Hellow all, below are some pics of our Burlesque and CAO event. Hope you all had a chance to come by and experience it:

This blog will be longer than the others I’ve posted about my trip because I’m going to give you a virtual tour of Drew Estate, and do my best to convey to you all of the amazing information I learned along the way. So grab a cigar and start reading!

First, let’s go over the residence at the factory. When you go on the cigar tour you get to ride in this pimp bus:

And you get these “VIP all-access passes”

And you get to stay at this beautiful casita on the factory premises:

Here’s the actual building where the rooms are. The rooms are hotel quality- there’s even a maid- and every two rooms share a bathroom.

This is the cigar lounge at DE which was stocked with booze and cigars that we could help ourselves to to our heart’s content. Awesome.

And here’s the outside of the Drew Estate factory. In my opinion, this was the nicest factory in Nicaragua. Not only is it new and pretty, but it doesn’t feel like a factory, by that I mean all sterile and cold. It’s colorful and painted and full of life.

Okay, here we go: the factory tour! This room is the “pre-industry” room, basically where all the raw tobacco is stored. This room is HUGE, much bigger than the picture shows, and Jon told us that it’s only a six week supply of tobacco!

More tobacco storing:

We didn’t see any fermentation or pilons at DE, but we only saw 75,000 sq ft of the 100.000 sq ft factory. Some things, like the infusion process, are secretive. We’ll get to pilons and tobacco fields in the Pepin blog to follow.

Next the tobacco goes into a humid room to soften it for rolling:

Once the tobacco is softened it’s sorted by type (capa, capote, ligero, seco, viso) and origin.

And then it’s rolled into the cigars. We didn’t see any rolling machines (to call it a machine is a stretch) here, but we did at some other factories. The rolling machine is just some cloth that a roller puts the tobacco in and manually rolls a lever over it, and this causes the cigar to roll up on itself. At places where we did see it used, it was for short filler cigars, or for the new rollers who were still learning.

After rolling, the cigars are put in a mold and pressed in this contraption for 20 minutes, then they are turned and pressed again for 20 minutes. This picture is actually from the Oliva factory because I didn’t get one at DE.

Once the cigars are rolled, molded and pressed, they are wrapped and capped, and once that is done, they are “wicked” which means left in a room to dry out for up to 48 hours. Once a cigar is wicked, it’s smokeable for about 2 days, and then it falls into a “sick” period for about 10 days, during which you don’t want to smoke it due to the ammonia being leeched out. The only brand that doesn’t really have this problem is Padron because they are using super aged tobacco with basically no ammonia left in it at all. This is the wicking room:

Some cigars are put into box pressed molds, like this one, to create a square feel:

Once the cigars are wicked, they are sorted on either a black or white table (black is better for sorting maduros). The cigars are sorted by color so that each box has cigars that look alike. This is why you might get a box of cigars and then find that a second box of cigars has a much lighter wrapper. It doesn’t mean it’s a different wrapper, it’s simply a variation in wrapper color grouped together.

Sorting:

Demonstration of wrapper color variation (at Rocky Patel), this is all the same cigar with major color differences:

Once the like colors are grouped together, they are sent to quality control. Drew Estate has the best quality control that we witnessed. They are pretty high tech in a low tech industry, using bar coding and statistical analysis. This chart shows the cigars that the first level of quality control people threw out (blue line) and the red line shows the head of quality control and how many cigars he deemed unworthy. Wherever you see a red spike is where the floor level quality control people didn’t catch enough bad product and the head of quality control ended up catching it.

And here he is, the head of quality control:

After passing quality control, the cigars are left in a cool aging room to continue to leech out ammonia and to blend the flavors into the finished product. It should be noted that DE has different rooms for their ACID cigars, JAVA cigars and natural cigars so as to not accidentally infuse some flavor into the naturals.

Now that the cigars have aged, they are ready to package and ship. All of the packaging is done by hand, including label application, box decoration, cellophaning and shrink wrapping (with the assistance of a very small machine)

Boxing up the cigars:

Shrink wrapping the new Acid Tips (Jon Drew on the right):

That’s it! Now you know how cigars are made at D.E. I’d like to point out some of the most interesting things I learned from Jon Drew. His company is very socially responsible. They don’t fire pregnant workers like some other places do, they don’t promote the illegal box trade like I mentioned in an earlier blog, and they are great patrons of the arts, even employing a full time art director, Jesse, who does graffiti art at the factory and around Nicaragua. They are also conscientious of paying taxes to Nicaragua as a way to give back to the country as opposed to trying to skirt them. Every where we went it seemed that employees were happy and well taken care of, but especially so at D.E. I was really impressed by their facility, their hospitality, and mostly, their ethics. I will be a Drew Estate supporter going forward, and I challenge everyone to learn more about their favorite cigar company and find out if they are practicing business in a responsible way. Support companies who do with your business and buy their cigars!

Next blog we’ll cover more pre-industry over at another company I was really impressed with: Don Pepin’s place- from leaf to fermentation.

Prepare to be jealous:

Joya de Nicaragua “Antono Dark Corojo”- I wanted to like this one more than I did. I have another, I’m going to give it another shot with a cleaner palate.

Illusione/Drew Estate “Nosotros”- Had one that was a week old, so it was pretty ammoniated still. Lots of potential.

A guy on the trip, Matt, gave me an LG Oscuro, which is a rare version of the LG. Thanks, Matt!

Drew Estate “Dirty Rat” – I liked this a lot- not sure of the release date.

Joya de Nicaragua “Cabineta” – With a dual wrapper (one from band down, one from band up), this was one of my favorites. I’m a sucker for a schtick.

Nestor Miranda “Dominicana” by Don Pepin – I liked it, a lot. Spicier than I would have thought, which you know I love.

Don Pepin “Tobacos Baez Serie H” – I’m about to smoke this now!

PS- I learned that Oliva is going to release the Cain “F” or Super Fuerte as a regular line in March

We saw a lot of factories on our trip. Some big, some small, some clean, some dirty, some state of the art, some quaint. Here’s a fun guessing game for you: can you match the rolling floor to the factory?

Factories:

Rolling Floors:

For the answers, highlight here with your mouse: 1 is Joya De Nicaragua, 2 is Perdomo, 3 is Padron, 4 is Pepin, 5 is Rocky Patel, 6 Oliva is and 7 is Drew Estate. <<< —— highlight this area with your mouse.

One interesting thing I learned in Nica from Jon Drew, was that the box trade is pretty black market. Wood is expensive in Nicaragua, and the regulations are strict. Therefore, some box factories participate in shady activity. Companies like Drew Estate pay more money and experience more set-backs because they use legal companies who don’t break the law to make their boxes.

Few manufactures have box factories of their own, probably because of the strict restrictions in place on wood, but we were able to see one. What surprised me was how EVERYTHING is done by hand, including applying the labels to the boxes and packing them with cigars.

Here’s the wood for the boxes

And some guys making the boxes

A pile of almost-boxes

This machine adds hinges and clasps to boxes (one of the very few machines used in the cigar making process)

Applying the labels to the boxes with glue

Finished boxes ready to go!

What an honor! Read the write up on Fumee and come in to check it out for yourself!

Well, I’ve returned from Esteli, Nicaragua, and I’m going to do a series of short blogs about different aspects of my trip. I learned a ton, and I highly recommend going if you get the chance. Just check out cigarsafari.com and book a trip. For now, here are the top 5 most interesting or weird things I learned on my trip:

#5 Manufacturers take armed guards with them when they cross over into Honduras.

#4 Water makes the difference. Pepin uses his well water to cure and roll cigars. Padron catches rain water and uses that. One manufacturer on Cigar Aficionados top 10 cigars of 2009 uses chlorinated city tap water which is stored in a reused ether barrel. Doesn’t that sound delicious?

#3 Blending theory varies widely amongst manufacturers, but each theory is valid. Pepin uses his own tobacco and doesn’t buy any because he wants to have control of the quality of the supply chain from beginning to end. Padron uses only Nicaraguan tobacco because they think it’s the best. Drew Estate buys and uses tobacco from different parts of the world because it makes for more interesting blends, and because puros will taste different from year to year, just like wine. Blending enables the manufacturer to ensure that they are delivering a consistent tasting product from year to year. All different ideas, all good cigars!

#2 We only saw a draw test machine at one place (Perdomo) and we saw multiple places where the “draw-test” was a human sucking on the cigar pre-wrapper and deciding if it was acceptable or not.

#1 At Joya de Nicaragua, there is a person whose sole job it is is to face the cigar so that the pretty side is up. He then takes chalk and a ruler and draws a straight line over the cigars to indicate the face, and where the label should go. Then the lady who applies the label wipes the chalk off before the label is applied.

Cigar Aficionado has released some of their top cigars of 2009 (the full list will be revealed by 1/8/10), and I am already uninspired by their selections. Yawn.

If I were picking my top cigars of 2009, here’s what they would be:

1. Panacea RED 560- A relatively unknown cigar, I could smoke this day in and day out. That’s saying a lot because I have my choice of cigars to smoke.

2. Alec Bradley Tempus Magistrai- an oldie, but a goodie. I can’t stop loving you Tempus.

3. Torano 50th anniversary torpedo- holy cow, I love this stick. I can’t stop smoking them. It’s so much fuller than anything else Torano has done, and they did it well. Plus, a $7 price point for an anniversary cigar? Sold.

4. Los Blancos NINE Double Corona- I think I keep smoking this because I can’t quite put my finger on it. Is it strong? Medium? Chocolately? Spicy? All I know is that it’s smooth and well balanced, and I like it. Slight burn issues can be a problem on this guy, but nothing major.

5. Padron 45th- If I didn’t take price into consideration, this would be a weekly smoke for me. But I do (can’t smoke all the profits, you know), so it’s a rare treat. Not as spicy as an original Padron, but still yummy-licious.

6. 601 Green La Trabuca- another older cigar, but it’s still one of my favorites. I love to smoke this with espresso. The pairing in unimaginable.

7. Illusione Mj12 – a nice, classic Nicaraguan profile, and it comes wrapped up like a shiny, Chipotle burrito to boot. What’s not to like?

8. Tobaco Baez SF- What, a short filler? This is on my list because it’s $3. THREE DOLLARS. It’s a great cigar for the price, with a nice punch of spice during the first third. Just don’t guillotine it unless you want to snack on short filler for lunch.

9. Esteban Carreras Habano Maduro- This cigar is one of the stronger things I have smoked, and I smoke chisels for breakfast. I’ve been told I have the palate of a billy goat. Yet, this cigar can still get to me. That’s impressive. I love the spice, the larger ring gauge, and the rich flavor. But, make sure to eat first.

10. Cain Habano robusto- yeah, I like the Cain. I think the spice is nice, the price is right, and it’s aesthetically pleasing.

11. Panacea Black 560- the milder brother to the Red, this cigar has a wonderful earthiness to it, while maintaining a great draw, solid ash, and a medium flavor. A great afternoon smoke.

12. San Cristobal Seleccion del Sol- I’ve loved the flavor and spice on this guy every time I’ve had it. Unfortunately, I had serious burn problems every time I’ve smoked it. That’s why it’s last on my list. I keep hoping I’ll get one that burns right and then we’ve got something here.

Enjoy…

Charlie Toraño

Tomorrow, Saturday December 5th, we will be having a Toraño Event featuring Charlie Torañ0. He will be bringing along one of his best rollers, Felippe, who will be rolling an event only cigar: the Roots Run Deep blend. We’ll be celebrating by having $5 glasses of port, which are normally $11.

We will also be showing all the college games at Fumée, so if you live in the Austin area, come have a cigar and drink a beer of wine while you watch the games, then hang out with Charlie as he cheers for his UF Gators against Alabama. At night we will all enjoy the UT Longhorns game during the event.

In other news, it snowed today in Austin. This only happens once every few years, so enjoy the picture below of an almost white Christmas at Fumée.

Snowing at Fumée