OCTOBER 1997

Good construction. Even suppleness. Attractive maduro wrapper. Smooth and easy draw. Even burn. Medium bodied, deep roasted/burnt coffee bean flavors warm up to some earthy notes with light pepper, sweet spices, and hints of nuts.

Good solid construction. Firm draw. Even burn. Beautiful white ash that holds well. Light pepper, good spice and earth character, with hints of roasted nuts and coffee bean.

CT shade wrapper with a light oily sheen. Well constructed. Straightforward herbal character offers sweet toast flavor with a light nuttiness and hints of orange peel.

Luscious dark chocolate wrapper, supple construction. Good draw and burn. Mild creamy flavors of chocolate and herbs, light earth and spice, with hints of coffee. Flavors build becoming a rich, delicious smoke.

Greetings from the Humidor

This months selection offers one of the best mixes of color, size, and country of origin. Our first selection comes the Flor de Florez line of cigars. The Florez Florez Cabinet Selection from Nicaragua redefines the term "smooth." This cigar is sure to be one the smoothest cigars you will ever smoke. In fact, our panelists came up with a new slogan for the Florez manufactures: "You’ve tried all the rest, now try the smoothest." It may not rhyme, but it’s true.

Although a new name to the industry, the Hurricanos Corona Gorda is produced by the makers of Thomas Hinds. Despite the Hurricanos having the cheeziest label in the marketplace, its quality is in line with the best of the Thomas Hinds cigars. We promise that this beautiful maduro cigar with a lousy band will surprise you.

Most of us are familiar with the Jose Marti cigars being produced in Honduras, however, some of their best cigars are being produced in Nicaragua. The Jose Marti Robusto from Nicaragua recently received an 88 rating in Cigar Aficionado magazine. Without giving it all away, we think you’ll see that this is one cigar that lives up to it’s rating.

Alas, we have accumulated enough inventory to feature one of the few non-Cuban cigars that has ever received a 93 rating from Cigar Aficionado magazine. Unfortunately during this time it’s rating has dropped, however the Licenciados Toro still provides a unique flavor that’s worth smoking one after the other.

Lately we’ve been wondering if Onyx is still in business. We can never seem to score any significant quantities. Well, I guess it’s no surprise. The Onyx 750 maduro is one delicious cigar. Smoke this to the nub and you’ll see that these are truly, "precious" black gems.

Happy smoking!