Are Davidoffs really that good?

[Cparker]

I will need to try one of those Reservas. I am not a fan of big ring gauges but I did like classic Camachos.

The late '00 saw a fair amount of corporate maneuvering in the cigar world. General bought CAO and killed another favorite of mine at the time.
I think some of it was driven by the uprise in boutique brands and the economic climate at the time.

My recollection is Davidoff intended to have Camacho be their "full flavored" line. I don't know if it was the use of more Honduran or Dominican tobacco, changes at the Honduran factory, or just the general sourcing of tobacco but once Davidoff bought Comacho I no longer like Camacho. I also think Davidoff did a poor job of integrating it with their lines similar to their failure with Room 101.

 

[Gavin]

Touché.
But it appears it was CLE, until Julio and Justo split off to form JRE, taking the Aladino brand with them? None of this, of course involves Davidoff, but is interesting nonetheless.

 

[Mizicke5273]

They have factory smokes? Where did you find them?

My local lounge, which as I mentioned is an Aladino lounge. So that may play into it some. From what one of the lounger owners said about the factory cigars, they are the Tatascan Yellow series without a band and with a pre-punched hole on the head. They taste similar to the Yellow series, but I can't confirm if they are the exact same stick.

 

[tone-ny]

C.L.E.’s Aladino Now In Stores | Cigar Aficionado

C.L.E. Cigar Company has released its Aladino brand, a line of cigars blended by industry veteran Julio Eiroa, father of C.L.E. company founder Christian Eiroa. The brand is named after an old movie theater in Danlí, Honduras, owned by the Eiroa family for generations. | Cigar Aficionado

www.cigaraficionado.com

Making me search fer shit..grumble.

LOL search is your friend! Where is MMM when we need him?

 

[cabaiguan juan]

My local lounge, which as I mentioned is an Aladino lounge. So that may play into it some. From what one of the lounger owners said about the factory cigars, they are the Tatascan Yellow series without a band and with a pre-punched hole on the head. They taste similar to the Yellow series, but I can't confirm if they are the exact same stick.

Tarascan Yellow series? That is not an easy one to find on the inter webs.

 

[grateful1]

depends

 

[tone-ny]

Tarascan Yellow series? That is not an easy one to find on the inter webs.

Spelling counts! Try TATASCAN

 

[cabaiguan juan]

Spelling counts! Try TATASCAN

I will.

 

[Mizicke5273]

Spelling counts! Try TATASCAN

Ha, yeah. Yeah it does. I did not even catch that typo.

 

[ggiese]

Recently received a Corona Cigars catalog with an order. Wow, I thought I was playing the game pretty high with the stuff I've been ordering. But there's a whole world of cigars I hadn't really been aware of. I mean, I know a little about the history and all (and they now own Camacho, which is a favorite), but some of those Davidoffs are *pricey*. Are they really that good? Subjective responses requested (what else is there).

Don't know if you're aware, but Camacho is owned by Davidoff. As is Avo and a number of others.

As far as the Davidoff line itself. I've smoked quite a few through many of their core lines and NEVER been disappointed. Even some of the special or limited releases. It has always been a very well made and solid cigar for me. Henke Kelner sure knows how to blend a great cigar!

 

[ggiese]

I used to be huge Davidoff fan. That was until the whole AVO fiasco, where they took normal line cigars and re-banded them as a special release and increased the MSRP by $1.00. Saw that as huge **** move and have been put off alot of what that company touches; to an extent. I basically refuse to buy any special line from them and mostly stick to normal lines.

There are too many other brands that are FAR more deserving of my loyalty and cash to waste my time on brand that screws over its customers.

I really got a kick out of what Mr. Uvesian did to Davidoff at the time he sold the company to them. Don't know if you remember the Avo 22 (one of the absolute best of the Avo line, IMHO), but regardless Avo kept a large stash of them at the time he signed the papers to sell his cigar business. Afterwards he started selling them at Corona Cigar in Florida (the owner being a close personal friend of his). Davidoff got wind and went after Avo. Avo told Davidoff that it was his "personal" collection and not subject to their sales agreement. Davidoff insisted that any cigars bearing his name were property of Davidoff... And so the "Boris 11" was born...

Before he died (and after he sold his company) I had a chance to spend time with Avo at Corona Cigar Company in Orlando (he was a regular visitor). Witty as ever, he had a huge twinkle in his eye when I mentioned what a fan I was of his LE 05's (and the Avo 22). It was very clear he was very passionate about his cigars.

I hated to see Avo sell his line to Davidoff, but honestly I think it was not a bad move. Davidoff has always been known for the quality. I'm not sure the cigars would have been the same if they ended up with another company or with an independent producer.

 

[ggiese]

I love the Millennium Blends. They are the only Dominican cigars that I like the way they age. Construction is always amazing! Price and is it worth the price is in the eye of the beholder.

I LOVE the Millenium Series PC. An incredibly nice cigar!

 

[ggiese]

Which would you rather have, assuming they cost the same? A Padron, or a Davidoff? Discuss.

Padron 1000 series cigars are by far one of the best deals going. Love the 1926 maduros. Not necessarily a huge fan of the 64's. The other anniversary series are a bit "gimmicky" for me, but very solid, nice cigars.

Between the Davidoff and Padron - both are characteristically different from one another. But I hold both in very high regard as being a consistently well made, flavorful cigar. I guess I would say that as an "every day" I'm more inclined to smoke Padron (back to my thoughts on the 1000 series) but am equally split about which is the better higher end cigar...

 

[ggiese]

I love Davidoff in general, but they aren't worth even close to that IMO. As was already said though, "worth" is extremely subjective.

I agree - for me they are not "worth" it. But are they "worth" the pricetag? If Davidoff is selling them with any kind of regularity I'd concede they were "worth" it. Hate to say it - WAY out of my price range, but well within other peoples price ranges...

 

[smellysell]

I agree - for me they are not "worth" it. But are they "worth" the pricetag? If Davidoff is selling them with any kind of regularity I'd concede they were "worth" it. Hate to say it - WAY out of my price range, but well within other peoples price ranges...

Yeah, I don't know that I've ever smoked a cigar over let's say $30 that I would say was "worth it", but I'm cheap, and there are too many affordable Cubans that are amazing with some age. Suppose that brings into question what $ value the age of those cigars bring, but that's another question.

Think I already said it, but good to see you posting again!

 

[ggiese]

The Camacho brand used to be owned by the Eoria (so?) family but then sold it to Davidoff. They then started two different brands: Aladino with is owned by the das and one brother. They also have huge farms within that brand. The other brand is Eoria (I know that is misspelled but whatever) and that is Cristian’s brand.

I met Christian Eiroa right after he sold to Davidoff while he was introducing his new line of cigars. I mentioned to him that I never really cared much for Camacho because they had too earthy a taste for me. He said now that they had sold the line to Davidoff, he would have the ability to be much more creative. I have to say - I'm much more impressed with the Eiroa line than Camacho!

 

[ggiese]

Yeah, I don't know that I've ever smoked a cigar over let's say $30 that I would say was "worth it", but I'm cheap, and there are too many affordable Cubans that are amazing with some age. Suppose that brings into question what $ value the age of those cigars bring, but that's another question.

Think I already said it, but good to see you posting again!

Thanks for the welcome back! It so nice to see familiar faces - and see that the place is active and vibrant!

I only smoke cigars that I enjoy. I'm not a fan of finding the cheapest cigar out there (and I know quite a few that do). I am for finding the best DEAL on a very good cigar (hence why I like the Padron 1000 series - and I also still like an occasional Rocky Patel Edge Maduro).

But over the years I've found that smoking a cigar really is a very subjective thing. Absolutely spot on "smoke what you like". And if I can get a group to subjectively agree that one cigar is better than others - it's a win for all (that's why I've always loved these boards - the reviews are as subjectively raw as they get).

I have been blessed with the occasional rare opportunity to smoke some incredibly expensive cigars. Some I was impressed with - while others I was SOOO glad I had not spent the money (usually a gift from a friend). I can say that I'm willing to spend the money of a good cigar - but ONLY for special occasions. Otherwise I'm always on the hunt for the "deal" for every day.

 

[kann]

I met Christian Eiroa right after he sold to Davidoff while he was introducing his new line of cigars. I mentioned to him that I never really cared much for Camacho because they had too earthy a taste for me. He said now that they had sold the line to Davidoff, he would have the ability to be much more creative. I have to say - I'm much more impressed with the Eiroa line than Camacho!

Trying to follow all the cigar lineage in this thread has me feeling like I'm back studying World History in high school. Just need to bring a chalkboard and overhead projector up in here, and we're all set for class!

 

[cabaiguan juan]

Thanks for the welcome back! It so nice to see familiar faces - and see that the place is active and vibrant!

I only smoke cigars that I enjoy. I'm not a fan of finding the cheapest cigar out there (and I know quite a few that do). I am for finding the best DEAL on a very good cigar (hence why I like the Padron 1000 series - and I also still like an occasional Rocky Patel Edge Maduro).

But over the years I've found that smoking a cigar really is a very subjective thing. Absolutely spot on "smoke what you like". And if I can get a group to subjectively agree that one cigar is better than others - it's a win for all (that's why I've always loved these boards - the reviews are as subjectively raw as they get).

I have been blessed with the occasional rare opportunity to smoke some incredibly expensive cigars. Some I was impressed with - while others I was SOOO glad I had not spent the money (usually a gift from a friend). I can say that I'm willing to spend the money of a good cigar - but ONLY for special occasions. Otherwise I'm always on the hunt for the "deal" for every day.

Glad to see you back.

 

[Jared Nomack]

Don't know if you're aware, but Camacho is owned by Davidoff. As is Avo and a number of others.

Yeah, that's one of the reasons I've been interested in the question. I understand not all agree, but I really like Camachos, pretty much all that I have tried (which is getting close to all of them) (and all in the last year). I can't figure out what the complaint is, to me they smoke nicely, are well constructed, and have consistently good, strong flavor. So if Davidoff is responsible for this state of affairs, I'm interested....

The history of all these brands is fascinating. As a person who spent a good part of his career involved in the Wall Street M&A craze, I feel like I have a certain perspective on it, but the cigar world seems like a unique world. It's as much art as science, and Wall Street has never been much for understanding art.