Daniel B. Honigman's site

(Note: This review originally appeared on CigarJack.)

Brand: El Mejor Cigars
Line: Emerald
Vitola: Toro 6 x 52
Origin: Honduras
Wrapper: Honduran
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Body: Medium-to-full
Strength: Full-to-full
Box Price: $69.50 (Box of 20)

I’m relatively new to the cigar world, so I haven’t seen too many crazy-looking cigars. So when I got my hands on the El Mejor Emerald, I didn’t really know what to expect. The cigar’s foot has an old-style appearance, with loose filler and binder tobacco sticking out. Kind of cool, but it reminded me of a Backwoods, something I used to enjoy back in the day. I probably don’t have to tell you that the El Mejor Emerald tastes much better than a Backwoods cigar.

I do have to tell you, however, that it tastes better than many other cigars. (Good cigars, mind you.)

After you notice the EME’s shaggy foot, I recommend you give it a whiff; its smooth, aged Corojo wrapper makes it nice and spicy.

It has a good prelight draw, and when you light up, you’ll get a pleasant toasty taste and aroma. An inch in, the wrapper kicks in, and it gets peppery, with a slightly tangy aftertaste.

My one beef with the EME: It got hot at the end. But if you want to smoke it down to the nub — and you will — it’s a risk you’ll have to take.

Verdict: Complex, but not overbearing. An enjoyable cigar. And the price isn’t bad, either.

Similar cigars: The Don Pepin Cuban Classic.

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Allright, folks. In case you cared, DanielHonigman.com is now a Google PageRank 4 site.

What does this mean, exactly? Is my site starting to gain steam on the Web? Probably not. I’m starting to rank higher for several terms, like “tidbit of the day,” “cigar of the week” and others, but who knows, really?

Anyway, here are my April site stats:

1,193 unique visitors
1,422 visits
2,012 pageviews

I didn’t post too often in April, thanks to my new job, but there were a few good ones in there, like:

- Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” music video

- A bit about the Chicago taxi gas surcharge.

- And lastly, several Cigars of the Week

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This HAS to be the latest viral video. Keep in mind one thing: I love Gummy Bears. (Thanks, Mollie!)

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You probably already know about this one. Starting today, taxi drivers are going to charge an extra buck to help them out with rising gas prices. Unfortunately for drivers, customers won’t be happy about the charge, and will probably tip less.

Thank goodness for public transportation. As much as Chicagoans complain about the CTA, at least we have a semi-decent bus and train system.

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(Note: This review originally appeared on CigarJack.)

Brand: Cuba Libre
Line: Cuba Libre
Vitola: Magnum (Robusto 5.5 x 55)
Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Body: Medium-to-full
Strength: Medium-to-full
Box Price: $75 (Box of 20)

Famed tobacconist Nestor Plasencia must have received news of Fidel Castro stepping down before the rest of us.

Well, that’s probably a stretch, but the Cuba Libre is a fairly new offering from Plasencia, who left Cuba at a young age, and is being offered at a decent price pretty much all over the Web. (Thanks to Steve from Cigars International for getting this out to me.)

The box-pressed “Magnum,” or robusto, has a slightly oily wrapper that’s toothy — but extremely attractive — and is highlighted by the cigar’s red, white blue and gold band. It’s a good looking cigar.

It has an easy, slightly creamy prelight draw. Once I lit the sucker up, it peppered up a tad on me, but the spice was smoothed out by its nutty, almost earthy, sweet finish. (Gotta love that Corojo wrapper!) The Cuba Libre stayed this way through the end.

There were no burn, ash or draw issues here, as I smoked it down to the nub. (Through several of these, I’ve found they stay cool.)

Verdict: While it doesn’t pack the punch of the Punch Rare Corojo, it makes up for it with its smoothness. It’s not an overly complex smoke, but I have to say I enjoyed this one from start to finish. My question: What’ll happen when the other Castro steps down? Will Plasencia stop making these cigars? I hope not.

Similar cigars: Most medium-bodied Plasencias.

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(Note: This review originally appeared on CigarJack.)

Brand: Nat Sherman
Line: V.I.P. Selection
Vitola: Carnegie (Toro) 6 x 48
Origin: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Connecticut
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Brazilian, Dominican
Body: Mild
Strength: Mild
Box Price: $134 (Box of 25)

Another day, another Nat Sherman. Oh well, things could be worse.

This time, it’s the Nat Sherman V.I.P. Selection. As you’d imagine, for a cigar with vitolas named after famous New Yorkers like Andrew Carnegie, Florenz Ziegfeld, Jacob Astor, Cornelius Vanderbilt and J.P. Morgan, it’s a luxurious smoke.

It’s an extremely light-colored, smooth cigar, not toothy at all, and has a good prelight draw. I found that once I started it, it was buttery and sweet, with an incredible burn and a creamy finish.

Verdict: I think I’ve found my new mild-bodied cigar. It is, by far the smoothest mild-bodied smoke of the Nat Sherman collection. Very enjoyable.

Similar cigars: I’d go so far as to compare it to the Davidoff Special Series cigars.

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(Note: This review originally appeared on CigarJack.)

Brand: Nat Sherman
Line: 1400 Series
Vitola: Omerta (Torpedo) 6 x 54
Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Body: Medium-to-full
Strength: Medium-to-full
Box Price: $36.00 (Box of 6)

Man, the Omerta. I remember smoking this one as I was wearing my New York Giants Superbowl championship hoodie the other day. (Yeah, I have to gloat a bit.)

Omerta, as you probably know, is the mob code of silence. But I don’t think I can be quiet about this one. The Omerta is the torpedo size of the Nat Sherman 1400 Series line, named to commemorate the store’s original location at 1400 Broadway in New York.

As soon as I took the box-pressed Omerta out of its cellophane wrapper, I was struck by its hearty, earthy prelight scent and its stellar construction. (I love a good cap, and the Omerta delivers.) It also has a gorgeous dark Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, which is highlighted by its silver-and-black band. (Sorry about the blurry picture on this one, guys!)

Once lit, the Omera gave me a heavy dose of black pepper at first, but about a third of the way in, it smoothed out into a heartier cigar, but had an aftertaste reminiscent of cacao beans.

The cigar produced very solid, white ash. It started burning a tad unevenly about halfway through, but the burn self-corrected after about half an inch. Towards the end, for some reason, the draw got very tight.

Verdict: At about $6 a stick, I’d say this is a good buy. It’s a nice change of pace for Nat Sherman, which tends to make milder-bodied cigars. I like the company’s darker side. Fuwahahaha.

Similar cigars: The EO 601 Maduro Blue Label. Both dark Nicaraguans; both sweet once you get to know ‘em.

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I know I’m a bit late on this, but this song has been stuck in my damn head all day. Enjoy!

You’ve been Rick Rolled. Well, not really.

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A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about my February traffic stats.

March definitely topped February. DanielHonigman.com received:

1,013 unique visitors
1,422 visits
2,315 pageviews

Some of the posts that helped put me over the top were:

- My announcement that I had taken a new job with the Chicago Tribune.

- My Mike Royko = God post, which I wrote after I started reading One More Time: The Best of Mike Royko, a collection of his best columns.

- 10 things you didn’t know about new the New York governor, David A. Paterson. (At that time we also didn’t know that he used drugs, either!)

- My review of the CAO Vision Prana and Catalyst cigars.

- A quick post about a piece Todd Andrlik wrote on his Web site about me.

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Explore the perfect pairings for various types of cigars when it comes to wine, cognac, and more.

By Daniel B. Honigman

Picking the right cigar is like choosing a lover: Your tastes may change occasionally, but there’s always a time and place to enjoy the experience.

Well, maybe that’s a stretch.

Depending on the time of day—and your drink of the moment—certain stogies may tickle your fancy in a way others just can’t. But if you pair that Bud Light with a full-bodied maduro cigar, you may turn a few shades of purple if you have an empty stomach. And that green-colored, mild candela wrapper won’t stand a chance against many single malt scotches.

There’s good news: Everyone’s palate works differently, so it really doesn’t matter what you like. Good booze can turn an ordinary cigar into an extraordinary one, bringing out flavors nobody ever knew existed. But if you find the best pairing for that Macanudo Gold is a tumbler of your finest Mountain Dew on the rocks, go right ahead.

To help point you in the right direction, however, here are some pairings that you may enjoy:

With hints of espresso, chocolate—and a bit of spice later on—the Camacho Triple Maduro is a stogie that will sprout some hairs on your chest. It’s a very complex full-bodied smoke, so we wouldn’t recommend smoking it on an empty stomach. You may want to pair this one with a pint of Guinness Stout, but if that’s too much, go with an Anchor Porter.

The El Centurion Emperadores by Don Pepin Garcia is a medium-bodied cigar with a ton of flavor. It’s a bit hard to get a hold of—Don Pepin’s Tabacalera Cubana factory only made 50,000 of these babies—but if you can lay your hands on one, we guarantee you’ll enjoy it. Aged for three years, the Centurion is slightly leathery (sounds strange, but it’s a good thing), earthy and a touch spicy. It’s a nice treat with a glass of Mount Gay Extra Old Rum.

Once in a while, you really need to indulge. So why not go all out? The Martell Cordon Bleu (XO) is one of the finest cognacs commercially available, and the Ashton V.S.G. is one of the finest full-bodied cigars available. With hints of dark mocha, the Ashton is exceptionally smooth, but has the backbone to stand up to the aged cognac.

For the inner Chicagoan in all of us, there’s no greater honor than to have a drink with Da’ Coach. Or, in this case, have his drink. The Mike Ditka Cabernet Sauvignon (2004) is a surprisingly good, fairly inexpensive red. Pair it with the Los Blancos Criollo Selection for a true Windy City experience. (The Los Blancos office is based on Chicago’s North Side.) Morning smokers may enjoy the buttery Connecticut wrapper on the Rocky Patel Vintage 1999, paired with a mug of hot coffee from local chain Intelligentsia Coffee & Tea.

This story originally appeared as one of Concierge Preferred’s local guides.

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