“Top 5” Reviews of Q1 ‘22

When I created my website, www.guitarsandcigarsfarm.com, I initially intended to use this site for some blog posting, guitar builds, and various other projects. One day I decided to look into the retail side of cigars for a bit, then it kind of snowballed. Here we are today with the launch of the website and the first of (hopefully) many cigar samplers! 

I came up with several ideas for some small run cigar samplers to kick off this venture. It just so happened that the launch of the website would roughly coincide with the end of the first quarter of 2022. I thought, “end of the year lists get so much fanfare in the cigar world, but why wait till the end of the year?” So I went back through my reviews for Whiskey & Whitetails and came up with a sampler to highlight some of my favorite reviews so far this year. 

Before I get into selection criteria and the cigars, I want to provide this note regarding my reviews: 

I do not rate cigars in my reviews unless I am doing a comparison of vitola or a series. I smoke the cigars and give my tasting and performance notes throughout. Then, in closing, I provide a recap of the cigar and my opinions of it. I do this because the cigars I review are not in competition with one another (unless they are directly being compared in a Vitola Battle or Review Series). Also, in my opinion, a number rating does not paint the full picture of what a cigar is. Some cigars may not score highly because of one off note, or some performance concern, yet the experience could be wildly unique and something I would recommend people try or something I add to my rotation because it is unlike anything else I smoke regularly. Finally, I want the reader to actually understand my opinion, not just look for a number and jump to a conclusion on the cigar.

As for the selection process, I first wrote down the cigars that have stuck so firmly in my mind that I didn’t need any refresher or confirm that they were in the correct date range. Next, I went through my reviews for the quarter to verify what else I smoked this quarter and wrote down the ones that are worthy, in my opinion, of inclusion. There was actually only 1 that hadn’t already come to mind. Then I removed the cigars I was unable to source for various reasons. Finally, I was left with actually only 7 cigars to choose from for this sampler (For reference, I reviewed 27 cigars in Q1). After some internal debating I made the necessary cuts and came up with the “Top 5”. 

Below, in alphabetical order, are my 2022 Q1 Top 5. These cigars all stood out to me and are cigars I would recommend smoking. All of these cigars were “new to me” in the sense that I either have not smoked any cigars in the line, have not smoked these particular vitolas, or both. 

- 3 Kingdoms Toro by Stolen Throne Cigars

You can check out the review that put this cigar in the Top 5 here. I first reviewed the Robusto, which I thought was a very solid cigar. However, the Toro had the edge with such a dynamic smoking experience starting with “a lot of nice sweetness, spice, earth, and wood, all in great balance. The retrohale was very tasty with brown sugar and leather. Then the cigar moved to a more savory profile with dark coffee, wood, and saltiness. The final third was a more standard expression of a cigar with these blend characteristics with flavors primarily of earth, wood, and pepper.” This cigar is an experience to smoke.   

- 1675 Edición Azul Robusto by Lampert Cigars

You can check out the review that put this cigar in the Top 5 here. I love all the cigars on this list, and I won’t dare say that any are better than the others because they’re all different from one another. However this Lampert would be the closest one to be a go-to cigar for me as “I love toastiness with some woods, earth, peppers, nuttiness, and subtle sweetness. The cacao and cream that made short appearances were an added bonus.” These types of flavors, along with great performance, seem to hit my palate just right.

- Kintsugi Robusto by Alec & Bradley -

You can check out the review that put this cigar in the Top 5 here. Of the cigars on this list, this one was especially eye opening for me. I mentioned this in the review as well, but I have been guilty of writing off some larger companies because I prefer the “boutique” ones. However, this cigar had “a wonderfully balanced flavor profile of wood, bread, syrupy sweetness, vanilla, and spices. The final third was a nice change of pace as it turned towards more earth, wood, pepper, and some citrus.” Combine those flavor notes with great performance and a fantastic price point and you have a real winner. 

- Mi Querida Triqui Traca No 448 by Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust -

You can check out the review that put this cigar in the Top 5 here. I just knew I was going to dig this cigar from the moment I saw the announcement of its release. I have enjoyed this blend in the other sizes, but the 4 x 48 vitola is right up my alley and it delivered. “The core flavor profile of earth, pepper, dark sweetnesses, and wood are present in all the vitolas I smoked, however, I’ve only gotten the sweet and spicy cinnamon notes (that I call Red Hots candy) from this 448 and I enjoyed the dimension it added to the cigar.” It’s also worth noting this little guy burned for an hour and 29 minutes.

- The Deseret by Apostate Cigars -

You can check out the review that put this cigar in the Top 5 here. This cigar was the first one that came to mind when I thought back on what I have smoked in Q1, as “it had a great flavor profile that hit the spot for my palate. The base of the profile was darker and more savory, but there was always a balancing honey sweetness that really rounded it out nicely.” This cigar has an attention getting presentation. Then you smoke it and the flavors steal the show.

If you want to try these cigars, visit my website and order the 2022 Q1 Top 5 Reviews Sampler. This is the first sampler I have put together and quantities are limited at this time. If this is out of stock when you go to order, please shoot me an email at info@guitarsandcigarsfarm.com

As always, feel free to reach out to me with questions, concerns, criticisms, or just to talk at @guitarsandcigarsfarm on Instagram, or via email at info@guitarsandcigarsfarm.com


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