Summary:

A rich-flavored, medium-bodied, maduro cigar, with an excellent aroma. A smooth, refined and sophisticated smoke that is extremely consistent.

Background Information:

The CT Signature Toro is 6 inches long with a 50 ring gauge. The cigar has a sun-grown Brazillian Arapiraca maduro wrapper over a Connecticut Broadleaf binder. The filler is a mix of Dominican Cubana ligero and Nicaraguan Habano ligero tobacco. Each cigar is individually wrapped in a cedar sleeve. Manufactuered at the Cuevas y Hermanos factory in the Dominican Republic for Toraño y Cia.

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In the Dominican Republic last Friday, the National Tobacco Institute (INTABACO), the Attorney General’s Department, and Dominican state security institutions impounded 2,871 boxes of counterfeit cigars from tourist centers and stores in that nation.

The latest raids, part of a crack-down by Dominican authorities, netted 40,000 cigars counterfeiting famous brands that included Romeo y Julieta, Cohiba, Montecristo, Davidoff, Partagas, Gloria Cubana, Macanudo, Punch, Troya, and others. The cigars were seized in shopping centers, stores, beaches and tourist plazas in Santo Domingo, Bayahibe, Higuey and Bavaro.

Yesterday, on August 9, INTABACO incinerated 7,000 boxes of confiscated cigars, most with fake Cuban brand labels, seized in this most recent round of raids. The incineration took place in a lot next to INTABACO’s offices, located in the community Villa González, in this northern province.

INTABACO director Adalberto Rosa said that with these actions against the fake cigars, the national tobacco sector will obtain a market free from irregularities that will allow the development of healthy business practices. “These actions represent a hard blow for the cigar forgers who have affected the image of the Dominican Republic abroad,” he said.

Would that it was true and it was that easy.

More on the counterfeit cigar problem after the jump.

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Patrick at The Stogie Guys has a short review of the Partagas Black Label Clasico up. The Black Label is a cigar that I like. Indeed, I like virtually all Partagas cigars. Patrick seems to agree on this one, giving it a four out of five on their rating system.

Here’s an excerpt of what Patrick had to say,

“while the cigar’s appearance makes it stand out in the humidor, this stogie can only fully be appreciated after enjoying its distinctive flavors, which are so unique they are difficult to properly describe.

The Clasico is a 5.25×54 large Robusto made at General Cigar’s Dominicana factory. I would characterize it as a medium-to-full bodied smoke with a full flavor that is spicy or peppery and yet very smooth at the same time. A lot of the special character of the cigar comes from the care that went into its development.

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CAO has announced a new cigar line called Vision that will launch at next month’s Retail Tobacco Dealers of America annual convention and show in Las Vegas. The CAO Vision is the first Dominican-made CAO cigar.

The Vision will be available in three sizes: a 5×50 Robusto, a 6×50 Toro, and a 6.25×52 Torpedo. The cigars sport a Dominican Corojo wrapper, and a Dominican Piloto Cubano (cuban seed) Binder. The filler is a blend of Dominican, Nicaraguan and Brazilian tobacco. I’ll be posting a review of the cigar as soon as they are available for sampling.

Along with this being CAO’s first Dominican release, it is also being packged in an innovative way. What could be special about the way a cigar is packaged? CAO has another surprise for us.

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From Peter Vincent at the Sydney Morning Herald:

In an era where cigarette smoking is in decline for its health effects and faces increasing social censure, there has been quiet growth in the popularity of the cigar.

The theory goes that cigars are about more than just smoking. Sure, aficionados will praise the complex taste of the world’s best cigars, which are made around the Caribbean. But it’s also about how and where you smoke them.

“For me, a cigar is not an everyday thing, it’s something I spoil myself with,” says Spiro Ellul, a Melbourne collector and cigar smoker.

“I spend up to two hours smoking one, with a nice glass of red or a port and I’ll drift off and reflect on my daily life and organise my thoughts.”

Ellul spent about $15,000 last year collecting cigars. He has about 50 boxes in storage. True aficionados leave cigars to age for at least a year in a controlled humidity of between 65 and 75 per cent.

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Summary:

A mild to medium-bodied, maduro cigar with a rough-appearing and veiny wrapper that is oscuro-dark black. Those looking for a “wicked touch of spice” in their cigars should probably look elsewhere however…and that probably explains why this cigar has gone from being a promising devil to a ghost of Halloween past.

Those of you familiar with my cigar reviews should know that this one is a bit different. The Diablo line has been discontinued by the manufacturer due to low sales. If you want to try this cigar, you will have to hurry, search out the few suppliers who still have it in stock — and it will probably be a once-in-a-lifetime experience for you.

So, why the review?

As I said, I’m doing something a little different here. This review is the first installment in a two part series. The first part, which you are reading, will review the cigar independent of its marketing campaign and hype. Think of it as similar to a blind tasting — or as similar as I can possibly make it.

The second article, which will follow, will focus on the question of “what went wrong,” and I frankly find that question quite interesting. Hopefully, so will you.

When the Diablo line was introduced, there was much fanfare and a well-coordinated guerilla marketing campaign that a lot of time and effort went into. The cigar was created by a really talented blender, and is really not a bad cigar at all. Despite that, only a little over a year later, the cigar is history. Considering that it was backed by one of the major companies in the industry, I think that the Diablo story deserves a second look.

So, enjoy the review today and come back for the post-mortem soon.
 

Background Information:

A medium-bodied cigar with an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, an oily Connecticut Broadleaf binder, and a filler made of a blend of Nicaraguan and Dominican Piloto Cubano (cuban seed) Ligero tobacco. From cigar master-blender Daniel Nuñez, and manufacturered by General Cigar at their Dominicana factory .

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