Ashton VSG

It'll be my birthday in about half an hour but I couldn't wait till then before lighting up one of my favorite cigars. The Ashton VSG is truly a great cigar and deserves to be saved for those special occasions in life. Luckily for me, I grade on an easy curve when it comes to special occasions so my 31st birthday is a good enough reason to light up a VSG.

Everything from it's beautiful Ecuadorian wrapper to it's luscious tobacco flavors make this one of the best smokes of the past decade. I'm currently smoking the robusto that measures 5.5 x 50. I picked up this cigar as part of the Holt's holiday sampler. The cigar is well made, although I did notice a slight uneven burn on this particular cigar I'm smoking. Cedar is the predominant flavor and a nice sweet woodsy aroma rewards you with every puff.

This is not a cheap cigar, nor is it easy to find. Most retailers also limit the number of sticks you can buy. The robusto retails for just a little over $9 per cigar. Considering it's half the price of many Cubans (and tastier than most in my humble opinion), I still think this is worth every dollar.

Overall rating: 9 out of 10