I picked up a few cigars today since my humidor has been getting beaten up in the last few weeks and for some reason included in today’s purchase I opted for a few Siglo V’s.. Normally I don’t smoke dalias because I’ve run into a few with draw issues but after dinner tonight I thought I’d light one of these.  I paired this evening’s cigar after dinner with a Shiraz from Australia and at first I wasn’t sure if I was making the right choice but we had lamb for dinner and I wanted to finish off the bottle..

At first the two weren’t marrying at all but then I thought that having a glass of water with the cigar and wine and everything started working out just fine.  There’s something about keeping your palate clear when smoking a cigar that, more often than not, requires something clear and refreshing and, in my experience, water always does the trick.  The first few draws from this Cohiba revealed, as usual, a bit of a testy, rather powerful toasted tobacco and then it became a rich creamy smoke that started to reveal slight bean flavors.  This isn’t your average Cohiba, I believe that the creamy coffee you get from this cigar is considerably milder and takes a bit of concentration to detect the subtle nuances this one has to offer.

After the first third of the Siglo I decided to take the wine I had left and drink it all in one gulp.. Maybe the water was all I needed to be able to detect all that this cigar had to offer. As I entered into the second third I was really quite pleased to find that it became a bit more powerful and developed into a very satisfying experience I was hoping to find when I bought them today.

I always say to myself, whenever I buy cigars,  that they are going to sit in my humidor for a year or two and that I’ll get to them when the time is right but, alas, I think that I know myself better than that and I’ll probably keep going back and picking these Siglos and continuing my search for that ideal moment of smoking perfection…. Sometimes I hit it right… Sometimes not……. Hey, I gotta keep trying!

Yesterday I stopped in to the neighborhood “Quickie Mart” for some cream for my coffee and a newspaper when I was greeted in front of the store by one of the countless street people in our city asking for spare change.  Vancouver has more than it’s fair share of people who are down on their luck and live on the streets asking for change so they can either eat, drink, or in most cases, buy drugs that keep them where they choose to be in life. On the streets!!! I usually pass them by because I choose to help them get off the streets by making it just a bit tougher for them out there.

A lot of people would argue that by helping them out and giving them a buck or two, they would be able to survive, live another day and maybe get their lives in order. I, for one, think that we all are in charge of our own lives and are responsible for our own actions.  I work hard for every cent I earn and the last thing I want to see is my spare change going into someone’s crack pipe…. Well, enough about that rant!!!!  Yesterday’s meeting with an unusual elderly lady in front of the store floored me, to say the least.

I pulled up to the store, got out of the car, made sure it was locked ( not the safest of neighborhoods) and sure enough I hear, “Got any spare change?”  I looked up and a woman, who appeared to be in her 60’s, asked me that question and the most wonderful aroma wafted up to me.  There she was, smoking a Cohiba…. Of all things!!!! Wow…. I walked into the store, picked up a paper, cream for coffee at home and got my change and left the store.  As I walked to the car I felt the need to walk back and inquire what cigar she was smoking..  She told me that it was a Siglo II and that, although she is a fan of the Lanceros and Esplendidos, she bought it because the wrapper was a bit broken and she got it at a discount. What????  I asked her why she was on the streets and she said that she had a problem with alcohol and cigars.  I couldn’t believe it!!!

I didn’t feel the need to give her any money but I had a Montecristo in my shirt pocket and offered it to her.  She politely refused and said that she preferred cigars from the Cohiba brand.  Wow!!!!! Turning down my free cigar !!!  I drove home in amazement and wondered how long she had been smoking Cohibas… Had she ever smoked anything else??  How could she afford to be so choosy???

We live in a beautiful city and there is an interesting story around every corner.

The good people from Cohiba  launched the Siglo Series in 1992 to pay homage to the 500th anniversary of Mr. Christopher Columbus showing up in the “New World”.  Much has been written about the Siglo VI and for good reason but for now I’d like to turn my attention to the Siglo IV.

This beautifully rolled cigar comes in a 46 ring gauge and at a length of 5 and 5/8 inches.  This series is a bit milder than cigars from the original Cohibas and this one starts off tasting very mild.  After the first puff the taste of honey comes into the picture and to some degree stays throughout.  Coffee flavors appear soon after lighting this stogie and one is reminded of Cuban coffee and how it became a preferred flavor with so many coffee drinkers around the world.  As this cigar develops into the second third, chocolate appears and mixed with the taste of honey you are now getting what Cohiba had intended and developed as one of the sweetest cigars to come out of Cuba.

The final third delivers the taste of vanilla, mixed with chocolate, mixed with honey which causes one to wonder how all of this is possible by simply blending leaves together. All in all this cigar has become one of my favorites and as years go by the contents of the box I picked up in ‘04 age beautifully in my humidor.

Very excited today guys. Time to tell you about another Cohiba cigar that  I tried today. The Cohiba Siglo IV (4) - They say this is one of the best Siglos to age. Unfortunatley, mine was not aged, but I still enjoyed the
rich creamy flavor combined with cocoa bean aromas.

Siglos were introduced in 1992.  They are a little bit lighter than the rest of the Cuban Cohiba cigar brand but they do the job just fine. This Cuban beauty came in a box of 25 and is 100% hand made like the all of the Cohiba cigars (Except the Cohiba Cigarillos). Anyways, I lit this one up two hours after dinner.

Got my self a nice glass of Oban 14 year single malt, went to my patio as it was a beautiful day to smoke (Sunny in Vancouver at around 8pm, yeah believe it or not!)  So I just sat in the balcony and forgot all my worldly troubles and just kept puffing. I always was a big fan of the Cohiba Siglo brand but Cohiba Siglo IV might be my new favorite out of the bunch. I would say when its sunny outside, the Cohiba Siglo IV is just perfect.

Another handmade Cuban beauty is the Cohiba siglo I. The Siglo series or Linea 1492 is a sub-brand of Cohiba, produced to commemorate 500 years since the arrival of Christopher Columbus, and is characterized by a milder flavour than most other Cohibas.

Don’t let the mildness fool you because these are delicious cigars. I think the Cohiba cigar god designed the Siglos to help develop the Cohiba cigar enthusiasts’ palette before they tried the big boys such as the Cohiba Robusto or the Cohiba Maduro Genios.

However, the Cohiba Siglo I are in a class of their own. They came out arond in 1993 or 94, I’m not sure but since then, people from all over the world really appreciate this medium tasting cigar. Surprisingly, most people prefer to smoke these in the Summer - well count me in!This would be the first time that I would get to try these Cuban cigars, So naturally I’m very excited. Don’t worry boys and girls, I’ll let you know exactly how this cigar performs.

Cabinet of Siglo III

Wow! I finally had my first Siglo III - Cohiba Siglo III that is. I was just getting back from work when my buddy called me and said to come on over (I had to meet him for some new business ideas). So after I ended up getting there, I was shocked when he pulled out a couple of Cohiba cigars.

Now I wasn’t surprised that he had some some fine Cohiba’s on him (In fact, James is THE GUY when it comes Cohiba cigars), but I had never smoked the Siglo III yet, and I had been wanting to for some time. He said the Cohiba Siglo III was his favourite and that the aromas created by them are amazing - Plus it’s a very nice little treat for the palette.

Not only was he correct, but I was quite impressed by the size of this cigar. I’m a Robusto man myself but I really enjoyed this one in particular. If you ever get a chance to smoke a Cohiba Siglo III, don’t pass it up. Another brilliant cigar by the Cohiba brand, aren’t they all?

The Vancouver Cigar Company has produced a straight forward (and more importantly free) e-book called Cohiba 101 (Cohiba 101 Download).  I downloaded it tonight and gave it a bit of a look over and was surprised about two things: #1) It was relatively pitch free (just good information) #2) I learned a couple of things about the Cohiba.  Also it seems that they actually used some of my reviews that I sent them (Bonus!).

This 101 e-book thing would have been great when I first started smoking cigars.

Cohiba Cigar Blog Entry By Shane

The Siglo VI truly is one of the big favorites of the Cohiba brand. Cohiba’s tobacco of course goes through a third fermentation process in barrels, and this makes it rich, complex and smooth nature. I savored this one for almost an hour paring it with a couple glasses of MacCallan 18 year old scotch. The ash was almost difficult to knock off the end of the cigar when it was nearing one inch in length. Apparently the tobacco grows in the  Vuelta Abajo district, a distinctively rich farming district with nutrient rich soils.

The most noticeable thing is the quality of construction and its large ring gauge which seems to accentuate a lot of the Cohiba tobacco flavors.