Solid Second Issue of Cigar Magazine

From Rich Perelman at CigarCyclopedia:

No sophomore jinx for Cigar Magazine. The second issue of this new publication from the folks who bring you Cigars by Santa Clara and J-R Cigars is another winner:

• A poignant interview with the legendary Al Goldstein, best known as the publisher of the now-discontinued Screw magazine, now apparently bankrupt and although married for the fourth time, living alone in a New York homeless shelter.

• The wild story of the Plasencia family. which started in 1850 when 14-year-old Santiago Plasencia left the Canary Islands for Cuba, swung wildly 113 years later when the family farm – El Corojal – was confiscated by the Cuban government, then started again in Honduras and Nicaragua. It’s a family story, but also the story of the American cigar scene in the aftermath of the Cuban embargo and the nationalization of Cuban agriculture and industry under its socialist government. It’s a dramatic story that has – at least for the present – a happy ending.

• Of course, there are ratings, this time in two helpings. The first is the magazine’s standard review of a group of mild, medium and full-bodied cigars. This month’s grouping was large cigars – Churchills and Double Coronas – and the top choices included:

> Mild-bodied cigars: a Partagas (Dominican) No. 10 scored the best for taste (90), construction (89) and quality (88) while the S.T. Dupont Churchill was tops for appearance (86) and the La Finca Valentino scored best in value (155!). I’m not sure that Partagas belongs in the same group as the Macanudo Gold Label, but it scored the best.

> Medium-bodied cigars: Nearly a clean sweep for the Romeo y Julieta Churchill, which also ranked no. 4 on our list of the top medium-bodied cigars available in America. The RyJ scored best in appearance (92), taste (89), construction (89) and quality (90). It shared the taste and construction honors with the Arturo Fuente Gran Reserva Churchill (no. 4 in our ranking of full-bodied cigars!), the Ashton Prime Minster, Perdomo Reserve Champagne C and Vegas de Fonseca Antero also tied for the lead in construction with 89 points. The tops-in-value cigar was the underrated and elegant Gispert Churchill, which scored 105 points.

> Full-bodied cigars: Another near sweep for Altadis with the Saint Luis Rey Reserva Especial Churchill, winner in appearance (89), construction (88), quality (88) and value (113). The Punch Gran Cru Monarca also received 89 points for appearance, while the winner on taste was the Padron Executive, at 88. Although the 1964 Anniversary Series and Serie 1926 are more famous, the standard Padron line is, I think, their best and is widely available and fairly priced.

• The second review involved reactions from five “cigar maniacs” selected by the editors to a group of coronas and petit coronas. Their top selections included:

> Mild-bodied: The Don Diego Petit Corona did best on appearance (84) and quality (82) while the Macanudo Petit Corona also scored 82 on quality and was best on construction (86). But the tasting winner was the Partagas No. 4 (79), which also scored 82 for quality. It’s still hard to imagine why this blend is considered mild-bodied, but then some folks also can’t start their day without Turkish coffee, which is closer in consistency to motor oil than to anything served at The Palm.

> Medium-bodied: The Montecristo Afrique won this showdown easily, winning for appearance (87), taste (87), construction (90) and quality (88). Its sibling from the Tabacalera de Garcia, the H. Upmann Vintage Cameroon (which we ranked no. 8 among all full-bodied cigars) scored the best on value with 87 points.

> Full-bodied: Saint Luis Rey did it again, winning in appearance (87), taste (85), construction (86) and quality (86). It tied with the Sancho Panza Extra Fuerte from General Cigar in taste, construction and quality and the Montecristo Buena Fortura tied in the taste (85) and construction categories. The winner on value: the Punch London Club, with a manufacturer’s suggested price of just $1.75.

• Tom Zarzecki contributes a nice story on the mystique surrounding Cuban cigars, about surviving his first, rather violent encounter with a Bolivar Corona Gigante, about lithium in the Cuban soil, his explanation of the difference between Havanas and others in terms of “depth” and how truly mad the American and Cuban governments have gotten about each other and about cigars.

There’s even more, but you’ll have to read it for yourself. It’s another winner in an emerging magazine which is for and about cigars and those who love them.

Posted on Monday, January 31st, 2005 at 10:54 am.