Saturday 29 March 2008

Montecristo 4 from Puro Express

Another nail in the coffin of my storage problem: a box of Montecristo 4s from Patrick at the Puro Express. Great guy, great cigars. What more can you ask for.



I really enjoy the Monte 4s and i will review them here soon (i was surprised, that i have not done one already).

Please, see my plead for cooperation in a form of a cabinet humidor, since i am really in trouble here...


Cheers!

Out of storage space -Help required !

As the World of Cigars is growing more popular and i have to expand my cigar selection to have something to write about, i seem to have run out of storage space.

I tried to do an inventory on m cigars to see, if i can manage my storage little better, but there is no way i can properly store all my boxes. The singles i can squeeze into my humidors, but for the boxes, i have to utilize an air tight plastic container for the time being. And for that i feel ashamed.

So, to properly store my cigars and to get more subjects to write about, i humbly make this plead:

If you are interested or know anyone who might be, to provide me with a quality cabinet humidor in exchange for some great visibilty amongst the cigar smokers, please contact me through e-mail (contact me button on the navbar).

And by visibility i mean a story about the provider of the cabinet and a review on the cabinet with links, and of course a link on my sponsors list and possibly a little spot on my homepage sidebar.

Details are open for negotiation.

Please?

!!! Absolutely Fabulous - Montecristo 4 Reserva !!!


Yet another treat from CigarOne in Switzerland. Thank you Emily for making my day!

And here is the reason for my joy - 20 Montecristo 4 Reservas - Cosecha 2002 - box 3069/5000.




Beautiful box, beautiful cigars. It is a shame to smoke any of them, because then you don't have that one anymore... I'll let you now though, when i try one of them and i'll be sure to review it here at the same occasion.





Meanwhile, just enjoy the pictures once again...

Cheers!

Sunday 23 March 2008

The Story of Chiusano - Cusano and Cuvée Cigars



It was before the Cigar Boom, in the late 80's or the early 90's when Michael Chiusano, an investment Manager at the time, discovered quality cigars as a hobby. Soon after that, He found himself importing a small batch of cigars from the Dominican Republic to be sold at the Two Guys Smoke Shop under the new born Chiusano label. And it did not take long for the Smoke Magazine to notice the new cigar (and give it one of the highest ratings in the first anniversary issue).


The timing was perfect considering the business in 1995. Demand was still over powering the supply in quality cigars, and Michael soon found himself importing loads of cigars under his newly named Cusano label, just to fulfill the orders for a total of 10 000 cigars he had suddenly received. This was the time for the Cusano Hermasos trademark to make its first appearance. The rest of the story is cigar history, really.


The growing demand led to the fact that dozens of new Dominican labels were established and Cusano was one of the only companies that did not suffer from the scarcity of tobacco during this boom. At that time, the Cusano also got Henkie Kelner (Davidoff roller) to improve the already highly rated cigars. In the end, Cusano Cigars was one of the winners when Dominican brands withered from a count of 200 to about a dozen independent entrepreneurs.

Today the Cusano Brand is basically built on four main lines:


Cusano 18 Double Conneticut
Cusano 18 Paired Maduro
C10
Corojo 1997

and the other Brand of Cusano Cigars, The Cuvée line includes:


Cuvée Rouge
Cuvée Blanc
Cuvée Grand 2006
Cuvée No 151

In addition, Cusano Cigars also manufactures flavored cigars and cigar bundles.


The Cusano 18s use aged fillers to stand up for their name and they also have multiple wrappers, that give them a complex profile. The C10 is a 10th anniversary edition, that was created by Michael Cusano for "selfish" reasons: He wanted to make a cigar that had the same taste that the Montecristo 4 has. The Corojo 1997 has the wrapper from the 1997 harvest and is from the Dos Cubanos seed grown in Ecuador. All of the above have rated an average of 90/100 or 9/10 points in Cigar Magazines.

The Cuvée line is a fairly new addition to the Cusano Cigars. These Cuvée Cigars are crafted to match all the qualities of traditional Cuban cigars. The growing, harvesting, drying, fermenting and rolling processes are all strictly regulated and quality control is the key to everything.


The Blanc has a fair Conneticut wrapper, The Rouge is wrapped in a Dominican SunGrown leaf and The Grand 2006 has the Ecuadorian Dos Cubanos wrapper and is available in only 850 numbered boxes. The 151 has a dark, shiny and oily dark Costa Rican wrapper. The Cuvée Cigars have been highly appreciated on the field too.


The Cusano and Cuvée Cigars can be purchased from Paul Bugge. More detailed reviews on the Cusano 18 Conneticut and Maduro, and the Cuvée Blanc and Rouge coming soon!

Making an Inventory check...

Here are some pictures of my inventory check. Hmmm... I seem to be running low on cigars. Have to buy some more...



Cheers!

Friday 21 March 2008

Treats from CigarOne - Trinidad Ingenios EL-07 and Cohiba Maduro 5 Secretos

Well well... I received some excellent cigars from the CigarOne online store. Thank you Emily for such an excellent service! I really appreciate it!

In addition to these beauties, there is ten Montecristo 4 Reservas coming my way. It is a very difficult wait. Lucky for me, i have all these new cigars to enjoy meanwhile. Enjoy the pictures.




Cheers!

Friday 14 March 2008

Cusano and Cuvée - Finally here!

As I mentioned, the Cusano and Cuvée shipment was supposed to arrive for the announcement party. Thanks to the Finnish Post, they came four days too late and i have to think of another occasion to share them with my friends.

Anyway, they are finally here, and they are looking delicious!

1 box of Cusano Double Conneticut Robustos


1 box of Cusano Paired Maduro Churchills


1 box of Cuvée Blanc Robustos


1 box of Cuvée Rouge Churchills


So, thank you Daniel at Paul-Bugge and especially Joe Chiusano at Cusano Cigars for your generosity! I feel priviledged!

More on these beautiful cigars soon in a more complete introduction and reviews...




Meanwhile, enjoy the pictures!


cheers!

Thursday 13 March 2008

The Announcement Party - March 1st - Ahjo Bar&NightClub

The announcement party for my firstborn son - Max - took place at the Ahjo Bar&NightClub on March 1st 2008. I had invited all my friends and family - men AND women alike, not to discriminate anyone. The only rule was, that you should be able to enjoy the night in a thick cloud of smoke. So, it happened, that no women turned up... it figures!


Anyway, we had a great time amongst the men and enjoyed some great cigars and drinks as well as great company and many untold stories about life with and without babies.



Almost all my closest friends and relatives popped in for a smoke, so this event could be seen as an unofficial gathering of the "Kerho" cigarclub members too...



before the event, i was planning to pass around the Cusano 18 Double Conneticuts and Paired Maduros as well as the Cuvée Rouges and Blancs, which i had coming my way through Paul-Bugge.com from Joe Chiusano at the Cusano Cigars. What happened was that the Finnish Post Service lost my shipment for four days, and i never got the cigars in time. Too bad, but hey, atleast i have some great cigars for the next Kerho-night.


So, to replace my dissapointment, i stacked up some cigars - including Arganese - from my humidor and from a shipment i got on behalf the whole Arganese Family to celebrate my firstborn son. The cigars i passed around were the Arganese Maduro Chairman Churchills and Coronas, Arganese Double Wrapper Churchills, Santa Damiana Seleccion 600's and Bucanero La Noche Bundelos. Someone was kind do share a box of Partagas Petit Coronas Especiales too.





Thank you all for participating, in person or with cigars!

cheers!