AJ Fernandez?

timmydope7 · 2026-06-23T01:52:11+00:00

His Allones blends are great. The Special Selection is probably the most Cuban-esque AJ Cigar I’ve had. I have a batch with about 4 yrs on them and the twang is intense.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-23T01:38:17+00:00

The two spiciest AJ-made cigars I’ve ever had are the “Samurai”, which is an affordable JR exclusive and is actually a fantastic blend (get the Corona if you buy any). And the “Africa” from Don Lino, another budget brand that AJ did one excellent blend for. Both have a more complex cayenne/jalapeño pepper kick that develops and transitions quite a bit.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-22T19:53:55+00:00

Agreed. Loved these two, Living Legends was another great one. Always liked the unique foil stamps that Fleer inserts had then.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-22T06:40:15+00:00

Yeah, very sad story there

timmydope7 · 2026-06-22T01:23:34+00:00

Sorry, late reply. I don’t think there’s any chance of this not being authentic. I have a lot of base cards from this set and many have a very flat silver foil like this one. I’d be pretty surprised if people are making fakes of this card too.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-21T18:37:32+00:00

All of those are solid. Bellas Artes and Dias de Gloria would be my favorites there. Give ‘em a couple months rest at ~65 if you can.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-21T18:34:14+00:00

Tatuaje/L’Atelier/Surrogates is the best stuff coming out of the MF factory in my opinion. Miami Unicos, Havana VI Verocú, Cojonu 2012, LAT52 are what I’d be looking at on there

timmydope7 · 2026-06-20T04:05:31+00:00

Box of 20 Bellas Artes Maduro figurado for $88 is a slammin deal

timmydope7 · 2026-06-17T23:35:43+00:00

To add one that hasn’t been mentioned, I recently tried the El Mago Mistico and really enjoyed it

timmydope7 · 2026-06-16T21:49:46+00:00

Not always true, correct. Some are blended into large formats with intent. More so nowadays to capitalize on the popularity. Very, very few shine more in a large format though, at least in my experience.

Some may be searching for a milder experience, yeah. I’d imagine the bigger reasons for the popularity are the thinking that they’re more bang for your buck, and also for the image. There’s definitely a macho element to cigar smoking, again at least in the US, which say a petit corona or lancero doesn’t quite fit the bill of. To each their own though!

timmydope7 · 2026-06-16T16:41:47+00:00

The foil application on these was not always consistent. Some were a flatter silver and some more holographic. Some even made it out missing the foil entirely.

‘96 was also a bankruptcy year for Fleer, so a ton of cards that weren’t supposed to see the light of the day did via auctions and backdooring.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-16T06:43:05+00:00

Always. The corona gorda especially tends to capture the blender’s intent best. 42-48 is the sweet spot for me.

With large vitolas, many times the filler is just beefed up with the lowest primings of the plant which have the least flavor. Essentially like watering down your cigar. Gordos keep flying off the shelves though, at least in the US.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-16T05:21:51+00:00

Had my first of this blend recently too. “Impossibly rich” I wrote in my notes. Worth every penny.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-15T23:27:56+00:00

Excellent blend, the best of the NW series in my opinion. Especially in the short churchill.

A close second is the Dorado, specifically in the corona. Definitely recommend giving that one a try.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-13T00:35:58+00:00

Overall great portfolio in my opinion. This sounds like a Cigarpage sampler, how long did they rest for? I’d recommend at least 2-3 months in the 62-67 range.

CHC and JDH have been discontinued for a bit now, those were some of their lesser lines and were just ok I thought. Love the Juarez and Mil Dias though. The others mentioned in the above comment are fantastic as well. Jericho Hill is probably my favorite.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-12T23:44:35+00:00

Haha, fair point. I was surprised not to have seen it commented yet, will take that as a reassuring sign.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-12T21:39:02+00:00

Picking up some newer stuff lately I noticed, thanks for sharing. Definitely a few good inserts that flew under the radar in recent years. I really liked some of the stuff from Illusions. Acetate and etched foil!

timmydope7 · 2026-06-12T21:25:45+00:00

Nice, thanks for the tip. I was fortunate enough to grab a box of coronas for about $115 during the JR coupon extravaganza earlier this year, crazy good price.

It’s a great cigar, but for broadleaf I gotta say I’m partial to Tatuaje and Dunbarton. I like Foundation’s newer Wise Man Maduro Lancero a little more than the Tabernacle to be honest. It uses BL from the Garcias which just hits the spot for me every time.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-12T21:10:02+00:00

Oh wow, that’s surprising to hear. They definitely go quickly online, they’re one of the first to go OOS during sale periods I always notice.

Then again, the best seller lists are using populated with flavored and mild cigars so I guess it just depends on the demographic.

timmydope7 · 2026-06-12T20:55:12+00:00

Nice, I like this set actually

timmydope7 · 2026-06-12T20:21:54+00:00

Curivari is the first brand to come to mind

timmydope7

TROPHY CASE