Over the years I’ve smoked tons of brands that were really good, always staples in my humidor but somehow have been surpassed by others. I thought I’d take a look back at some of these that are worth a try for anyone. I also threw in one that was kind of a mainstay in my early, right out of college poor years (one that I’m not buying today but at the time I thought it was just cool to have handmade cigars in my cheap humidor when my friends were all smoking Backwoods).
Mayorga Gordita Torpedo
This was always a smoke I brought to every event, and kept it in my humidor back in the day. They are beautifully constructed, extremely mellow for a Maduro but kind of hard to find. I can remember one cigar shop in Pittsburgh carrying them but I typically bought them online. They were reasonably priced and well worth it. Still around but hard to find. Update to this post on 10/21/2023 - To my surprise, I found one of these at a small smoke shop and smoked one about 3 weeks ago. It wasn't bad but had a different profile than I remember. Back in the day, they were made by the same company that made Mayorga Coffee and had more of a rich coffee type taste (not Java or Tabac infused, just a hint), this one was more spice than that. Not bad though. I only paid $6 for the stick too.
La Gloria Cubana Wavell
For 10 years this was my go to smoke. Great, consistent brand that still has a huge following today. I still grab one every now and then but not a staple anymore. Still really good. Nice looking and a darker maduro. Good price for a mid level cigar.
Te Amo World Blends
This brand has been around forever and one that my dad smoked when I was a kid. The regular Te Amos that he smoked were kind of harsh in my mind but a few years ago they launched 4 different tobacco blends from outside of their normal Mexican tobaccos (Cuban, Nicaraguan, Dominican and Honduran). Most of them were completely different and way smoother than the regular blends. I know they’re still around but never see them in local shops anymore. I liked them all, but Cuban was my favorite.
Nat Sherman Metropolitan
Nat Sherman was a huge name in the cigar business and my dad used always talk about this brand as of it was the Opus X of today. We’ll I’m not sure about that but the Metros were always really good and kind of hard to get in my early smoking years. I always wanted to visit their store in NY but never did. It’s a shame it’s gone now but that’s what happens with mega-mergers and consolidation I guess. This brand was always really good and not crazy prices either.
Ok, now the one from my teaser in the first paragraph! Don’t judge, we’ve all been there and bundled cigars play a huge role in every smoker at one time or another.
Trinidad Y Cia
Don’t laugh at this one! About 25 years ago when I really couldn’t afford boxes of the really good cigars I often bought bundles of whatever the online retailers were peddling. I tried tons of different shitty cigars and when I didn’t like them I’d give them away at golf outings or at special events. This one was the best of all those bundles! Haven’t smoked one in about 20 years but if your looking for a bundled, economic, short filler, and kind of decent smoke give them a try. You won’t find them at the local shops so Google them. Like $30 for a bundled of 20. I used to pay like $19 for 20! These are also great for the golf outing when you want to give cigars away to people that have no clue what a good cigar is and might only smoke half or worse a third. That pisses me off more than anything.
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