From time to time, I have found it of great value to share and embrace other start-ups and ingenius business ideas.  With that being said, I have come across a fabulous team from Australia that is making waves on their side of the world with a new business venture that I am sure will be successful.  We have offered to trade blogs with the hopes of reaching untapped markets and otherwise hard to reach audiences.  Please take a few moments to read about BizCover.com and their great business model.

Dear Jason,

I would like to congratulate you on a fantastic business idea. Thank you for the feedback on our website, too. You may find the following of interest to real estate consultants and any other business professionals reading your blog. We are based in Australia, but perhaps we can inspire global change for professional indemnity insurance. Personally, I hope that your service also inspires similar change. Please feel free to comment on this post and tell us about your own difficulties with professional indemnity insurance, back home.

I believe that your iEnfluence idea has legs and will prove to be successful. We live in a ‘Web 2.0’ world of social networking, and your platform consolidates more primitive buying/selling principles with evolved tenants of greater interaction between those in the marketplace. Increasingly, we all desire greater control over both our purchases, and what we resell to others. You provide this control. BizCover is also looking to implement this control principle, albeit in the professional indemnity insurance space.

An increasing number of people are starting new businesses: some are fed up with their bosses and want more control over what they do, others want to spend more time with their families, others yet see it as a rush. The reality is that working in small and medium sized businesses is stressful. This is where we come in.

A bit more about ourselves: BizCover is a professional indemnity insurance provider. Professional indemnity insurance is what business professionals may want (and in many cases need, as per legislation) to protect themselves from being sued for their advice. This is applicable to both start-ups and existing businesses which may suddenly have the need for a policy, or are renewing their existing policies.

Commonly, these business professionals will telephone an insurer, who would refer them to a broker, who then negotiates with different insurers to find a suitable policy. The process can take many weeks (I have spoken to clients who have spent over three months trying to obtain coverage). Naturally, this slows down business processes and just wastes their time and money. Typically, they are also only given one option and one price.

This is where BizCover has stepped in with its unique online professional indemnity insurance model. BizCover provides professional indemnity insurance quotes online: essentially, business professionals can enter their details, compare policies from respected insurers and then make their purchase, all in a matter of minutes. BizCover users have control over how much they will pay, what is covered and who will cover them.

Our business model is centred around the following principles:

· Saving you time: professionals can get coverage in minutes, rather than weeks

· Saving you money: many professionals can save thousands of dollars by switching to BizCover

· Giving you choice: compare, select and buy from leading insurers

Thanks again for your feedback and interest in our business and do keep us updated on how you progress with your own ventures.

Regards,

Stas Madorski

www.bizcover.com.au

I have started a new Finance & Accounting blog where I will continue to post blogs regarding on those subjects.  I do plan on keeping this blog, but mainly for cigar and cigar review purposes.  Please see The Finance Pig for all of my blogs on Business and Finance & Accounting.  Thanks for all the great traffic, advice, and comments!  Keep them coming!

Carlos Torano is one of the premium cigar manufacturers hands down. I don’t think many can question that. They are consistent, well structured, great tasting, and moderately priced. The Carlos Torano Exodus 1959 has been getting some chatter that it’s not living up to the Carlos Torano name. I had been passing this one over for quite some time as I’ve been getting into a more medium-body kick when picking out my sticks. The thought of a bad Torano cigar had me quite inquisitive so I had to see for myself.

The Carlos Torano Exodus 1959 was made to commemorate the exodus of expert Cuban cigar makers and their families and the impact that they had on the cigar industry after the nationalization of all tobacco farms and factories by the Cuban government in 1959. It has a Habano wrapper, Honduran binder, and a Dominican/Honduran/Mexican/Nicaraguan/Costa Rican filler. The filler combination had me confused, but who am I to question it? It has a very dark look to it with an oily wrapper that just begs to be lit up. The veins were few and small, and the aroma had a strong punch to it. It definitely was going to be an experience, just wasn’t sure if it would be a good or bad one yet.

Lighting & First Taste:

As I expected, it came off very strong, almost overpowering because the taste wasn’t fully there. It was just a lot of harshness that was immediately felt in the back of my throat. It had a good draw, and good smoke, but the harshness was a little too overwhelming.

Smoking the Cigar:

Once I got past the 1^st inch or so, the harshness backed off and the tastes were coming out. The multi-country blend made for some nice complexities in the taste. It had a very rich earthy chocolate tone to it. It was definitely still spicy, but it blended well with the taste. Once I started to hit the middle of the stick a smoothness came out, and there started to be hints of sweetness that I detected. A great way to end the cigar.

The Finish:

Other then the harshness at the beginning, overall it was a good cigar. I had a little trouble with loose ash, but it didn’t ruin the experience. Even being on a medium-body kick lately, I really liked mixing it up with a full-body strong cigar. I had a good buzz once I finished, and would have liked this better after a descent meal. The smoothness towards the end made the transition from medium-body to full-body easy, but that’s once you get over the strong beginning.

Band & Packaging:

The box that it comes in has a humidification pouch, which is nice if you buy by the box. In my case, I just bought 2, but both were in great condition, stiff yet spongy, and had a great smelling aroma to it.

Rating:

8.0 out of 10 puffs.

Gurkha Status came out in October 2007 and was one of the most anticipated cigars to hit the market. Gurkha’s popularity has been soaring lately. The marketing campaigns are very well planned and they have a niche on the symbolic campaign behind the naming of the cigars. Still, cigars are more about the marketing; they have to back it up. I’ve seen many over-hyped cigars bite the dust because they have oversaturated the market and almost killed off any excitement. Still, Gurkha has predominantly been a front runner in marketability and anticipation.

The Gurkha Status was introduced at the RTDA Trade Show and was hyped as being the “Bentley of Cigars.” Gurkha is no stranger to high prices, as well as having a high end presentation to each brand. The Status comes in a white smoky glass tube. The two sizes offered are the Churchill (7 X 50) and the Torpedo (6.5 X 52) with an average price between $13 and $15. Glass tubes don’t come cheap! It’s listed as a medium body cigar with a Dominican blend, Connecticut Shade wrapper, and Dominican filler. Who knew that Gurkha knew what medium body meant?! Gurkha has pride themselves on overpowering tastes. For them to come out with a medium body that they are staging in the market was a bit of a shock to me.

Lighting & First Taste:

As I suspected, it sure didn’t start off as a medium body cigar. It wasn’t a strong full body either. For Gurkha standards, it was definitely milder then others, but a very strong medium body if it is in that category. It lit up well, and started off with an uneven burn, which quickly corrected itself. There was a light oak taste and a hint of dark coffee.

Smoking The Cigar:

The cigar was definitely burning hot. At one point it was affecting the taste, so I set it down to settle. I couldn’t tell if it was the cigar, or maybe the store I purchased it from wasn’t humidifying them enough. I only had it about 3-4 hours before I lit it up. The taste did settle down a bit. It was from a woodsy oak, to a hints of oak with pecans and little complexities of flavoring. Nice touch, but it was still a little hard for me to believe it was a medium body. I still had a little trouble with the burn, but nothing to get upset over, just a little uneven and felt hot.

The Finish:

I wasn’t thrilled towards the end of the stick. My effort in trying to get the burn corrected and slowing down due to temperature had me let the cigar go out a little early. The sweet spot really nice, but felt quick. I didn’t pay attention to how long it lasted, but it sure went by fast before I could tell the taste diminished and the complexities disappeared. The ending of the cigar was strong and simple, just like most Gurkha’s. Although with my experience, dealing with the burn being hot, then almost losing it, I had a bit more of an ash taste while trying to correct it. Maybe I had a bad stick, but the hype was not fulfilled in my case.

Band & Packaging:

I love the glass tubing look. It makes it easy to take a stick with you and smoke later. The inside packaging came out when I opened it, but the cigar looked great and felt well humidified.

Rating:

7.5 out of 10 puffs.

Ok, my last Macanudo entry was a little harsh.  I reviewed the Cafe Crystal.  It was an ok cigar, and left me feeling ok about the experience.  No bells went off, no excitement, etc.  I was left thinking Macanudo, even being one of the most popular cigar manufacturers, has begun it’s legacy of mediocrity.  THAN I tried the Macanudo 1968 that was sent to me.  I think my perception has possibly been altered a bit…

I’ve heard stories that this cigar may put Macanudo back on the map, but never thought much of it.  Someone sent me a pack of these to try out, and I was blown away!  Macanudo DEFINITELY is not known for the bold cigars.  They are a very consistant medium body cigar manufacturer, and simply that.  The 1968 series is coming off their 40th anniversary I believe.  They come in 4 sizes, and I went sent the sampler pack that included the Churchill, the Toro, and the Robusto.  I had to try the Robusto first of course…

This definitely didn’t look like any Macanudo I have ever seen.  I am a huge fan of strong bold cigars, and the aroma this cigar had was very enticing.  The wrapper in Honduran San Agustin Havana Seed, and had a very rich oily gloss to it, and very few veins.  The binder is Connecticut Habano and the filler is a blend of Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Ometepe.  I’m not familiar with Ometape, but after some research found that it was a Nicaraguan Island.  All the same to me.

Lighting & First Taste:

The initial lighting came out with a bang.  It was a strong mix of leather, cedar and dark coffee with a peppery kick that had settled in my throat.  Fabulous blend, and great draw.  I decided to cut this one versus punching.  I wanted to make sure I got the full taste.

Smoking the Cigar:

Just like I said last time, “the one thing that Macanudo is really known for is consistency. ” This cigar was contructed with great standards, and had a very consistant draw and even burn.  That was the same with this cigar.  Although I was loving the taste of this one more then the other more mild Macanudos.  Great draw and great burn.  I read a few people had burn problems with their sticks, but I didn’t seem to have any with this one. Luck of the draw?  I don’t know.

The Finish:

The finish brought about a more simpler taste.  The complex blend dissipated and was left with a strong leather pepper blend that was still nice.  I didn’t quite make it to the end.  Not sure if it was just me not wanting to finish it up, and the taste finally caught up to me and I was done.  Either way, nice job Macanudo for the change.  Although it’s a nice change from their usual line, not sure it’s up to par against some other full bodied cigars yet.

Band & Packaging:

I love the bold change Macanudo made with the band on this one.  I am tired of seeing the other wrappers everywhere I turn.  It’s a good fresh start to get this company back up to a premium manufacturer.

Rating:

8.0 out of 10 puffs