A couple of weeks ago I received a shipment from my review sponsor at TexCigars. He sent me some Casada Connecticut Toros. The first thing that caught my attention was the appearance of the smokes. They were a golden brown color with a tight wrap and a good-looking band. I never heard of these smokes before and I was anxious to try them. It has been a while since I fired up a toro size smoke. I tempered my excitement by sticking these smokes into my humidor to give them a chance to rehydrate.

TexCigars sent me three of these smokes and I enjoyed them so much that I fired up all three within a 48 hour period. Yes, I have little self control. Before I lit my last Casada, I was sitting with a friend and I had only two smokes; a Casada and a Rocky Patel 1992. My friend was looking for a handout so I gave him my 1992 before parting with my last Casada, that says a lot for this smoke.

The Casada Connecticut is made with tobaccos produced by the Oliva family in Nicaragua. The Casada Connecticut Toro measures a standard 6 x 50. It has a smooth blend of Nicaraguan tobaccos and is finished with a Connecticut wrapper.  I truly enjoyed the size, construction and flavor of these smokes. After tasting all my Casada Connecticuts, I have narrowed the flavor to hints of pepper and leather. The ignition, draw and burn were top notch. I want to thank TexCigars for sending me these smokes for several reasons. The main reason being that these smokes have started me back on a toro kick. Again, very enjoyable. These smokes runs for $79.99 for a box of 20. They are a pretty damn good smoke for four bucks a stick.

This has to be one of the top ten surprise cigars that I fired up this year. A surprise smoke to me is one that blows away your expectations. Please visit my forum to share your suggestions on the top surprise smokes of 2007.

MonkeyDan Rating: 89