ASW Smokin’ News – Mar. 2nd, 2016!

Our St. Patrick’s Day bash is getting closer…and there will be no shortage of fantastic Espinosa wares on sale, especially The Bat! If you haven’t yet tried the new Murcielago, you’re in for a real treat: a peppery Mexican San Andrés wrapper and Nicaraguan binder and fillers make this revised version of the original EO Murcielago a superior cigar in every way. And it – along with lots of other Espinosa selections, including Laranja, La Bomba, 601, La Zona, and may more – will be available with massive discounts and deals, so get yourself over here on March 17th and get your share!

SEE YOU HERE!

This one qualifies as big news: The Yargüera H. Upmann, a new release by Altadis USA, incorporates a new hybrid strain of an original Cuban seed – brought to Honduras by the Arias family in the 1960s – cross-bred by the legendary Grupo de Maestros with hearty Criollo ’98. The resultant leaf, named for the farm where it was successfully cultivated, is slated for use in future Altadis releases, and this is the first.

The Yargüera H. Upmann features an air-cured Yargüera 13 Tapado wrapper (tapado refers to tobacco which is shade-grown under cheesecloth, à la Connecticut Shade), a Criollo ’98 binder, and fillers of sun-grown Yargüera and Criollo ’98. The result is a flavorful, medium-bodied smoke which is purportedly “as close as you will ever come to a genuine pre-embargo Habano.” The flavor profile is outstanding, and rest assured that these will only get better and better with age.

We caryy all three sizes: Robusto (5″ x 52), Toro (6″ x 54), and Torbusto (a 5′ x 56 pyramid). Be the first on your block to try a legend in the making…grab a fistful of Yargüera H. Upmanns today!

A delicious new offering from the Asylum boys – Tom Lazuka and Christian Eiroa – is this phenomenal release: The Asylum 13 Connecticut, an excellent, mild-bodied blend of Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper and select Honduran fillers and binder. Like its counterparts in the Asylum 13 series, it’s available in three sizes: 5″ x 50, 6″ x 60, and 7″ x 70. Get them while you can! This will be a terrific addition to your lineup of mild favorites.

This week we are tasting Three Friars, a tinned offering by the good folks at Cornell & Diehl. For those of you who’ve been in the game long enough to recall the blend called Three Nuns: this is not an attempt by C&D to recreate that blend…instead they have created a standalone creation that might become just as revered.

Virginia Ribbon, Brown Virginias, Burley, and Perique make up a blend that I’d judge to be a solid medium-bodied, medium-strength smoke with a non-offensive room note. Packing the coarse-cut ribbon is a breeze and, like all the C&D blends I’ve smoked, it takes the match very well.

There’s a subtle complexity to Three Friars that is well balanced by the addition of the Burley. If you like Burley you’ll enjoy the roasted-nut notes which intertwine with the sweet Virginias and the peppery twang from the Perique. The addition of Burley to a Virginia/Perique blend makes for a rather playful flavor profile, and it should be noted that the nicotine content of Three Friars is above average as well.

Whenever Burley is present I always adopt a “low and slow” technique while smoking; if it’s allowed to get too hot (or if you puff like a locomotive), Burley can bite. Enjoy this blend with a robust coffee or a good bourbon, as you’ll find it pairs well with either.

Five pipes awarded this week to Cornell and Diehl’s Three Friars. Puff On!