Cigar & Rum Tasting Experience (2 in 1 tour)

Even If You Don't Smoke Cigars this will Still Be a Good Time!

My wife rarely makes plans and bookings on our vacations. She decided to book this excursion because of the previous reviews. Furthermore, she was trying to do something nice for me as a present for our 25th anniversary. She knows that I love cigars and spirits. There was no way that she knew how good of a choice she was making. 1. Ian out owner/operator of CR Limo Company was the best tour guide a person could have had. His professionalism, knowledge of his subject matter, warmth and hospitality was on 11 out of 10. I truly regret purchasing only on excursion with him and CR limo Company. Unfortunately, in this part of Costa Rica, there is not anything very close. The drive to the first stop Vismarck's Cigars was as fast, safe and smooth as one could hope. The same could be said about our second stop at the Rum Distillery. 2. Vismarck Cigar's are an extremely small cigar producer. Being a cigar aficionado I had never heard of Vismarck prior. I was very optimistic due to my past good experiences with other Costa Rican brands like Selected Tobacco S.A. and Vegas De Santiago. I was pleasantly surprised how much my wife (who is not a cigar smoker) enjoyed the presentation that ended with us both in rolling the final leaf(wrapper) on to a cigar. I was in my element; I was given two different cigars to sample and smoke right there and a few shots of 7-year-old Aged Rum ( could have had more if I wanted) to pair with my cigars. Due to my prior knowledge of cigars and their manufacturing I was able to ask more advanced questions about the cigar production happening within and the industry. I ending up purchasing a box of cigars and was given a few additional cigars and the two cigars my wife and I rolled. This was everything I could have imagined. 3. The next leg of my journey was to the distillery. Again, this was not a short trip but Ian made the most of the trip by providing another presentation about the history of Sugar Cane and how it relates to Costa Rica. The Distillery had a restaurant on site were we had lunch, which was included in the tour. I was very presently surprised that the meal was very good. The meal was traditional and usual Latin/Caribbean fare comprised of a protein (Chicken, Beef, Pork) rice, black beans, plantains, garden salad. This type of food was not new to me, but there was a distinctive twist to the seasoning. We finished with a very tasty, pumpkin dessert I had never experienced before. Off to the side of the restaurant, there was man selling locally made earthenware, that my wife attempted to even-up the spending budget. 4. The Rum tour was the last leg of the Tour. A few yards/meters from the restaurant the Rum tour began. Again, I was not new to rum or distillery tours. And again, I asked more complex questions. However, I was not as versed on the production of sugar historically or contemporarily. I enjoyed presentations and making my own infused rum. My wife seemed to have an equally good time, even with not being much of an alcohol drinker. I decided to purchase a small bottle of Rum( I would have purchased more, had 7-year-old rum more age) which included a shot glass and a bag of coffee beans ( which had very little to do with the Rum tour)(Costa Rican coffee is "money-in-the- bank"). Costa Rica is not the most popular country when one thinks of Cigars or Rum. The individuals who are more advanced know that there are places and ways to find diamonds in the rough. I found a 10 carat VVS with Vismarck and CR Limo Company. When I return to Costa Rica, I will definitely give CR Limo Company another chance to impress me yet again.

via Tripadvisor

Awesome experience Ian is...

Awesome experience Ian is an awesome tour guide. He is super personalable native of Costa Rica. He really knows the county. He took us to a knowledgeable cigar roller and we got to roll our own cigar while we smoked a cigar. He then took us to Hacienda El Viejo where we got to eat authentic Costa Rican food and went on a tour and we were told on the history of Rum making in Costa Rica and the process in how it's made. A very great experience highly recommend to anyone who enjoys cigar and rum or wants to a great experience in Costa Rica

via Viator

Best tour of our Costa Rica trip!

What a great experience - we met our host Ian at the cigar workshop and he helped translate as we learned more about the sourcing and preparation of the tobacco, the filler layers and process of rolling cigars and finally the finishing tobacco wrap. We got to enjoy a cigar while we rolled one ourselves, which we got to take home. We also bought a collection of hand-rolled cigars made by Delys, who is one of the workshop owners. Next we drove with Ian to a sugar cane farm where we first had a great lunch in a beautiful old manor house. We then got a tour and learned about the growing and harvesting process and tasted the sugar in various forms as it's processed. Finally, we tasted several infusions of rum that they distill on site and ended up purchasing a few bottles to take home. I can't say enough positives about the tour or our host Ian and CR Limo Company. The tour was easy to arrange and communication was excellent. Ian is a fun host, native of Costa Rica and very knowledgable - and fun to talk with. Highly recommend this tour and company.

Response from the operator: Thank you Michael for your thorough review. It was an absolute pleasure to have you and your wife on the tour. We take great pride in sharing our traditions and culture. We hope that whenever you light up a cigar or take a sip of our locally produce rum that you think of us. Until we meet again... pura vida!

via Tripadvisor

Friendly, informative, Genuine, Worth every penny!

We were anxious initially as we had never visited Costa Rica before and are from North Dakota. We met at a nearby store and confirmed our guides were the correct people based on their license plate. Our guides were Ian and Patsy. They were extremely friendly and welcoming and instantly put us at ease. They were very personable, told many funny jokes, and were EXTREMELY knowledgeable on everything from the cigar making process, the rum making process, the history of Costa Rica, and even the wildlife. Anything you wanted to know, they knew it in great detail. You can tell they genuinely like people and love where they live. We started this tour expecting a generic cut and dry "lets rush them around and get the next people in" type situation, but we visited for hours over cigars and rum, and even had lunch together. After everything was said and done, we left the experience feeling as though not only that we learned a lot but that we genuinely made friends. Also... just buy the rum bottle before you get there. Because you're going to buy it anyway, haha!

Response from the operator: Thank you Bryan for your thorough review. It was an absolute pleasure to have you and Sky on the tour. We take great pride in sharing our traditions, culture, and sense of humor. We hope that whenever you light up a cigar or take a sip of our locally produce rum that you think of us. Until we meet again... pura vida!

via Tripadvisor