The Velvet Cigar

Posted By Elvis on December 16, 2007

As Iron and I continue our ramp up of our cigar lounge we keep being amazed at all the new product out there and the really great guys that go with these new sticks. The cigar industry is alive and very vibrant even in the face of the Communist bans popping up everywhere! As I’ve mentioned, one big goal of our shoppe is to offer the Minnesota cigar smokers different products that they can’t find in surrounding shops. We know we are going to have to carry most of the normal stuff, but eventually we would like to hang our hat on being a shoppe that offers all the latest brands and lines and to be the first shoppe to really utilize the internet to bring in cigars not readily available through a local rep. That’s the beauty of having a wholesale license!

The latest new brand we’ve discovered is called Chamuco which translates to “Devilish” and is often used to desribe a michievious person! Ryan at Chamuco was amazing and quickly fired off a sampler pack to us to light up and try. Try getting that kind of response from Fuente or CAO! I love the idea of a boutique cigar made in small batches and I think our customers will love trying these new sticks eventually. Chamuco is based out of San Diego and partnered up with Tabacalera Tambor in Nicaragua to work on their blends. It seems they discovered early on that Nicaraguan leaves are definately the trend of choice for many of the new cigars coming out because they are fantastic. They have four different blends in their lineup and you know which one I had to try first…the full bodied, dark wrapped “Black Magic Maduro”. Reviews of their three other lines….the box press regular Maduro, the Platinum and the Soul will follow as Iron and I chew on them over the next few weeks.

First of all, when the sampler arrived I was very impressed! They have their own sealed 4 pack samplers of the Robusto sizes that come with a Humidipak. Very classy. I’m excited to see how the whole box presentation looks. The band on the stick is very cool…red and black with with the silhouette of a devil holding a trident in the background. I also really like that each band says what blend that cigar is. I often get frustrated with other companies who use the same band on every cigar and if you like that cigar or you throw it in your humidor, good luck tracking it down again.

Looking at the cigar it doesn’t appear to have a lot oils oozing from it, but the construction looks perfect. The Black Magic is a nice dark brown, but not as devilishly black as it looks in their print ads and website. The unlit smell is that of cedar and other woods and I can’t wait to light it up. After cracking a bottled water and applying a V-cut to the tip, I light up this baby.

One thing I notice is how frickin’ dense and heavy this little thing is. I mean, it’s rock hard which intially makes me think it’s too dry or will be a bad draw. Those fears were quickly put to rest as I took the first couple of puffs. It has one of the best constructions and draws I’ve run across in quite some time. I would think that would be the biggest challenge for any new cigar, but they have it nailed.

Immediately I was blown away with a huge burst of flavor that nearly took my breath away! This Robusto might be small, but it is officially a firecracker off the bat. It is spicy with a hint of black pepper that hits you hard in the back of the throat. But because the black pepper taste is very faint and other spices are in the forefront it’s actually an enjoyable bite. I’m not sure how they kept it that spicy without being aggressive on the cracked pepper taste I am often turned off by. Wonderful little wake up call!

The aroma of the smoke into the sinuses is great and the finish that lingers in the nostrils is spicy as well. That spicyness stayed with the stick for at least the first inch and half and then slowly subsided after I let the lit cigar sit for maybe 5 minutes. The ash was tight and did not want to let go…I really had to tap it to get the thing off. The smoke plumes got thicker and more wonderful smelling as the cigar went on with the spice returning a bit the last third. The overall taste profile is in that toast and leather area made a lot more interesting with the lingering spice on the back of the palate.

I would really be interested to try some of their larger sizes…they also offer a Belicoso and a Gordo.. 6×60 monster they call Gigante. Sometimes the bigger size mellows the spice and sometimes it amps it up and I’m guessing because of the tight roll on this Robusto sample that the Gigante might have to be smoked on a full stomach for sure and that you also would have to set aside anywhere from 2-2 1/2 hours to enjoy it!

This is a great cigar and I’m excited to see how the others stack up. I couldn’t find much in the way of reviews on this stogie which actually excites me that we were able to haul in a sample and introduce the blog world to it. They have scored as high as a 9.1 in Smoke magazine on the regular Maduro blend. If you see any of Chamuco’s lines showing up in retails shops or online, spend the money on a couple…it’s worth it and they seem very reasonably priced. Enjoy!

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