Let’s see… what have I been up to lately? I’m loving my new role as a father, am busy with interesting work at my job, and still dealing with contractors & my homeowner’s insurance claim following the lightning-induced power surge several weeks ago. Hey, two out of three ain’t bad, right? And I’ve got plenty […]
Tatuaje Proto 2 – Saints & Sinners 2011 (first impressions)
Deciding to change things up a little bit this week, I reached into my 2011 Saints & Sinners smoker’s kit and pulled out the Tatuaje Proto 2. According to the exclusive overview published by our friend Jay over at CigarPhoto.net, the Proto 2 is the original unreleased blend of La Casita Criolla. Unlike the final […]
Tatuaje Cojonu 2012 pre-release (plus giveaway)
Back in October, I met up with Pete Johnson at a Tatuaje Cigars event hosted by Holt’s in Philadelphia. As one of the promotions at the event, customers received a three-pack pre-release sampler of the Cojonu 2012 with each box purchase. I jumped at the opportunity to try some cigars that won’t be released until […]
Brian’s The Week In Smoke, Issue 12
Back once again here’s Brian’s The Week In Smoke. In case this is your first Week in Smoke, be advised that it covers many (though not necessarily all) of the cigars I’ve smoked in the past week (or the past month, or however long it has been since the last issue), along with a couple […]
Cabaiguan Guapos (First Impressions)
By now, most of you have probably seen the top ten portion of the annual Top 25 list published by a major cigar “lifestyle” magazine that shall remain nameless. As usual, there are a few surprises. Coming in at number 7 was the Cabaiguan Guapos, made by Pete Johnson from Tatuaje. This was a bit […]
The Box-Worthies: Brian’s Top 10 Cigars of 2011
‘Tis the season for cigar lists, and here’s mine. I like to think of what follows as my real top 10 list. Meaning that, when I lift the humidor lid, the following cigars are the ones I really hope to find waiting for me front and center. New or old, complex or straightforward, these are […]
Brian’s The Week In Smoke, Issue 10
Back thanks to a serious of unfortunate, time consuming events, once again here’s Brian’s The Week In Smoke. In case this is your first Week in Smoke, be advised that it covers many (though not necessarily all) of the cigars I’ve smoked in the past week (OK, more like the past month, but I don’t […]
Week in Smoke – TGT Edition
I’m switching things up and am going to start publishing my Week in Smoke on my Monday spot. With so much going on I like to devote as much of the weekend to family time (although as I type this I’m at W.Curtis Draper watching football). So my Thursday spot will now be my review […]
1143 Seconds with Pete Johnson
Last week, the night before I left for an overseas business trip, I sat down with Pete Johnson at a Tatuaje Cigars event hosted by Holt’s Cigar Company in Northeast Philadelphia. We talked about a lot of things going on in the Tatuaje universe, including the upcoming Cojonu 2012s, future installments of the Monster series, […]
Tatuaje Avion 11 – First Impressions
Wrapper : Ecuadorian Habano Maduro Binder : Nicaraguan Filler : Nicaraguan Source : Pete generously handed this to me at CigarExpo First I will apologize for another written review but i have been down and out with the weather and my neck hurting so bad. I hope to be back to videos for my next […]