Stogie Geeks #259

Recorded January 22, 2018 at G-Unit Studios in Rhode Island!

Hosts

Interwiki: JoeH++
Interwiki: JoeD++

Interview: Mike Bellody, MLB Cigar Ventures

MLB Cigar Ventures.
The premium, hand-rolled cigar industry is one of the very few remaining industries that has stayed true to the original time-tested techniques used since the first cigar was rolled almost 300 years ago. The history, craftsmanship and quality associated with making truly great cigars remains largely unchanged through the generations. The cigar lifestyle is filled with these traditions. My cigars will always pay homage to this deeply entrenched tradition and history.
Over the past 5 years, I’ve built MLB Cigar Ventures with a strong belief that quality is the foundation on which great cigars must be created. My pledge to you is very clear…..
1) I will utilize tobacco of only the highest quality for my cigars.
2) I will blend my cigars in collaboration with the best minds in the industry.
3) My cigars will be hand-rolled at world-renowned factories utilizing the most stringent quality controls in the industry.
The aforementioned pledge has guided every aspect of my cigar making journey. It has led me to develop cigars with industry legends like Jose “Pepin” Garcia, Jaime Garcia, Manuel Quesada and Ernesto Perez-Carrillo. My blending goal is always to utilize the intense knowledge of these legends and to push them to do something outside their norm in an effort to make unique cigars that provide a “Flavor Profile Unlike any Other Premium Cigar”.
Quality will NEVER be in question when you smoke a cigar made under my supervision and that of my company, MLB Cigar Ventures. Our cigars will always be “Developed by Legends” from the finest factories in the world.
I invite you to smoke our cigars and experience the intense passion that has gone into each and every blend we have created at MLB Cigar Ventures. Thank you in advance for taking this journey with me, and my company, MLB Cigar Ventures!

Stogie Geeks Segment: – 2:00pm-2:45pm

Joe Hollywood’s Top 10 of 2017

  1. Davidoff 702 Series No. 2
  2. AVO IMPROVISATION LE17
  3. Davidoff Escurio 6 x 60
  4. Esteban Carreras Mr. Brownstone Smack
  5. Hit & Run – The Truth Toro (5 x 52)
  6. MLB Cigar Ventures Imperia Aventador Fundador
  7. Wayfarer Robusto (5 x 52)
  8. Négociant by Tatuaje/L’atelier
  9. VIAJE GHOST PEPPER
  10. Las Calaveras Edición Limitada by Crowned Heads

Stogies of the Week – 2:45pm-3:30pm

Joe Hollywood’s Stogies

  1. Davidoff Golf Scorecard Edition
  2. E.P. Carrillo Dusk
  3. Don Pepin Garcia Cuban Classic
  4. Edgar Hoill One Shot One Kill (O.S.O.K)
  5. Fume D’Amour from Illusione

Joe D’s Stogies

FOUNDATION- HIGHCLERE CASTLE
Connecticut Shade Wrapper
Brazilian Mata Fina Binder
Nicaraguan Filler
5.5 X 46 Corona
$12-15 5 Sizes Boxes of 20
Notes of Wood and Nuttyness with just enough Pepper
Debuted in 2017 at IPCPR
Owner and Blender Nick Melillo
Highclere Castle rich history goes back to 1679, Home of tv show Downton Abbey
Home of the Earl of Carnarvon, known for historical discoveries like King Tut’s Tomb
Celebrations of such achievements would be enjoyed over cigars at HCC thereafter
Medium Plus in strenght

  • BOXWORTHY

DOS HOMBRES- HONDURAN CABINET
Honduran Puro
5 X 50 Robusto
$5 Boxes of 20 6 Sizes
Released at 2017 IPCPR
Sold through 2Guys Smoke Shop, via United Cigars
Notes of Coffee, Light Earth, Barnyard, Mild Pepper on retrohale
Created by Dave Garafolo as a way to level Taxes in surrounding states through goods
Really enjoyable, cheap smoke that smokes higher than its price
Excellent pairing with coffee/hot chocolate
Medium in strength

  • 5’er

BYRON- XXI (purple)
Ecuadorian Wrapper
Dominican Binder
Undisclosed Filler
6 1/8 X 55 Elegantes
$33 4 Sizes Humidified Cabinets of 25
Notes of Barnyard, Honey, Syrup, very light pepper on retrohale, Wood and nuts on back 1/3
4yrs of Age before rolling, 5 more years of age in cedar cabinets thereafter
Debuted at the 2016 IPCPR
Made in Costa Rica
Distributed by United Cigar
Owner Nelson Alfonso
Cigar looks and smokes like its been designed for Royalty espeically with the purple band
Medium in strength

  • FIGHT CHUCK NORRIS

L’ATELIER- IDENTITE MELANGE
Ecuadorian Sancti Spiritus Wrapper
Nicaraguan Binder and Filler that includes Sancti Spiritus
5 5/8 X 46 Special No.2
$8 3 Sizes Boxes of 20
Notes predominently of chocolate and leather, pepper on the front, Natural Tobacco
True Medium Plus in strength
Made by K.C. and Pete Johnson
Made in Nicaragua at My Fathers Factory
Sancti Spiritus is a hybrid of Criollo and Pello De Oro seeds
Identite means Idenity and Melange means mixture
Only known cigar to incorporate Sancti Spiritus in all components of a cigar
Medium-Medium Plus in strength

  • BOXWORTHY

LA FLOR DOMINICANA- DOUBLE LIGERO OSCURO LANCERO
Ecuadorian Sumatra Oscuro Wrapper
Dominican Binder and Filler
7.5 X 39 Lancero
$10 Boxes of 20
Very complex amount of flavor
2 1/2 hr smoking experience
Notes of Coffee, Wood, Spice and Pepper. Very toasty smoke
Never intended for production, Lito Gomez intended for himself and close friends
Gifted to me by Dave Garafolo
Made at Tabacalera La Flor S.A.
Really impressive look and feel to this cigar
Medium-Medium Plus in strength

  • BOXWORTHY