Tag Archives: holts

La Aroma de Cuba

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One of the most classic blends you’ll commonly see represented in the cigar world is La Aroma de Cuba, available from Holt’s in 9 unique sizes, as well as a variety of cigar samplers. LADC is an amazingly tasty cigar and very affordable – ranging from just $5-8 for a single smoke.

Being comprised of Nicaraguan tobacco, LADC cigars are rich and woody, with notes of black pepper that give way to a wonderful palate of peanuts, almonds and sugar cookies. This is a cigar that is perfectly balanced between sweet, spicy and creamy, and in this price range, these would be the perfect cigar to fill your humidor with as their flavors are approachable and satisfy many cigar-smoking preferences.

I paired the La Aroma de Cuba with a drink that I invented just for this pairing: a Double Rum Old Fashioned. This is a sweet and citrusy drink that adds an acidic and smooth element to the pairing, and this is a drink that’s so familiar and tasty that it would easily be enjoyed by most drinkers.

Double Rum Old Fashioned

in an old fashioned glass, add:

  • 1/4 oz simple syrup
  • 2 dashes of orange bitters
  • 1/2 oz spiced rum
  • stir well, and fill glass with ice
  • add 1 1/2 oz aged rum and stir again until cold
  • garnish with a lemon twist
Thanks to Holt’s Cigar Company for sponsoring Simple Guy Stuff. 
Enter the promo code SIMPLE at check out and receive a complimentary 10% discount on your purchase! Discount is available online only. Certain exclusions apply. Offer expires January 31, 2018 – cannot be combined with other coupon codes.  Limit one discount per customer.​

Ashton Cabinet

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The Ashton Cabinet is a luxury cigar, both in its build and flavor profile. Its tobaccos are aged 4-5 years and it results in a flavorful, mild profile with touches of citrus, honey, cashews and cedar. The Ashton Cabinet is one of hundreds that are available to order from Holt’s Cigar Company.

I smoked the Ashton Cabinet in the #7 size, which measures 6 ¼ inches (length) by a 52 ring gauge (thickness). It’s solidly built with a smooth, creamy wrapper with tasting notes of black pepper and nuts. While the overall strength level and flavor profile of this cigar is quite mild, there is a nice, balance selection of flavors to enjoy as you smoke it through.

I paired the Ashton Cabinet with a cocktail that’s easy to make: the Black Manhattan. Consisting of 2 oz whiskey (rye or bourbon preferred), 1 oz Averna, 2 dashes of bitters and a cherry garnish, the Black Manhattan turned out to be an excellent companion to the Ashton, as both share a prominent and complementary flavor profile. Averna, an Italian amaro (Italian for “bitter”), is a rich and flavorful collection of herbs and citrus that complemented the Ashton so well, I was pretty shocked.

Together, the Aston Cabinet from Holt’s and a Black Manhattan are excellent companions. The intermingling of the nutty and citrus notes and the excellent quality of the cigar ensured a long and pleasant pairing experience.

Thanks to Holt’s Cigar Company for sponsoring Simple Guy Stuff. Enter the promo code SIMPLE at check out and receive a complimentary 10% discount on your purchase! Discount is available online only. Certain exclusions apply. Offer expires January 31, 2018 – cannot be combined with other coupon codes.  Limit one discount per customer.​

Old Henry Cigars

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Holt’s Cigar Company, which is mostly a mailorder outfit unless you’re in the Pennsylvania area, has their own line of cigars: Old Henry, which are available exclusively from them. If Old Henry isn’t a familiar name to you, it wasn’t to me either. If, however, you pop the hood on these stogies (or simply look on the bottom of the box), you’ll notice a very familiar manufacturer behind them: the Garcia family.

If that’s not ringing a bell, the Garcia family blends cigars of their own brands, including My Father (Cigar Aficianado’s cigar of the year last year ) and Flor de Las Antillas (cigar of the year in 2012), then they also blend the Tatuaje family of cigars, and occasionally some others, too (like this one). Based out of Esteli, Nicaragua, the Garcia family has a good reputation for blending great cigars, and these Old Henry blends are no exception to the rule.

I got to try the “Best in Show Assortment” of Old Henrys, which includes 2 each of Pure Breed, Old Henry, Maduro, and Gold Label blends, all in Toro size (6×52), packed in a cedar box. These retail at $5.50 each for the last 3, and under $6.50 for the Pure Breed. The Best in Show Assortment will run you $29.99 from Holt’s.

Each of these blends are spicy (as Nicaraguan tobacco tends to be), a bit oily, and very well-built. Here are some distinguishing characteristic of each one:

Pure Breed. Medium-full bodied; medium strength. Nicaraguan tobacco in a Ecuador Sumatra wrapper. Smokes sweet and spicy with quite a bit of earthy flavor in the wrapper. Flavor profile is the most complex of the bunch and varies between spice, earth and pepper throughout.

Old Henry. Full bodied; medium strength. Nicaraguan tobacco in a Nicaraguan Corojo wrapper. A spicier experience, plus cream and leather. Highly flavorful, yet the strength is very manageable.

Maduro. Full bodied; medium-full strength. Nicaraguan tobacco and Connecticut Broadleaf maduro wrapper. Similar to the standard Old Henry in spice, but more chocolately and wet overall.

Gold Label. Medium bodied, medium strength. Nicaraguan tobacco and Ecuador Connecticut wrapper. The lightest blend of the bunch, but just barely lighter in its profile. Still plenty spicy though also creme brulee, vanilla and cinnamon notes.