Today, the four largest cigar companies in America announced that they will not be attending the PCA (formerly IPCPR) trade show this year. Altadis, General, Davidoff, and Drew Estate each released separate press releases but the general consensus is that they are unhappy with the declining attendance, lack of cooperation with members to make changes to the organization, and rising costs. The linchpin for this action new seems to have been the general unrest around last year's poorly executed announcement of Consumer Day, which has since been cancelled.
AllBlind Cigar ReviewsConnecticut BroadleafDaveDominican RepublicFeaturedGreggJM's TobaccoRobertSandeepToro
·"Luckily, the bitterness that I encountered most of the first third is definitely dying down as I enter the next third. However, the draw now seems to be having a problem. I cut the cap with my V cutter and this definitely opened it up significantly. The harshness is still present and seems to coat the back of my throat. The predominant flavor is that of leather and cedar with some hay like quality. So far the cigar has been plagued with a lot of issues. The burn line continues to be straight and once the draw issue is better the smoke is good and creamy." -Sandeep (Djangos)
Xikar released the HP3 Triple Flame Lighter in 2018 as a followup to 2017's HP4 quad flame lighter we reviewed and loved here. The lighter uses an in-line configuration of triple flames with the outside jets angled 8 degrees toward the center so they converge into one big flame. The HP3 comes in 4 finishes: Burnt Yellow, Daytona Red, Matte Black and G2. My sample is the Daytona red. The HP3 also features a large adjustment wheel, pull-down ignition, and EZ-View Fuel Window. MSRP is $99.99.
"Even though this one finished with a bitter taste, overall I still find this a good cigar. The beginning was promising with notes of hickory and sweet cherry, the cherry faded in to the back ground over time moving to a bold and bitter taste. All in all the flavors held for the most part and finished strong and bitter. To me all of this gave the cigar some good personality." -Eric (smalls29)
"I'll be honest: I don't like maduros. Most give me cottonmouth, and the ones that don't are usually too syrupy or meaty to enjoy. This really took me back to when I first started smoking cigars and loved big, bold maduros. I also don't like lanceros much. They usually require too much care when smoking, and in my experience the narrow gauge is great for shorter smokes but gets stale in a longer format. This one performed really well. I really enjoyed this one and will be looking forward to the reveal." -Derek (StogieNinja)
"This was a very enjoyable smoke. The flavors stayed present through all parts of the smoke. The thick mouthfeel was nice. The strong coffee flavor was intense to the point it felt like I was pairing a coffee with this cigar. Other notes of earthy, cocoa and mild black pepper spice came through as well." -Chad M. (Chad Tchad)
"This cigar was only a few flavors away from being epic. It was eye catching and performed like a champ. The mix of flavors really hit my palate in the sweet spot. Loved the leather, chocolate, oak,and spice flavors that just came in droves. Highly recommended and I can't wait to buy more of these." -Kevin J. (maninblack77)
At the end of August, just over two weeks ago, Smoker Friendly Hosted the 13th Annual Rocky Mountain Cigar Festival...
We have teamed up with one of our favorite online retailers, Cigars City for a great contest to giveaway One (1) Box of 25 Caldwell Blind Man's Bluff Toro Cigars. Don't forget to check out our review of the Caldwell Blind Man's Bluff.
"This cigar could be made 100x better if the construction was in such a way where the draw wasn't so loose. As a result of this loose construction, I feel the flavors were a bit light on the mouthfeel. Flavor-wise, it wasn't too interesting but wasn't horrible by any means as leather, char, and some other earthlike flavors were evident. Not sure if I'd pick this one up again as it just wasn't my gig to repurchase. Perhaps you might like it, give it a go!" -John A. (Bostoneo)

