Cigarillo: Panter Mignon Sweets (4/10)

Upon first seeing the name 'Mignon Sweets,' the only thought that ran through my head was 'what a bloody pretentious name!' Upon having done a bit of research, Panter is a very well-selling brand, so they must be doing something right... but onto the cigarillo itself.

The Mignon Sweets were most certainly sweet, a little too sweet for my taste, but I can appreciate that some people enjoy that, and certainly many non-smokers prefer to sit in clouds of sweet smoke rather than non-sweet smoke... I also found them to have an incredibly nutty flavour (macadamia nut perhaps?), more so than any other tobacco I have tried. The cigarillos were made of a hybrid filler and were moderately tarry. Unfortunately they also succumbed to the bane of most cigarillos- becoming unbearably hot towards the end.

The Panter 'Mignon Sweets' (as well as most of the rest of their cigarillo line) will cost about £8.50 for twenty, so not a bad price. They can also often be found in Duty Free at airports for considerably less (my associate found them for €4.40 for 20 in Amsterdam).

Smoking time: 4-7 minutes

Flavour: 4/10

Smoke Sweetness: 8/10

Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 4/10

Value for Money: 7/10

Indulgence Factor: 2/10

Overall Rating: 4/10

Cigar: Quintero Panatelas (7/10)

Quintero is a very old Cuban maker- they have been around since 1924, long before la revolución, and are still producing cigars. While 100% tobaco Cubano for everywhere other than the States, they are only Honduran tobacco for the Yanks. Of course, being in the UK, we tried the Cuban ones, and definitely enjoyed them.

The smoke was good in every way, by no means excellent and amazing, but good. The panatelas were tightly rolled and made of long filler. The smoke was neither sweet nor dry, but balanced and definitively Cuban-flavoured. If you can find these (most retailers in the UK seem to only stock the more expensive tubulares and churchills, of which we have no doubt would be at least as nice), we definitely recommend them. A pack of 5 will cost around £10. We found ours in Duty Free for €3.70 (at which price they are amazing value for money!)

Smoking time: 10-15 minutes

Flavour: 7/10

Smoke Sweetness: 4/10

Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 5/10

Value for Money: 5/10

Indulgence Factor: 6/10

Overall Rating: 7/10

Cigarillo: Davidoff 'Minis' (7.5/10)

Davidoff is certainly one of the most well-recognised brands of luxury tobacco products; indeed some of their cigars can cost well over £100 each. As poor students, we unfortunately cannot offer our reviews of their upper-range, but we did try and thoroughly enjoy a box of their 'Minis.'

Although a Swiss brand, nearly all of Davidoff's cigar-tobacco supply comes from Cuba, and they are made in the Dominican Republic. Their cigarillos are no exception (well, the ones they sell in the States possibly are), and one can certainly taste that Cuban je ne sais quoi in their Minis. The cigarillos were tightly packed, had little tar but were moist nonetheless, and had a very nice flavour.

The Davidoff Mini cigarillos are definitely one that will impress (although much of that will be psychological simply because of the brand-name), but they are certainly a nice and enjoyable smoke. A pack of 20 cigarillos will cost around £17 in the UK (so certainly they are not cheap), but most certainly less in the EU (as a result of lower tobacco tax in most places).

Smoking time: 6-10 minutes

Flavour: 7/10

Smoke Sweetness: 5/10

Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 6/10

Value for Money: 4/10

Indulgence Factor: 8/10

Overall Rating: 7.5/10

Cigar: P.G.C. Hajenius 'Kleine Tuitknak' (6/10)

P.G.C. Hajenius is another Dutch manufacturer, but a bit less common than La Paz. This is unfortunate, because their 'Kleine Tuitknak' cigars were significantly nicer than the similarly sized and priced 'Wildes' from La Paz. The cigars are a primarily Sumatran blend of tobacco with a pinch of Havana and Brazilian, of what appeared to be pure leaf tobacco (no pesty stems). Although machine-rolled, they were well-rolled and tightly packed in a torpedo figurado, measuring about 9cm long and 30 gauge.

The smoke was moderately sweet and had good flavour. There was neither too much nor too little tar and overall they were a pleasant smoke. However, they lacked a that certain something that one only finds in high quality cigar.

The P.G.C. Hajenius 'Kleine Tuitknak' will cost around £15 for ten in the UK, and around €10 for ten in the EU.

Smoking time: 10-15 minutes

Flavour: 6/10

Smoke Sweetness: 6/10

Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 5/10

Value for Money: 7/10

Indulgence Factor: 4/10

Overall Rating: 6/10

Cigar: La Paz 'Wilde Cigarros' (4.5/10)

La Paz is a well-known Dutch brand of cigar and cigarillo manufacturers, and this is not surprising. They make an adequate cigar that is really quite inexpensive. The Wilde Cigarros are a panatela size roughly 12cm long and 30 gauge. They are 100% tobacco, made of a Javan Besuki wrapper and a blend of Havana and Brazilian filler. It was difficult to determine whether the filler was long (full nice leaves) or hybrid (mix of leaves and cheap little bits), but they did have some small stems running through and this affected the smoothness of the burning. 

The cigars smoked rather quickly- only about 10-15 minutes. The smoke itself was quite light and slightly sweet- one website noted the wrapper was aromatic. They were not considerably tarry and the ash held up well before falling off (likely due to the stems). Unfortunately they became incredibly hot towards the end because of the lack of tar. Overall, the La Paz cigars were neither pleasantly nor unpleasantly smokable and without being in any way memorable.

In the UK, they will cost about £7 for a pack of five, but in the EU, about €4 for the same package. Even so, £7 for five cigars of this size and quality is an excellent price.

• Smoking time: 10-15 minutes
• Flavour: 4/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 4/10
• Tar (1=very wet, 10=very dry): 7/10
• Value for Money: 8/10
• Indulgence Factor: 2/10
• Overall Rating: 4.5/10

Pipe Tobacco: Louisiana Flake (6/10)

There is absolutely nothing wrong in any way with the Kendal Louisiana Flake by Gawith and Hoggarth... but... I cannot say it is a favourite. The Louisiana is air cured and made of a blend of Virginia and perique tobaccos. I am not considerably knowledgeable about different tobacco types, but I do know that periques tend to be quite strong and spicy.

Strong and spicy is exactly what the Louisiana Flake is... indeed the name is quite apt and the tobacco is comparable to a jambalaya in flavour, or gumbo (though thankfully there is no taste of old boot). It is slightly sweet, and I would say has a distinct savoury spiced nuttiness. The Gawith and Hoggarth website claims the Louisiana Flake has a chocolaty flavour, though I didn't experience that myself with this tobacco. The smoke is quite thick and strong and although seasoned pipe-smokers might love it, I suggest trying lighter tobaccos first if you are new to smoking a pipe. If you want to try something strong in flavour and nicotine-buzz, definitely give the Louisiana Flake a try.

• Flavour: 9/10
• Smoke Sweetness: 3/10
• Tar (1=wet, 10=dry): 6/10
• Value for Money: 6/10
• Indulgence Factor: 5/10
• Overall Rating: 6/10

Pipe Tobacco: Sliced Black Aromatic (1/10)

As smokers in an ever more non-smoking world, we must learn to accept those people who do not understand smoking. Those people who, even while open-minded enough to try different tobaccos, cannot taste the difference, all they taste is smoke. Well, the Sliced Black Aromatic by Gawith and Hoggarth is the tobacco for those who are utterly hopeless when it comes to tobacco connoisseurship, for it is so absolutely and horribly terrible no one else should have to bear to smoke it... ok, perhaps I am guilty of hyperbole, but it really is bad!

The tobacco lacks any flavour except smoke. That is all it tastes of, plain simple smoke. Thus for those of you who like your smoke to taste of something, don't buy this one, you'll be disappointed. Thankfully we were given only a small amount to try for free, so in these times of being constantly skint, I cannot complain too much... But seriously, give this one a miss.

• Flavour: 1/10
  
• Smoke Sweetness: 3/10
• Tar (1=wet, 10=dry): 5/10
• Value for Money: 1/10
• Indulgence Factor: 1/10
• Overall Rating: 1/10