From Richard Mullins, The Tampa Tribune:

TAMPA - — Lisa Figueredo always wondered why Tampa — with so much history in cigar making — didn’t have its own cigar magazine.

So many Tampa families have parents and grandparents who rolled cigars in huge factories and small shops in the city. Some of the most respected cigar brands in the world trace their histories through Ybor City and West Tampa.

At 2 one morning in July, the idea came to her: Why not start her own magazine?

That’s when Cigar City Magazine was born.

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From Rich at Cigar Cyclopedia:

Los Angeles, November 23 – Just when you think the Cigar Renaissance will slow down, it keeps chugging along.

Figures for U.S. imports of premium cigars for the nine months ending September 30 were released by the Cigar Association of America showed that imports kept pace with the hot 2004 totals and then did just a bit more.

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This is more of a tasting note and some quick comments (with price and source information), rather than a full review. Frankly, I do not feel comfortable doing reviews based on only a single cigar, and that’s all I have had of this one.

This came up in response to a question this weekend on the new Cigar Envy Deals and Discussion Yahoogroup. The group is up to over 375 members now in just four days of existence and ranks in the top ten of the 140 cigar-related groups there. Thanks again for the very enthusiastic response.

The factory pressed La Flor Dominicana (officially the LFD Prensado), for those who might not be familiar with it, was just introduced at the RTDA show in New Orleans a few months back. It is a new cigar in Litto Gomez’ Double Ligero series, and is offered in a very limited edition of only 400 boxes.

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The new Cigar Envy Deals and Discussion List has only been in existence for two days, and already it is one of the largest cigar-related discussion lists at yahoogroups with over 275 registered members. I’d like to thank everyone for the enthusiastic response.

The purpose of the new yahoogroup is to provide a central list of special offers, promotions and discounts on cigars and cigar accessories from retailers and dealers around the world. Some dealers will also be offering exclusive deals just for Cigar Envy list members. Others will be more general deals, but in many cases you would never hear about them unless you subscribed to dozens of different separate lists.

The list also provides free-wheeling discussion about good cigars, bargain smokes, under and over-rated cigars, and other cigar-related subjects for all involved. Plus, you will also find tips, recommendations, and warnings about online dealers and retailers of cigars and cigar-related products.

If you are interested in these subjects — and if you smoke cigars I imagine that you are — then you can subscribe to the list by sending a blank email message to:

CigarEnvy-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

You can also subscribe by simply Clicking On This Link.

Either way, you will get an email in return asking you to confirm your subscription. You will also get an automatic email from me giving you some basic list information — how to set your email preference to individual messages, daily digest or no mail, guidelines for posting, and similar topics. Of course, if you have any questions or need any help, you can email me and I’ll be glad to lend a hand.

Thanks again, and I hope that the new email list provides a few little extras for your holiday celebrations this year.

Looking for Cigar Book Bargains? Find them at Amazon.

Technorati Tags: cigar, cigars, cigar review, cigar reviews,cigar_ review, maduro cigar, cigar news, tobacco, bargain cigars, discount cigars

Summary:

The flavor of this cigar is unique in my experience, and something that you are almost certain to either love or hate. There is an oaky quality that comes through the entire time, mellowing as you smoke the cigar. It most reminds me of smoking English pipe tobacco — both in the astringency and in the problems with keeping it lit — and seems to pair well with a good Scotch Whisky. The main flaw in the Italia Ciao appears to be very uneven construction. When it is good, it is quite good. However, when it is bad…

Background Information:

At 5 inches with a 56 ring guage, this is a very chubby Robusto. The Italia Ciao is a medium-to-full bodied cigar with a Cuban-seed Honduran Maduro wrapper and binder. The filler is a special Habano seed tobacco from Italy (hence the name), blended with Nicaraguan and Peruvian tobaccos. Manufactured by C.A.O. Fabrica de Tabacos in Honduras for C.A.O. International, Inc.

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Cigar Aficionado’s Cigar Insider newsletter just released a rating today on the Cusano 18 Paired Maduro Churchill. This is the cigar that I reviewed here at Cigar Envy last week. CA is the first of the major magazines to review it.

They rated the cigar at 89, and called it a best buy. It is their featured cigar, and received the highest rating of any reviewed in this issue — topping the CAO Cx2 and the Aurora 1495 among others.

Here are some excerpts from what they said, along with notes on their vertical review of other sizes in the Paired Maduro release:

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