It's been said that the Brick House offers plenty of complexity and an abundance of flavor. Luckily, those claims are true, and make this one Robusto that is enjoyable from beginning to end. Cedar kicks off the smoking experience and hangs around for the first ten minutes. Some sweet and subtle notes of fruit then join in. Halfway into the cigar, I detect notes of wood. The pepper that was noticeable prior to lighting also comes into play. The final third finishes things off with notes of toast and rich cocoa.

After smoking the Brick House Robusto from J.C. Newman, it's easy to see why it received so much praise from critics. Sure, it looked great from the onset and burned like a charm, but the flavors were what really put it over the top in terms of a “wow” factor. The cigar is full of flavor and very smooth at the same time. It's a great choice for when you want something relaxing and tasty. It also would be a nice cigar to light up and get the day started off right. While the cigar itself is great, its price is even better. A single only costs around $5, which is a great value for such a quality smoke. Pick up a pack of five or a box of 25, and it becomes even cheaper per cigar. Definitely pick one up if you want something medium-bodied that packs a good dose of complexity as well.

The J.C. Newman Brick House Robusto earns a rating of 3.75 out of four stars.

La Aroma de Cuba Mi Amor Magnifico

Mi Amor means “my love” in Spanish. That's quite a romantic name for a cigar. If you follow the ratings given to La Aroma de Cuba's Mi Amor line, however, you may find that the name is appropriate, as many smokers have fallen in love with it. Don Pepin Garcia blended the Mi Amor for the La Aroma de Cuba brand, which was released by Ashton Distributors. Garcia is known to produce a solid cigar, so let's see if the Mi Amor will be good enough to steal my stogie-loving heart.

The Magnifico size of the Mi Amor line measures 6 x 52. There are four other sizes in the line: the 5 x 50 Robusto, 5 1/2 x 54 Belicoso, 5 3/4 x 58 Valentino, and 7 x 50 Churchill. Of all the sizes in the Mi Amor line, the Valentino is the only one that is not box-pressed. The cigar's filler and binder are made up of Nicaraguan tobaccos. The wrapper Mexican Cuban Seed. The use of the Mexican wrapper is out of the ordinary for Ashton, since they have usually used Connecticut wrappers with Maduro cigars. All Mi Amor cigars are made at the My Father Cigars factory in Esteli, Nicaragua. The cigar is listed as being medium-bodied in strength.