Wrapper: Pennsylvania-grown Broadleaf Maduro / Connecticut Shade ~ Aged 5 Years
Binder: Nicaraguan Habano Esteli ~ Aged 5 Years
Filler: Nicaraguan Habano Condega, Habano Copan, Habano Estelï ~ Aged 8 Years
Size: 7.1 x 58 Salamone
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: 15.00
Factory: Raymond Pages, Nicaragua
BACKGROUND:
According to Alex Goldman at Cigar Page:
“Raymond Pages and Jaime Rodriguez blend. Manufactured by Raymond Pages. Contains 8-year aged tobacco. Lionel Muller is the man who created the brand originally in the 1970s.
“A lot of good leaf comes from their farm. Drew Estate holds their Barnsmoker event there and Foundation buys Broadleaf from them as well. Although it’s located in CT, they broker PA Broadleaf they buy from Lancaster Farmers.”
According to Alex Gougher at Cigar Page:
“The wrapper is grown by Dunn & Foster, which is one of the most famous tobacco growers in the United States and certainly one of the oldest. The family traces their roots back to the Mayflower and the original colonies.
“The Filler is aged 8 years and the Wrapper and Binder is Aged for 5.
“The Stars & Stripes line is limited. There’s only one pair of rollers that can make those cigars. Those two can usually roll 400 traditional cigars a day, but only a 25% of that amount if they are rolling the stars of stripes because of the complexity.”
THE WHOLE MEGILLAH:
Is this fancy cigar a gimmick? Of course. The cigar industry would be very similar to the shoe industry if not for gimmicks. They get our attention but if they don’t pull a plum out of their asses, they’re toast.
I have a Penn State Broadleaf waiting for review. It’s one of the long line of blends from AJ sideman, Raymond Pages. I’ve smoked a couple and they are quite good, but I would prefer not to jump the gun by reviewing it too early.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, I’ve had these star-spangled bananas waiting for a few months and what better way to honor the 250th anniversary (the country, not me) by discovering if this cigar is worth your time.
The wrapper lights up the room with aromas of floral, dark chocolate, dark barnyard, melty caramel, lemonade, and baking spices.
The cold draw is lemony with a creamy afternote. And then dark chocolate, rich espresso, leather aged in the sun, and black pepper.
Wind rustling through this behemoth is on point. My PerfecDraw was at the ready, but it won’t be needed. It’s a nice tool. It’s nice to have it when a cigar is plugged. Some guys can write paragraphs on how the draw ruined their experience. I’ve only endured a few throwaways in the last 7 years because the PD fixes almost anything.
Smoke on the Water. Someone called the cops on Curved Air and Deep Purple when we went swimming in the hotel pool at 2am. Naked girls were observed. Nope. Just us longhairs.
There is a clear difference from when I lit up one a week after receipt, and then 4 months later. First up is leather with an earthy baseline. Moments later, a creamy citrus that bonds nicely with the savory side of things.
I performed at a couple of BBC Sessions with Curved Air. Big stage. Big auditorium. Full house. In the wings, a professional announcer did his thing. It was like having the Real Don Steele doing radio DJ shtick until one second before the singing started. Cracked me up that AM radio was alive and well.
If you’ve been a Cigar Page guy for years like me, I’m guessing you’ll nod your head in agreement when I say that I wasn’t all that impressed with Raymond Pages with his early offerings. He seemed to be shoveling out blends before the details were worked out. But in the last year or two, things have changed. His cigars are more in line with what I like about Nicaraguan blends. Raymond was AJ’s right-hand man for more than a decade. And then Pages lit out on his own with a factory in Nicaragua. Low priced cigars can be a curse and a blessing at the same time. Inexpensive cigars send us a signal that something is wrong. You ask yourself how can a good cigar be dirt cheap? You answer your own question by telling yourself that your personal history has shown that you threw away those cigars in disgust after an inch. In the current culture where greed is good, Pages and Cigar Page stand out as anomalies. I’ve learned that the secret is simple: Raymond Pages keeps his margin low, and Cigar Page keeps its margin baseline low. So, voila, you have affordable cigars that can happily reside in the boutique aisle.
I once spent an afternoon driving lead singer Lee Ving of the punk band Fear in the backseat of my Datsun station wagon. My buddy Steve Snyder (KNAC radio) scheduled an interview with the man. We saw the band at the Whisky the night before and their front man scared the shit out of me. The original plan was to hang at a Sunset Strip coffee shop, eat, talk, and record…but Lee said, ‘Fuck that.’ For two hours, we drove around Hollywood with the boys being chauffeured by me. Ving turned out to be the funniest man I had ever met…his stage persona was just that. I constantly fucked up the recording with my laughter…pissing Snyder off. Enjoying this, Lee continued his quest to crack me up. Near the end of the bizzarro world encounter, I put the cassette of my band doing a rendition of Hound Dog (Little Richard on keys) in my tape player…not 4 bars played before Mr. Ving screamed, “Take that shit out of my ears.” I didn’t laugh for the remaining 30-minute ride.
Strength is nearly an immediate medium/full. I’m reviewing this cigar after a lunch of kosher bacon and gentile eggs. With a side of MD 20/20 to wash down my own remembrances.
The char line is regimental. Salomones are not known for the perfect burn, but this baby is doing fine.
I skip ahead. In public, I promenade.
The first inch is savory heavy. 75/25. Bittersweet chocolate, espresso, floral, hazelnuts, cedar, and baking spices with a touch of black pepper. On the sweet side, a mere mention of floral honey and lemonade.
The burn is very slow. The cigar plumped beautifully after torching.
Inch number two has a smoky whiskey taste which accents the lemon aspect with a touch of sourness but is still offset by a nice creaminess. Citrus doesn’t work without creamy.
The first half was great. No criticisms. A solid blend that delivers what you expect from the leaf stats. Mildly complex. Transitional. Flavorful.
I hired Al Lewis to do his Grandpa Munster thing at a huge party at the Hollywood Palace where Tiger Beat Magazine and Life Magazine gave away tickets for some unlucky soul to go to Transylvania with Eddie Munster. Butch and I couldn’t be there as we were on the road promoting the project. We were in the Midwest doing television and radio. Svengoolie invited us to his annual trick or treat party at his authentic haunted mansion. While the throngs partied downstairs, some of us were invited to party upstairs with Koz. I never saw so much cocaine in my life. By 2am, I was burned to a pulp, and I reminded Butch we had another full day of promotions. Butch refused to leave as the white death was like lava flowing from Mt. St. Helen’s. We got into a big fight. Butch demanded I give him a few hundred bucks so he could contribute to the party. I refused. I left in a huff. Butch left in a minute and a huff a few hours later. It got worse when we landed in NYC. There was a meltdown and I left a drunken Butch sprawled on the hotel room floor and I flew home. My press agent and the record company took turns screaming at me for leaving him untended. I reminded them he was an adult. They argued differently.
The second half adds some needed sweetness and spicy cinnamon. The frosted bun effect. The whiskey changes to smoky liqueur. Gran Marnier comes to mind. The citrus is upped right along with the creaminess. Mocha java goes to the front. And aged leather goods remain the same. What I really love about this blend is the floral attribute. I can taste it and smell it in my sinuses.
Strength keeps on keeping on at medium/full. No nicotine.
The experience is very pleasant. No awkward jerks. No sudden moves. A nice even keeled smoke. Not a lick of harshness. And I can still feel my fingers and toes because the nicotine was minimal.
The last third remains. It will tell the truth.
Gimmick cigars can go either way…a brilliant idea that presents something cool but then falters and flattens out. Or it takes the idea and pushes the envelope of what you expect. This is a fun cigar. Well done.
You can purchase the Penn Standard LE Stars & Stripes Salamone from sponsor Cigar Page. But instead of $15 per cigar, they are only $8.00 each. For the next 24 hours, you can get another 10% off with promo code KATPS10.
RATING: 93
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