Big Al's Cigar Blog

Alec Bradley Prensado Corona Gorda cigar review 4/21/2023 I've had 3 of these in my humidor for about a year now and I am finally my first one.  I have been an Alec Bradley fan for a long time.  This is supposed to be one of the best.   Corojo wrapper from Honduras with the rest Nicaraguan and Honduran.   This is a smaller cigar than I normally prefer.  Bigger than a corona but smaller than a robusto.   First inch starts pretty mild with some nuttiness and slight caramel taste.  Pretty quickly changes to a stronger profile with some red pepper spice.  Very smooth but leaves nice flavors of caramel, nuts, and spiciness lingering on your palate.   I do have to touch it up with my lighter, but no big deal.   I've smoked about a third and it's smoking about the right speed, maybe 15 min.  Good full draws and always smooth.   Picking up some deeper tobacco flavors.  Kind of like dried fruit and licorice. Not overpowering, just enough flavors on your tongue to keep it smooth and

 Fratello Blue Toro cigar review 4/17/2023 Heres a $3 bundle smoke from a somewhat unknown brand. I bought some 5 pack samplers of this brand that had 2 "premiums" and 3 bundle cigars. The bundle cigars have been decent and worth the $3 and this is the 2nd of the bundle smokes that I've tried. I rated one of the bundle cigars, Rosso, an 86. The other premiums rated 94 and 92, so I know Fratello knows how to make a decent smoke. This one, same as the other bundles, is rolled by La Aurora. Maduro wrapper, Indonesian binder, and Dominican fillers.   Well, damn, right away I can tell it's plugged. Come on man. Getting nothing out of my power lungs, I go inside to get my cutters. I curt an 1/8 inch off and still plugged. OK. Cut some more. A little better but still not much taste. It almost 10:30pm on a Monday night and I'm trying to decide if I rate this a zero and get another or try to make do. The flavor seems pretty good but, you know, why waste my time

Hoyo de Monterey Double Corona cigar review  3/11/2023 Its been a long time since I've smoked a Hoyo cigar but they have always been pretty consistently good.    The regular blend and the Excalibur have been their most sold and best blends, at least in my experience.  This one is 6.75 x 48.    Long and skinny.    Equadorian Sumatra wrapper, Connecticut broadleaf binder, and Dominican / Honduran / Nicaraguan fillers.    These have been made in Honduras for a really long time.   Pretty flavourful right away.    A little toasted caramel taste.    Been drinking coke and Cazadores tequila.    Seems to bring out the sweetness.    Not mild, but still smooth and easy smoking. Very slight spice left on the palate, but very good flavor of sweet dark root beer like taste left lingering.    And it only been like 5 to 10 minutes. Check out the ash.    I haven't had very many split out the ash like this.    These have only aged 2 or 3 months in my humidor.    So far, seems well aged.   It

Partagas Cifuentes Enero cigar review 3/8/2023 Partagas has been making these lower priced smokes for like 10+ years.    I bought a few boxes a while back, like probably 10 years ago.    This one is from that batch.    I had to look this one up and I really couldn't believe these are still available.   They were about $3 each back then and about $5 now.   It's an all Dominican puro with Corojo wrapper. Pretty mild at first.    Has that classic first Dominican flavor of sweet graham cracker flavor that has a papery and cedary taste.   I guess some describe this as creamy.    To me it's a little too much bite to call creamy.    It is mild but has some strong aftertaste.    Good aftertaste of sweetness and some spice. But still kind of has a slight bite instead of just flavors left on your tongue.   Yeah I know I'm being a little too critical for a lower priced cigar, but you need know what you are getting for 5 bucks.  You are getting a great rolled cigar from some fine r

5 Vegas Cask Strength Toro cigar review  3/6/2023 5 Vegas has been a steady and great brand of Esteli, Nicaragua for many decades. I've been a fan of the brand all of my 20+ years of cigar smoking.  This one has a red Corojo Nicaraguan wrapper with Nicaraguan binder and combo of Nicaraguan and Honduran fillers.  Um, it is not single barrel whiskey cigar but supposedly influenced by the strong alcohol content. These are stronger than most 5 Vegas smokes, but not really full bodied. Really good mild flavors right away. Like a spicy caramel Christmas spiced coffee flavor.  I need to add that I've had a few of these aging for maybe 5+ years. I see they still sell these. Are mine the same? I don't know. All I know is these seem to have aged very well and are really smooth and flavorful. Still pretty mild after first inch. Leaves a pretty good mild sweet and spicy taste. Half way through and it definitely has picked up strength. Sweetness has changed to more earth and raw

La Flor Dominicana Double Ligero 660 Natural cigar review 2/25/2023 I not a huge super strong cigar fan, but I do like a pretty strong one.    This one, the first I've ever smoked of this line, is supposed to be one of the strongest.    I've been a big fan of La Flor Dominicana for 20 years, used to love their Cameroon wrapped cigars a decade or two ago.   This one is Equadorian Sumatra wrapped with all Dominican estate grown tobaccos, with double the amount of Ligero.   I have had a full day today.    Backpacked a few miles into the wilderness yesterday and hiked out, still carrying 40lbs of gear.    Actually slept pretty good in the tent so I'm not that tired.    It is a Saturday night, so I think I deserve a strong cigar tonight.  Actually starts off pretty mild for the first 5 min. But now more bold.    Pretty good flavors of caramel but has a molasses taste.    Some cedar aftertaste and hints of oak and charred wood.   You can tell it is expertly rolled.    The burn is

Alec Bradley Project 40 Natural Gordo Cigar review 2/20/2023   Checking my reviews, I realized I haven't done a review on this one.    This one I liked so much that I bought two boxes of these at very cheap prices, like 5 year ago prices.    Or like half of what I'm seeing them priced at today.    $3 to $4 is what these are worth and they are some of the best at that price.   I thinks it's all Nicaraguan with Brazilian Habano binder.    Not too mild and not too full.    It's just a great go to smoke for any occasion.  It starts off slow.    Yeah it is mild for first 10 minutes.    After 10 minutes it picks up some flavors. It's still mild, but picking up some graham cracker and nuttiness.    Burning perfect and drawing quite well.   Picking up a little spice and cedar.    Still mild enough to play golf or fish and smoke it while letting it hang from your lips.  I like it as it's an uneventful smoke.    It just smokes good no matter how you smoke it.    You can s

Oliva Serie G Figuardo cigar review  2/18/2023 Ive been mostly reviewing new cigars or at least new to me.    This Oliva G Cameroon smoke is definitely not new to me. It's one of my favorites    and I will be dumbfounded if I review it poorly or at least a 90.    I'm half done with my box and and half done wit my second box of churchhills.    Yeah they are that good if you find them at the right price, which isn't that hard to do.    It's a $4 to $5 smoke if you shop around and we'll worth it at that at price.    I rate them based on the common prices from the past.  I've always like figuardos, not for so much the flavor but more for the custom hand roll art of making a human made cigar that delivers exactly what the intent was originally.    If done right, it is great.    Usually it is worth the extra effort and usually only a few bucks more.    And this is a large Figuardo, about Toro size.    Most are robusto size.   OK, OK, I'm smoking it.    It is smoot

Fratello Oro Toro cigar review  2/15/2023   This is my 4eth Fratello cigar review so far.    I think I have 2 more to review.    This is one of their higher priced smokes with a Connecticut wrapper, Cameroon binder, and Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers.    The wrapper looks alright, but is not shiny like some of the high dollar brand Connecticut wrapped cigars.   But looks aren't always how to judge the content.    This one is supposed to be mild to medium, as most Connecticut wrapped smokes are.    Lots of competition so let's see what this one can do. These ain't cheap, about $7 to $8 a piece when you by a box.  Starts off pretty mild.    So far it reminds me of some of good mild Dominican smokes I used to love a decade or more ago, like Aurora or Fonseca.    Has a slight toffee and cedar taste.    Really mild though, have to pull hard to pull these flavors out.    Draw is good and burning slow and good.   An inch burned and it is still mild but has a spicy, smooth flavor