The original release for the Paul Stulac Red Screaming Sun in the USA was 2014. This is a recreation of the original blend from 2014. Let me take you to Halifax, Canada. In your mind, travel up to Maine, then shoot across a stretch of water in the Atlantic to a Canadian Peninsula. It's a medium sized city, right on the water with some pretty buildings and a vibe of a slower time mixed with some French speaking radio stations. Now meet Paul Stulac. Paul had been on the West Coast for school when he caught the cigar bug. He moved back to Halifax and started a cigar shop called Smoke on the Water. After years in the business, he decided to start his own cigar brand. After a few bumpy business deals, he travelled to Miami and met Guillermo Pena, a cigar manufacturer, who has since moved to Nicaragua. They began making cigars together around 2012.
One of these said cigars was a one off Lancero called Red Screaming Sun for a store in Wichita, KS called the West Side Humidor (which, ironically, we at PCC have ties to). Five years later, one of our members on Instagram @cigars_and_games wrote to me and if I've heard of these Paul Stulac cigars. He loves them and can't find anyone who has them. Now I get tips often, but this piqued my interest. Why have I not heard of Paul Stulac? Are they good? Oh wow, they must be good they got a 91…hmm…a few Google searches and 3 calls to friends of Paul's and we were on the phone together. We decided to start with the Red Screaming Sun. Now understand, Paul makes cigars but he does it for passion. There is no left over stock of these- they had to be newly made. Thanks to our buying power because of each and every one of you, we were able to have Paul Stulac make this very Lancero in the same blend by the same original manufacturer for Privada. You are now holding the 2019 Paul Stulac Red Screaming Sun Lancero AKA Mr. Brown. Did I mention no one else has this?
Pre-Light Notes
I'm a sucker for lanceros and this one has a nice weight to it. A nice toothy dark chocolate wrapper is well applied with tight seams and a few medium sized veins. Other than a few small holes there's little to complain about. I like the triple cap that ends in a pigtail it's a very handsome cigar overall. There's a pleasant dark chocolate, barnyard, and mild pepper note on the foot. The predraw is a mixture of bell pepper and clove, don't see that everyday.
First Third
There's an aggressive level of oily red pepper form the start. The smoke output is great, producing a ton of smoke even just resting between puffs. It takes a little bit for the heat to back down to little to start picking up other flavors. Gradually, rich tobacco, dark chocolate, and a slightly sour bread note start to develop. The smoke produces an incredibly dry mouth feel that's only accentuated by the sheer spiciness of the profile.
Second Third
The second third is becoming a chore to smoke. The tip is still smoking like crazy but there's almost nothing being produced on the draw. After relighting it seems to get better but still not quite like the first third. I'm getting a robust oak flavor that's slightly charred but that might be due to the relight. The red pepper has finally backed down a bit but I'm starting to find it a nicotine bomb. The rich wood becomes more of a fresh pencil shaving at the halfway point joined by a baking spice.
Final Third
The draw is still a fight to get through and has been so for almost an hour now. There's a changing array of flavors which is nice depending on how you like woody notes. It's going from fresh pencil shavings to fresh cut oak. Notes of bread and cilantro sneak in from time to time which adds a pleasant depth. The oily red pepper starts marching back to strength gradually and the final two inches is a very spicy wood profile.
Final Thoughts
This is a very good cigar even with some of the issues that I ran across. The draw at the halfway point became very very tight. The burn never suffered because of it though and the ash fell at one inch increments almost like clockwork. The strength started at medium and then shot up to full and never backed down. Overall, this is an excellent exclusive for The Privada Cigar Club especially for a lancero. -Alan (Eulogy) Author
Quick Cigar Review: Paul Stulac | Red Screaming Sun Lancero
Quick Cigar Review: Paul Stulac | Red Screaming Sun Lancero
Summary
This is a very good cigar even with some of the issues that I ran across. The draw at the halfway point became very very tight. The burn never suffered because of it though and the ash fell at one inch increments almost like clockwork. The strength started at medium and then shot up to full and never backed down. Overall, this is an excellent exclusive for The Privada Cigar Club especially for a lancero.
