fine cigars - The Need 4 Speed

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FINE CIGARS
Avo Uvezian: “Cigar Composer”
By Shahram Shiva
AVO, the sought-after manufacturer
of premium cigars, traces its origin
to the court of kings, the Persian
King Shah Pahlavi to be exact.
However, the Shah's admiration wasn't for his fine
cigars--that came later--it was for his music. Avo
Uvezian the founder of AVO cigars is a jazz pianist at
heart who has performed with some of the world's best
musicians. Since jazz is the art of collaboration, Mr.
Uvezian instinctively looked for a perfect partner to
create his now famous cigars. He found that alliance
in the master cigar producer Hendrik Kelner. Mr. Kelner
is famous for meticulously researching his tobaccos by
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origin, climate and elevation before
blending. I haven't heard Mr.
Uvezian's music yet, but if it's anything like his cigars it must be magnificent.
The Dominican-made AVO has
the privilege of belonging to the
super-premium club. Their cigars
feel great in the hand and are packaged in varnished wooden cubes
that would make any Zen master
notice. Can cigars have Feng Shui?
AVO's seem to do. The color of
these boxes matches the caliber of
the cigars. For example, the natural
wood is for their Classic Series,
maple is used for XO and black
cubes hold fine Maduro's (dark
wrapper).
Avo Uvezian and Hendrik
Kelner produced 100,000 cigars in
1986. By 1988 the first AVO was
sold in New York City. Today,
three million cigars bearing the
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name of the jazz pianist are enjoyed
by aficionados all over the world
each year. In 2004, Mr. Uvezian
released his first CD, entitled
Legacy.
Signature Series
“The Signature Series began as
the limited edition AVO 75th
Anniversary cigar. Following the
tremendous response from AVO
smokers as well as industry acclaim,
the Signature Series was created. It
is the boldest, most full-bodied
AVO series to date. AVO Signature
is not for the novice smoker.” Says
in the AVO product catalog. I must
not be a novice smoker then, since
I truly enjoy smoking the Signature
Series. I find them incredibly
smooth, with easy draw, filled with
rich but subtle flavors and a very
satisfying taste. Smoking this limited edition super-premium cigar
will spoil you for the less-evolved
brands.
AVO Signature Series cigars are
blended with selected aged tobacco
from the Dominican Republic and
wrapped in a specially aged, silkysmooth, extra flavorful Ecuadorian
sun-grown wrapper leaf used exclusively for this series. The Signature
Series is offered in boxes of only
10.
Maduro Series
The
elegant
black-boxed
Maduro Series cigars are wrapped
in the Connecticut Broadleaf
Maduro leaves. The wrapper is
aged for three years, naturally fermented for 3 months, then fermented a second time, producing a
deep, rich hue. The Maduro uses
San Vincente and Olor filler leaves
that are matured for 4 years. The
AVO Maduro Series has none of the
bitter taste that is often associated
with dark wrappers. This is a very
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smooth and easy smoking maduro
cigar with firm and silvery ash. If
you are a fan of maduro cigars don't
miss AVO's fine offering.
XO Series
The XO borrows its name from
the cognac industry for “extraordinary.” The blend for these cigars
is made from selected Dominican
filler tobaccos aged until fully
mature. This blend includes a large
proportion of a specially fermented
Piloto Cubano tobacco. The binder
leaf is the best Olor tobacco grown
in the Villa Gonzalez region and a
Connecticut wrapper leaf provides
the perfect finishing touch.
The XO Series has quickly
become my favorite smoke. These
creamy cigars offer a perfect-bal- ash.
For more information about
ance of flavors with sweet-spicy
cigars
please
visit
notes and a captivating aroma. Like AVO
all AVO cigars they feel premium www.avo.com.
in the hand and are slow-burning
with a consistent, firm and silvery
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