CASA MAGNA Colorado Robusto
5 1/2″ x 52
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
This is the Casa Magna Colorado Robusto. It’s a very tasty medium-bodied smoke. It’s peppery and earthy with some sweet caramel notes and a hint of coffee.
Popularity of this cigar is in great credit to being listed as the Number One cigar of 2008 from Cigar Aficionado, and particularity the pretty little price tag along with it. It is a bargain at under $6 US, a nice surprise indeed.
This cigar comes from the design of Manuel Quesada and Nestor Plasencia, two big names in the tobacco industry. Mr Quesada is head of Matasa, makers of Fonseca and Cubita brands in the Dominican Republic, the Quesada family has been involved in tobacco since the 19th century in Cuba. Mr Plasencia is one of the largest growers of fine tobacco in the world and makes cigars in Honduras and Nicaragua. Having the two work together to create an affordable and lovely smoke is great to see.
The price factor is what I believe contributed to the frenzy surrounding this cigar earlier this year as it is a contrast from other cigars listed with the honorable title of Number One Cigar Of The Year. I love to try any cigar, and the profile on this one was just right, too. Add the price factor and it is an incredibly appealing choice. With more Casa Magnas becoming available again, I thought now was a perfect time to bring it up for discussion. It is all about finding what you like to enjoy your experience, and not about the ratings or frenzies. I hope if you come across one you’ll pick one up and let me know your thoughts. Speak soon.
Good thoughts on the Casa Magna. They are hard to find. I have been fortunate enough to get 2 boxes of the Robustos, and 1 of the Gran Toro. It really is a great cigar for the price, CA’s review aside. My humidor is stocked full of them for now. I think CA saw the same thing in the Casa Magna that we saw, great flavor, construction and value. That is why they rated it so high. Funny, that is what I look for in every cigar.
Stogie 1
http://www.stogie1.wordpress.com
Had one of these colorado’s a couple of weeks ago. Very delicious cigar, and I wished I had bought more than one.
The flavor improved as the cigar burned and it was full bodied wthout any harshness. I enjoyed it a ton.
Call me cynical but your whole site seems to be about making money. I really would love to watch your DVD just for the enjoyment of you telling me about smoking cigars. Are people actually buying this shit and joining your club?
Isnt everything about making money now a days?
I do not belong to the site by paying, but I still enjoy the little snippets of reviews and tips she has to offer. I also highly doubt she is making a living off of the website alone
(If you are, please just marry me – LOL )
Mike
i am going to try and find some of these to try – Always on the lookout for a good cheap cigar!
Back to the topic of the cigar…
I picked one up a few weeks ago and found that it was very good, but it did not live up to my expectations. I enjoyed it with an excellent glass of imported dark rum served neat. I definitely detected the hints of caramel. I even noted the slightest hint of vanilla. Perhaps the rum brought the flavors out a bit. It burned smooth and overall was a good smoke that I quite enjoyed. I feel, however, that it is extremely over rated. CA placed too great of a weight on the price (which is now being inflated by the huge demand) than on the smoking experience alone. I think that while the price of a cigar is relevant, the final outcome should be based more on the quality and experience of the smoke. I guess I would have expected more out of the cigar for the rating.
Personally, I think that the Oliva Serie V is a better bang for the buck. The ligero tobacco is richer. The flavors are more distinct. The cigar overall is much better, in my opinion. The price is comparable with a 5-8 dollar price tag. I recommend this cigar any day over the Casa Magna. But I think that you should try out both smokes for yourself.
Oliva Serie V. I smoked one with my friend this past weekend. second one I have had the pleasure to enjoy. DEEEElicious cigar,
I think it is a very nice cigar, but the number one rating mentality throws in expectations that takes away from the experience. The ratings can make a barrier of sorts- number one for who? It doesn’t matter, only that you enjoy it.
Oliva Serie V is a favorite of mine, great rich flavor and the price is pretty welcoming, you’re right, Matt. Funny I hadn’t thought of it from the price perspective against the Casa Magna. Great point though. And Robert, Deeelicious is right- love it!
After all has been said though, I still think it is worth a taste if you can come across it. Accessibility is a huge factor and I think that can play into the expectations and take away from what is otherwise a lovely experience. I’m not one to avoid an opportunity, I love trying something new even if it turns out it doesn’t wow me, the experience is always worth it since it makes me appreciate my favorites even more. Sometimes it is how we find a favorite!
But we all have our own favorites
That’s what makes them so grand, they are our own.
xx
I’m smoking this right now as I….well type. I thought I wouldn’t get a chance to try one, but actually found some at Famous Smoke shop. Not to mention the freebies that Joe Cusano gave me
I’m not sure if you retrohale the smoke or not, but so far it’s pretty peppery through the nose. There are some coffee notes too. No caramel notes yet, granted I’m only a few inches into the cigar. If I remember, I’ll comment after I’m finished.
Happy Smoking Teresa and everyone.
Teresa try the Casa Magna in the little Pikito size… I originally smoked every size except the Pikito and was indifferent to the Casa Magna. I was sitting in my local B & M and in walked Manuel Quesada and he handed me a Casa Magna Pikito, I told him that this was the best cigar he has ever made. I bought a box of them on the spot.
Adam, I’ll practice a retrohale here and there, it definitely opens up a new perspective of flavor. The spice on the nose really opens things up (I’ve noticed with other cigars as well, different kind of intensity and experience).
OlivaSerieV, I just tried the pikito size last night and must say I enjoyed it more than the others. I like the ratio, I even forgot it was the Casa Manga when I was smoking it. Very lovely, I appreciate the recommendation, it was a lovely and welcoming surprise.
I’ve spoken to several people and they’ve said that on certain sizes, the first time they were not impressed but then the second time it was completely different. Not too many people, though- could have just been their particular cigars as these things do happen as well. And personal taste is always a factor
I had the Padilla Miami Robusto a couple nights ago, I’ll post on it soon- I was quite pleasantly surprised with that smoke, the first draw really amazed me. Beautiful.
The pepper definitely smoothed out, it turned out to be a very rich, enjoyable cigar. I was worried that the Cigar Aficianado hype would have ruined it for me, but that wasn’t the case.
I tried one of these a few months back and thought they were alright. After getting into an argument with a friend who hates them I went and bought another one to prove him wrong. I lit it up last night and I have to say it was probably one of the worst cigars I have ever had. Normally I love Nicaraguan cigars and a well done puro tends to be amazing but this one really let me down. It looked great, smelled great, had a a slightly stronger draw and seemed to be going ok. It started to burn terribly though. I had to relight it and touch it up multiple times because the burn was so uneven and jagged. The flavour also changed less then halfway into the smoke and left a burnt paper taste in my mouth. I don’t know if Casa Magna has had quality control issues due to the demand of the cigar and maybe the earlier batches were better. Overall very disappointed in this cigar. For a similar price point I’d rather smoke a regular Padron, a Pepin Garcia Blue label robusto, or an Oliva Series V
I haven’t many recently, though I’ve found the pikito to smoke the most consistently out of the bunch for me. I’ve been hearing about burn problems from others too lately. It could be a demand issue, but I’m really not sure. I think it is a fun cigar to try, and one to be tried.
I agree on the Oliva Series V, regular Padron line, and Pepin’s blends- Nicaraguan cigars are my favorite and those stand out for me as well especially on the price point. Otherwise I’d say Padron and Tatuaje, but those are two of my personal favorites no matter the price.
I have enjoyed 2 Casa Magna Toros this past summer. My buddy and I split a box with each other and we decided that we will let them age for a year to try again in the Summer 2010. I believe that it is a very good Nic-y puro cigar, classic rich Nicaragua flavor in the beginning, in the middle a nice sweetness developes and the last 1/3 spice and leather return. A pleasant smooth finish was also appreciated. However, in the 2 times that we fired these up, we both had to re-light the cigars 4-5 times = that’s why we have decided to let them rest. Looking forward to this coming summer! Thank you Teresa for your emphasis on enjoying a cigar rather than by being won over by the hype of certain cigars. There are tremendous number of excellent cigars out there that are never really talked or written about.
Peace always,
Mike
I figure this is as good a place to post this as any. I just finished one of these CM pikitos due to the recommendations and found little enjoent out if it – but then again I like the IDEA of cigars, intrigued by all the foodie descriptions but ALWAYS find myself disapponted by all of them when smoked. Clearly I am missing something or doing something wrong. I am soliciting eberyones input here. I always feel lightheaded ( no I don’t inhale) the
e only flavors I taste are burnt horse maneur or something akin to that ( no i’ve never actually smoked horse dung to know the comparison) I get a nasty taste in my mouth that lingers and my clothes stink like ashtray for hours afterward. I have often thougt maybe I am just smoking bad cigars so I only do top rated ones fresh from a stores humidor ( opus x, padron 1926, etc) but always get the same result. I am starting to think that cigars are an emperor had no clothes enterprise. I WANT to like cigars, it’s such a neat idea, and they smell so good when OTHER peope smoke em, but for me, no joy. What’s going on with me? Am I hitting to strong cigars too fast? Are there more mild ones you all could recommend that could help ease me into the hobby?
Typed from my iPhone. Sorry for all the text errors.
Jasonblu, I hope to find others contribute their input here on your question as well. One thing to make certain of is the lighting of the cigar itself, making sure to use butane or a match (and waiting a moment so you don’t get the sulfur taste) and not having too much heat on the cigar. The lightheaded and intensity may be from the style of cigars, as well as the nicotine content as some will certainly give a “buzz” and do that. I would definitely experiment with a milder cigar to intrigue your palate and see what you will enjoy.
Some very silky smokes on the mild side to consider may be something from AVO (and even Davidoff if you wish to experiment further, they can be expensive but are always a lovely smoke and tend to be on the milder side but very lovely).
On a medium body leaning on the lighter side I would try an Ashton Maduro which has some nice nutty flavors, Ashton also has a great line of mild cigars like the cabinets. Camacho’s Connecticut is one of my favorite mild cigars which has a bit of spice. Oliva also produces many great mild cigars, including the Nub Connecticut or Cameroon.
You mentioned the foodie factor, what is your general preferences when it comes to food and drink? What styles and elements do you enjoy in your food?