I’ve got a question for you. What’s my favorite cigar to review? If you said a pre-lease cigar you’re absolutely right. (“I don’t care” also accepted.) So it is with great enthusiasm that I light up the cigars for this week’s review. This new Artesano de Miami cigars by La Gloria Cubana is due to drop sometime in June.
How did I get my hands on this new cigar so far ahead of its release? I’d like to say the answer is I’m terribly important and influential. In truth it’s because Ernesto Perez-Carrillo is hitting the road to introduce this new cigar to enthusiasts at their local B&M’s. I stumbled into just such an event, with no idea that a brand new cigar was being introduced.
The Artesano de Miami line is planned to be a pretty limited release when it hits the market in June. Current figures place production in the 200 to 250 thousand for 2008. And with that, you know everything I know about the cigar. Well, everything but how it performs. Let’s check it out.
Cigar Stats:
Size: 6 7/8 x 49
Wrapper: Unavailable
Binder: Unavailable
Filler: Unavailable
Smoking Time: 3 hours
Beverage: Water
Price: Unavailable
The Artisan’s Foot
The Pre-Smoke
One of the things I overheard in the cigar shop while people tried out the Artesanos De Miami was “just look at how oily it is”. I don’t know if it will come through in the pictures, but this really is a surprisingly oily cigar. Usually I add a cursory note of a slight sheen in my notes when I review a cigar, but this really stands out. To the point where I’m sure they won’t need to give the cigars the old Vaseline treatment for the catalogs.
Beyond the noted oiliness, I was also impressed with the other aesthetics of the cigar too. The churchill is incredibly smooth and contains only one or two veins. Additionally this cigar comes decorated with a modified golden band with an antiqued looking take on the lady in the logo. It’s just a great looking band on a great looking cigar.
The golden band
I also found the cigar to be very firm. Enough so that it raised some concerns about the draw.
The scent on the wrapper was a pungent but sweet compost. But the flavor at the foot that was more interesting. In the first case it smelled like a curry dish. That’s right curry. The second cigar I sampled smelled a bit more raisiny at the foot, which I find considerably more common than curry!
The Burn
I was right to be a little concerned about draw. The first cigar had a firmer draw than I prefer. However, the draw on the second was perfect.
Inversely, the first, firmer drawing smoke held a great solid ash, while the looser drawing smoke was a bit flakier, especially in the first third. I regret now not getting a picture of that initial ash on the first cigar.
That second one started off flaky…
One thing that was a little disappointing was that I had issues with the cigar going out a little too often with both churchills I smoked. Typically the cigars would go out at least once in the second third, and then repeatedly in the final third, if not smoked pretty quickly. (However, I did not have this problem with the pyramid I smoked at the event. That thing burned like a dream all around.)
The Flavor
This cigar begins on a spicy note. In addition to rich flavors that resemble savory, smoky, jerky, I got a lot of peppery spice. At points I also tasted the distinct flavor of ligero.
As the cigar progressed into the second third I was greated with a sweet ligero flavor followed by smoother, less spicy and sometimes creamy flavors. I did get a lot of earthy cinnamon in this third and a little bit of creaminess.
I didn’t notice too much of a flavor change as the cigar burned into the final third. The earthy cinnamon was still prominent. There was an increase in the creaminess and sweetness not long before the cigar finished.
The Price
Its still early days when it comes to this cigar, and I didn’t get any information on pricing. I’m thinking that it might be a little more expensive than La Gloria Cubana cigars, because of the limited release, but that’s just speculation.
The Verdict
I thought this was a great smoke, and I’m really looking forward to trying them again down the road. I’m particularly interested in getting my hands on another one of the pyramids I smoked at the event. Of three vitolas I sampled, the pyramid was the one I enjoyed the most. Though I have to mention that the corona was an intriguing little ligero bomb. (I predict it will be a pretty popular little smoke.)
It’ll be interesting to see if (and how) they differ once released. And I’m looking forward to finding out the particulars of the tobaccos used and the price. I’d recommend keeping an eye out for these cigars when they hit the market in June.
Liked It: Yes
Buy It Again: Yes
Recommend It: Yes
Tower of Burn
Here for your viewing pleasure is my trademark Tower of Burn.
Nice review Brian…I’ll hold off until pricing but I too would expect a higher price when a cigar manufacturer uses the term “limited release”.
Any guess on how you’d classify the body? Medium-Full?
Nice Brian! i love the pics. Looks like its going to be a good cigar. im not a big fan of Churchill’s, but im looking forward to the other vitola’s
Good Job
Is there a schedule for LGC event? I wouldn’t mind going to one even if its just by chance these will be there. Flavors sound wonderful! Maybe a good YQMA question but why do cigar makers keep the make up of their cigars so secret?
Thanks Jerry,
I’d say medium-full would be a good estimation. In spite of the spiciness and the ligero flavor I got, a good deal of the seemed more medium than full.
Thanks Dennis,
Yeah, I’m not really into churchills either. It just so happens it was the vitola I got enough of to review! I think people are gonna love that little corona. And I really enjoyed the short pyramid.
Vic,
I can’t guarantee Ernesto will be present at these events, but here’s what I was able to glean from Cigar Cyclopedia’s events list, organized roughly by state and date. Your best bet is the “cigar tasting” events, but there aren’t that many scheduled so far.
LGC Domino Event May 22 Ford & Haig Tobacconist Scottsdale AZ (480) 943-0608
LGC Domino Event May 23 Hiland’s Cigars Scottsdale AZ (480) 945-7050
LGC Domino Event Apr 25 Edward’s Pipe and Tobacco Shop Tampa FL (813) 872-0723
LGC Domino Event Apr 28 Edward’s Pipe and Tobacco Shop Tampa FL (813) 872-0723
LGC Domino Event Apr 25 Tobacco World Marietta GA (678) 290-1255
LGC Super Roll Event Apr 23 Cigars, Etc. Wichita KS (316) 944-2447
LGC Super Roll Event Apr 24 Cigar Chateau Wichita KS (316) 636-2433
LGC Super Roll Event Apr 25 Centro Cigars Lawrence KS (785) 856-7773
LGC Super Roll Event Apr 26 Cigar & Tobacco Overland Park KS (913) 381-5597
LGC Domino Event Apr 25 Don Juan Cigars Baton Rouge LA (504) 554-1307
LGC Domino Event May 01 My Smoke Shop New Hope MN (763) 450-3090
LGC Domino Event May 01 Charlie’s Premium Cigars Greensboro NC (336) 540-0555
Cigar Tasting May 03 McCranie’s Pipe Shop Cornelius NC (704) 655-9055
Great review Brian! I can’t wait to get my hands on some of these.
Comment love incoming!
I’m from West Virginia so it took me almost an entire day to read your review. Just kidding.
Enjoyed the review, looking forward to hearing more about this particular LGC.
Video reviews…ever gonna happen?
I think your comments are interesting in the YQMA, would also like to hear and see your reactions to the cigars you review. It just adds another dimension to the reviews that written reviews can never achieve. I guess that’s the main reason I visit this site, because it offers something different. Just my 2 cents!
…cannot wait to try them! (nice review…)
I just finished my first Artesanos de Miami Churchill. The 1st third of it knocked my socks off! Very very heavy smoke. I had to put it down. When i picked it up to finish it, it got much smoother, better tasting, it tasted much different than any other LGC I’ve ever smoked.
I will let the three other Artesanos I purchased go to bed for a few months before I try another. I think it needs more time in my humidor to tame that first third.
Thanks BigBlaze,
I forgot about these! I still have one left over from the small selection I picked up back in April. It’d be a great candidate for one of my infrequent weekend supplemental video reviews!
Bill H,
I know it’s been a while since you left the comment, but I try to get videos in from time to time. It all comes down to time right now, but I have some great video reviews planned for the near future!
Just curious..is it possible you had burn issues because it took you three hours to smoke a 7 inch cigar???
Can’t wait to try one!
Hey CJ. Are you talkin to me?
It did not take me three hours to smoke the cigar. It did tend to burn uneven at first, like the first few inches. After the first few inches it burned evenly and tasted mucho mas bueno!
I am gonna fire one up now that I put away 3 weeks ago, I know I said i was going to let them sleep for a few months before trying them again, but I can’t wait.
BigBlaze
\i i smoke
nIt berned , but it u urt
BigBlaze,
I think he was talking to me.
CJ,
It’s been a while, but I really took my time with this cigar, as I recall. In my experience, faster smoking more often contributes to a poor burn than a slower pace. The faster you smoke, the less time the cigar has to deal with burn irregularities that form naturally. (But of course, you run the risk of the cigar going out.) In this case, I really doubt the smoking time had anything to do with it, but then, anything is possible…
The Artesanos de Miami i smoked on 11/12/08 was stronger that the first one i smoked back on 10/20/08. For me these smokes are really heavy. I will let them age in my humidor some more and maybe try another next year.
BigBlaze
Well Sir, I just smoked another one of them there LGC Artesanos de Miami. The time it spent sleeping the past 3 months took the edge off of it. It smoothed out and did not kick my butt this time. It is a great smoke, however I would rather spend the $12 I paid for that one Artesanos on 4 of the original LGC’s or spend it on 3 of the LGC Serie R smokes. Butt that’s just me. I dont think they are worth the big price tag. Sorry.
BIGBLAZE
Don’t get me wrong, I love Ernies smokes, my humidor is full of em. I recently purchased a bundle of his “El Credito Small Churchills”. I smoked one of them as soon as UPS dropped them off at my front door. It was awesome! I smoked it down to a nub. I don’t know, but do they make roach clips for cigars? I did not want to put it down.
BIGBLAZE