it really is an innovative flavor profile when it comes to the Sumatra wrapper.
The Espinosa Laranja Reserva Azulejo Gordo is the third cigar from Espinosa Cigars to land on the 2022 Cigar of the Year Countdown joining the Las 6 Provinces LV and Warhead VII. It's also the third cigar to come out of AJ Fernandez's San Lotano Factory. The year 2022 has been a big one for Espinosa Cigars when it comes to the Countdown. Not only is this the third cigar to place on the Countdown from the Company, but this year has marked ten consecutive years at least one Espinosa Cigar has placed on a Cigar Coop Countdown. If you are keeping score at home Nicaragua continues to dominate the Countdown. Of the 26 cigars we have unveiled, 17 of them have come from Nicaragua, and three have placed in the top ten - including two top tens from Espinosa.
Full Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-oqu
Wednesday Jan 04, 2023
Wednesday Jan 04, 2023
Coming in at #6 is the Quesada 1974 Toro. The Quesada 1974 is a cigar line that pays homage to the year Quesada Cigars opened its own factory. It's a cigar line that made its debut in 2019, which incidentally coincided with the 45th anniversary of the factory opening. In 2021, Quesada Cigars did a line extension in the form of a classic 6 x 52 Toro. But it was the Robusto that would land on the 2021 Countdown. This year the Toro lands a top ten slot at #6.
The blend to the Quesada 1974 features a Cameroon seed wrapper grown in Ecuador. There are Dominican tobaccos on the binder and filler, along with some additional Nicaraguan tobacco used in the filler. The Dominican tobaccos were grown directly by the Quesada family. Production comes from TABADEX, the Quesada factory. This is a regular production line for the Quesada's and the Toro size was the fifth one introduced into the 1974 line.
The Quesada 1974 Toro delivered a medium strength, medium-bodied smoke from start to finish - making this a very approachable cigar. The Quesada 1974 line has a very unique flavor profile, and the Toro size is no exception. Along the way, this cigar delivered notes of bread, apricot, orange rind, wood, baker’s spice, and black pepper. The Toro is the belle of the ball of the Quesada 1974 line. While the Toro size might be one for the contemporary smoker, this cigar smokes every bit like a connoisseur size.
The Quesada Toro 1974 is the third cigar from Quesada to land on the 2022 Cigar of the Year Countdown joining the Quesada Oktoberfest 10th Anniversary Bavarian and the Casa Magna Liga F Churchill. It's also the fourth cigar from the Quesada factory to land on the 2022 Countdown. As we have mentioned this is the eighth year a Quesada Cigar places on the Countdown and with three cigars this year, it's one of Quesada's strongest years. It gives the Dominican Republic a sixth cigar on the Countdown with three of them landing in the top ten thus far.
Full Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-oqs
Wednesday Jan 04, 2023
Wednesday Jan 04, 2023
Coming in at #6 is the Quesada 1974 Toro. The Quesada 1974 is a cigar line that pays homage to the year Quesada Cigars opened its own factory. It's a cigar line that made its debut in 2019, which incidentally coincided with the 45th anniversary of the factory opening. In 2021, Quesada Cigars did a line extension in the form of a classic 6 x 52 Toro. But it was the Robusto that would land on the 2021 Countdown. This year the Toro lands a top ten slot at #6.
The blend to the Quesada 1974 features a Cameroon seed wrapper grown in Ecuador. There are Dominican tobaccos on the binder and filler, along with some additional Nicaraguan tobacco used in the filler. The Dominican tobaccos were grown directly by the Quesada family. Production comes from TABADEX, the Quesada factory. This is a regular production line for the Quesada's and the Toro size was the fifth one introduced into the 1974 line.
The Quesada 1974 Toro delivered a medium strength, medium-bodied smoke from start to finish - making this a very approachable cigar. The Quesada 1974 line has a very unique flavor profile, and the Toro size is no exception. Along the way, this cigar delivered notes of bread, apricot, orange rind, wood, baker’s spice, and black pepper. The Toro is the belle of the ball of the Quesada 1974 line. While the Toro size might be one for the contemporary smoker, this cigar smokes every bit like a connoisseur size.
The Quesada Toro 1974 is the third cigar from Quesada to land on the 2022 Cigar of the Year Countdown joining the Quesada Oktoberfest 10th Anniversary Bavarian and the Casa Magna Liga F Churchill. It's also the fourth cigar from the Quesada factory to land on the 2022 Countdown. As we have mentioned this is the eighth year a Quesada Cigar places on the Countdown and with three cigars this year, it's one of Quesada's strongest years. It gives the Dominican Republic a sixth cigar on the Countdown with three of them landing in the top ten thus far.
Full Report: https://wp.me/p6h1n1-oqs
Tuesday Jan 03, 2023
Tuesday Jan 03, 2023
Coming in at #7 is the 601 La Bomba Warhead VII by Espinosa Cigars. Over the years, Espinosa Cigars has built plenty of regular production and limited edition cigars. By far one of the company’s most popular limited editions is the annual Warhead release. Warhead is an extension of the original 601 La Bomba line, but it replaces the Nicaraguan Habano wrapper with a Broadleaf wrapper. As the name Warhead indicates, this is intended to be a stronger and bolder cigar. Each installment of the Warhead has featured a different size with a tweaked blend adjusted to that size as well as a different set of artwork. Warhead made its debut in 2013, and with a couple of exceptions has maintained an annual release schedule. 2021 saw the 7th installment – appropriately titled Warhead VII. It's the sixth different Warhead to land on the Countdown.
The Warhead features 100% Nicaraguan tobaccos highlighted by a Nicaraguan Broadleaf wrapper. Warhead VII marked a return to the box-pressed format after Warhead VI was released as a figurado. In this case, Warhead VII is a 7 x 50 box-pressed Churchill. Production is handled by AJ Fernandez's San Lotano factory in Ocotal, Nicaragua.
The Warhead VII delivers notes of earth, mocha (coffee/cocoa), dried fruit, and red pepper. The Warhead VII started out with medium strength and medium to full-bodied notes. The strength did progress to medium to full later in the first third. By the second half, both the strength and body crept into full territory. At the same time, while the second half was full-strength and full-bodied, this seemed much more dialed back than the Warhead VI.
The Warhead VII is the second cigar from Espinosa Cigars to land on the 2022 Cigar of the Year Countdown, joining the Las 6 Provinces LV. As we have mentioned Espinosa Cigars has been quite successful on the Cigar Coop Countdown as it has placed a cigar on the Countdown for ten consecutive years. Meanwhile, Nicaragua continues to dominate the Countdown. Of the 24 cigars we have unveiled, 16 of them have come from Nicaragua.
Tuesday Jan 03, 2023
Tuesday Jan 03, 2023
Coming in at #7 is the 601 La Bomba Warhead VII by Espinosa Cigars. Over the years, Espinosa Cigars has built plenty of regular production and limited edition cigars. By far one of the company’s most popular limited editions is the annual Warhead release. Warhead is an extension of the original 601 La Bomba line, but it replaces the Nicaraguan Habano wrapper with a Broadleaf wrapper. As the name Warhead indicates, this is intended to be a stronger and bolder cigar. Each installment of the Warhead has featured a different size with a tweaked blend adjusted to that size as well as a different set of artwork. Warhead made its debut in 2013, and with a couple of exceptions has maintained an annual release schedule. 2021 saw the 7th installment – appropriately titled Warhead VII. It's the sixth different Warhead to land on the Countdown.
The Warhead features 100% Nicaraguan tobaccos highlighted by a Nicaraguan Broadleaf wrapper. Warhead VII marked a return to the box-pressed format after Warhead VI was released as a figurado. In this case, Warhead VII is a 7 x 50 box-pressed Churchill. Production is handled by AJ Fernandez's San Lotano factory in Ocotal, Nicaragua.
The Warhead VII delivers notes of earth, mocha (coffee/cocoa), dried fruit, and red pepper. The Warhead VII started out with medium strength and medium to full-bodied notes. The strength did progress to medium to full later in the first third. By the second half, both the strength and body crept into full territory. At the same time, while the second half was full-strength and full-bodied, this seemed much more dialed back than the Warhead VI.
The Warhead VII is the second cigar from Espinosa Cigars to land on the 2022 Cigar of the Year Countdown, joining the Las 6 Provinces LV. As we have mentioned Espinosa Cigars has been quite successful on the Cigar Coop Countdown as it has placed a cigar on the Countdown for ten consecutive years. Meanwhile, Nicaragua continues to dominate the Countdown. Of the 24 cigars we have unveiled, 16 of them have come from Nicaragua.
Monday Jan 02, 2023
Monday Jan 02, 2023
It’s the first Jukebox show of 2023 and Dave and Coop kick it off with a recap in the world of music.
The guys will go review some of the trends of the 2022 music scene and 8 of their favorite shows. In addition, they will give the infamous “Now or Never” picks for both music and cigars. Plus the guys recap their Minneapolis trip and go through some big music stories from December.
For this show, Dave smokes the Davidoff Art Edition 2017 and Coop smokes the Oliva Serie V Melanio JR 50th.
As always you can follow along with our Spotify Playlists:
Dave's Top 50
- Top 50 of 2022: #50 – 46 / Ozzy, a 2000s Rebirth and Death Metal
- Top 50 of 2022: #45 – 41 / A Clipse Reunion, An Icon and A Lost Track
- Top 50 of 2022: #40 – 36 / Some Aussie Music, An Artist Double and The Dark Knight
- Top 50 of 2022: #35 – 31 / Some Hot Stones, A Hip Hop Storm and Neon
- Top 50 of 2022: #30 – 26 / What do you Get When you Cross a Chair, a Firecracker and a Satanic Storm?
- Top 50 of 2022: #25 – 21 / A Hip Hop Sweatshirt, A Shotgun and an Alt – Country Icon
- Top 50 of 2022: #20 – 16 / A Metal Collab, K-Pop Cocaine and Hip Hop Superheroes
- Top 50 of 2022: #15 – 11 / Two Women in Hip Hop, More Aussie Punk and an Indie Pairing Brought to You by Taylor Swift
- Top 50 of 2022: #10 – 6 / A Great, A Boyfriend and A Sign
- Top 50 of 2022: #5 – 1 / Feeling Blessed, A Renaissance and Midnight Thoughts
References
- OOPS! 50 of 2022: #50 – 46 / New South Music, A Broken Heart and a Gorilla
- Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie Dead at 79
- 45th Kennedy Center Honors
- Bob Dylan Fans Who Bought $600 ‘Hand-Signed’ Books With Replica Autographs Will Receive Refunds From Publisher
- Journey’s Neal Schon Files Cease-and-Desist Against Bandmate Jonathan Cain