Cigar Companero March Editon 2008 Editors Top 5

     Always the top for me is usually from the Fuente family, and my favorite smoke for 2007 is the Opus X XxX Belicoso, otherwise known as the Power Ranger. I guess this name was given by Carlito Fuente as a play off the Saturday morning kids TV show, the Power Rangers. Packing a punch but tasteful, the XxX is by far the best cigar I smoked this year. And it has been my favorite a few other years, now that I think about it.
     Coming in at number 2, the Padron 40th Anniversary 1926 Series, with the typical Padron plain raw tobacco punch. The Padron's have always been famous for their traditional tobacco fermentation process, old school as they say nowadays. The 40th Anniversary is testament to the process. It works, so why mess with it.


      Number 3, and to no surprise, is the San Cristobal Maestro. With a parrot as a log it has a since of tropical flavoring. Made strictly of Nicaraguan tobacco by Don Pepin, the Maestro in the figuardo shape is by far the most complex cigar taste so far to date. Unlike the other San Cristobal's the Maestro has some kind of change in the flavor as you smoke it seems. Maybe it is just me but this cigar is a huge hit. I just had to put a box in my humidor, the only drawback it seemed is it was not aged quite enough, but now I have some that are about 6 months old and they are tasty.
     Along comes number 4, another Don Pepin cigar. The Tatuaje Cabaiguan Miami is full of taste and complexity. I just love the taste of this one and if I could smoke one everyday along with the other 4 in this list. Nice mellow complex taste, which is what I enjoy.
     To round off the number 5 list, is the 5 Vegas Miami. Nothing says cigar more than a nice balanced complex taste to me. The 5 Vegas Miami has all that and then some. Not your retail favorite but by far one of the best of the year for me. Just like the San Cristobal this has that tropical sense about it that if you close your eyes and open your mind find yourself sitting on a tropical beach somewhere in your imagination.
     So there are my top five, but here are a few mentions, that need to be thrown out there. The Arturo Fuente 8-5-8 sungrown, Short Story, Between the Lines, and Best Seller. The Graycliff Crystal Pirate, Oliva Series V, and the C.A.O. America. There are many others far too many too mention, but hopefully we will get some reviews in by the end of 2008.