This is the first Fonseca to be made in Nicaragua. At the 2016 IPCPR the Quesada family released the FonsecaNicaragua, a Nicaraguan Puro made by the Plasencia Family in Esteli. The FonsecaNicaragua is blended using tobaccos from Ometepe, Jalapa, and Esteli to capture the full complexity of flavors found in the country. The cigars are budget friendly with an MSRP ranging from $4.99 to $5.95.
This cigar was reviewed blind (no bands) by a panel of at least 4 reviewers. They did not know what they were smoking beforehand. The scores are an average of all the reviewers' scores with outliers removed. All of our cigars reviewed are shipped to the panelists with Boveda packs to ensure optimal smoking experience.
Terence Reilly of Quesada Cigars says: “Because this is the first time we will make a Fonseca outside of the Dominican Republic we wanted it to create a special cigar that everyone can afford to smoke and so we approached this project with the concept of creating a $10-12 cigar for $4-6. The result is a complex, nuanced cigar that we believe will be the best value on the market”. The FonsecaNicaragua comes in 3 popular sizes: a 6 x 50 Toro that retails for $5.99, a 51/2 x 54 Robusto at $5.79 and a 5 x 42 Petite Corona at $4.95. They all come in boxes of 20.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Petite Corona
Length: 5″
Ring Gauge: 42
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Criollo '98
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Factory: Plasencia Cigars S.A.
Blender: Manuel Quesada
Number of reviewers: 4 – Ryan H. (Ryan H.) John A.(John A.) Jason H.(Jokey Smurf) Eric (smalls29)
Price: $4.95
Age: 1 Year
Release Date: August 2016
Contributed by: Blind Man's Puff
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 89
“Wow, this is super box press, 90 degrees on every corner. Nice dark brown wrapper with a very well prepared appearance and triple cap. The only flaw is the box press mold used seem to not fit all the tobacco used, creating a lip of wrapper along two sides.” –John A. (John A.)
Aroma: 86
“A faint amount of chocolate and tobacco provide a decent aroma here. Lots of flavor on the cold draw including milk chocolate, nuts, fruity sweetness, and cream.” –John A. (John A.)
First Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“Cigar is packed with flavor and spice hard to discribe main flavors being cream and earth. Some spice that sticks in the nose for quite some time. Draw is very nice burn is wavy but acceptable.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“If I close my eyes, the flavor tastes as if I am drinking a mocha latte. This is a very nice start. Flavorful, well balanced, not overpowering.” –Eric (smalls29)
Second Third
Flavor: 89
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
“Black pepper starts out bold and dominate on this section. I feel like I took some coarse black pepper and just rubbed it all over my tongue. A transition occurs to a great profile of must, chocolate, and deliciously sweet cream midways through.” –John A. (John A.)
“This one has really mellowed in time. The flavors are still there but they are more in the background. You have to take a good long inhale to experience the flavors. The mocha latte is still there, just not as bold as earlier.” –Eric (smalls29)
Final Third
Flavor: 86
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
“It really smooths out still cream and earth and still medium. It just smooths out which is nice” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“On the last bit, cream, grass and bits of char start off. Towards the end the char intensifies closer and closer towards the end.” –John A. (John A.)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 92
“There were no issues relative to draw on this sample…really it was just right.” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)
Burn: 90
“A few runners, however a great burn.” –John A. (John A.)
“There were a bit of mini cracks in the wrapper, probably due to the box press. The box press itself could have probably been executed better if less tobacco was used on this size.” –John A. (John A.)
Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium
Experience Overall: 88
“A very consistant stick no transitions and a enjoyable profile worth a try.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“This was a nice short smoke in a box pressed corona size. The flavors were bright and easily distinguishable, none which were overdone. The box press could have been executed better but was very sharp looking. I definitely enjoy some more of these cigars.” –John A. (John A.)
“I wish I could get past the appearance of this cigar but unfortunately the look and feel played fully into the taste profile. I never really was able to pull any flavor that I enjoyed…from the first to the last puff this was a cigar that I simply wanted to end. I'll pass if offered another.” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)
“There was a promising start with a nice mocha latte flavor. The flavors were balanced and not overpowering. However, as it moved into the second third the flavors mellowed and were hard to taste unless you took a long inhale and hold it. As the final third came, the flavors went south and became bitter. Not a great ending to a great start. If they could fix the final third and at least the flavors are still there it would be a great cigar.” –Eric (smalls29)
"There was a promising start with a nice mocha latte flavor. The flavors were balanced and not overpowering. However, as it moved into the second third the flavors mellowed and were hard to taste unless you took a long inhale and hold it. As the final third came, the flavors went south and became bitter. Not a great ending to a great start. If they could fix the final third and at least the flavors are still there it would be a great cigar." -Eric (smalls29)
“I wish I could get past the appearance of this cigar but unfortunately the look and feel played fully into the taste profile. I never really was able to pull any flavor that I enjoyed…from the first to the last puff this was a cigar that I simply wanted to end. I'll pass if offered another.” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)