D’Crossier Golden Blend Reserva Cañonazo – Blind Cigar Review

Cigar Info

Pure Aroma Cigars released the D'Crossier Diplomacy Series in 2007 and called it the D'Crossier Golden Blend. It came in 5 sizes and used an Ecuadorian wrapper, Dominican binder and filler from Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic. In 2014, they came out with a version called the D'Crossier Golden Blend 10 Years, which used tobacco from the 2004 harvest, hence the name, and was aged a year in the aging room after being rolled before being sold. In December of 2020, Pure Aroma extended the line once again with the D'Crossier Golden Blend Reserva. This version was made to honor Isaias Santana Crossier, the late father of Isaias Santana Diaz, president of Pure Aroma Cigars.

This latest version uses Ecuadorian habano claro wrapper that was triple fermented 10 months before being aged for a year in Spanish cedar boxes. The rest of the blend uses binder and filler from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua that have been aged for seven years. D'Crossier Golden Blend Reserva is a regular production cigar, but the first 2,000 boxes were numbered and given a special hologram sticker. There are three sizes in the D'Crossier Golden Blend Reserva as of now that all comes in boxes of 24: Cañonazo (6 x 52) – $20, Taino (5 1/2 x 54) – $22, Magnum (6 1/2 x 56) – $24. D'Crossier Golden Blend Reserva is rolled at the Tabacos de Costa Rica.

Vital Stats:

Vitola: Toro
Length: 6″
Ring Gauge: 52
Country of Origin: Costa Rica
Wrapper: Ecuador Habano Claro
Binder: Dominican Republic, Nicaragua
Filler: Dominican Republic, Nicaragua
Factory: Tabacos de Costa Rica
Blender: Isaias Santana Diaz
Number of reviewers: 4 – Adam B. (Bushboi) Jason H. (Jokey Smurf) Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi) John I. (John I.)
Price: $20.00
Age: 6 Months
Release Date: December 2020
Contributed by: D'Crossier Cigars

Initial Impressions – D'Crossier Golden Blend Reserva Cañonazo

Appearance: 92

“Toro-shaped cigar that appears to be perfectly rolled. The cap end is a dome that is absolutely magnificent in shape. Zero flaws. Veins are present however they do not protrude or have any tears. The foot is cut with precision and the quality of the cigar is apparent.” –Adam B. (Bushboi)

Aroma: 92

“The body of this cigar smells as it looks with loads of caramel. Smelling the foot and there is delightful hickory wood and a green vegetal note that is hard to define. After cutting, and before lighting, the is a great raisin essence.” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)

First Third

Flavor: 93
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium

“The draw on this cigar is fantastic. From the time I snipped the, it was immediately apparent that this thing will smoke fantastically. Flavors are leathery with a touch of pepper, with almost a plum like sweetness on the finish. Ash doesn't hang on too long, however the aroma is amazing. So far so good looking forward to the second third.” –Adam B. (Bushboi)

“Begins rather nicely with soft leathery notes. Fairly mild on the retrohale with some mild peppery sweetness. Leather notes continue to dominate through the third with a nice creaminess on the finish. Very enjoyable, and in a very well constructed cigar.” –John I. (John I.)

Second Third

Flavor: 93
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium

“The second portion has developed an almost buttery smoothness that has overtaken the peat and is lacking my palate coated with slick oil. There are slightly stronger white pepper notes through the nose and a significant walnut note on the finish. Each puff now lingers leaving my tongue slightly tingling and encouraging me to drink.” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)

“The cigar struggles to find some sense of balance by introducing a wintergreen mint to the fold. Sadly this is fleeting and returns to the cedar and cinnamon profile. The center of the bunch is still having problems burning. The smoke production improves but it stays very thin on the palate. The retrohale continues to showcase that citrus note as in the first third. As the third comes to an end the cigar tries to balance itself out again with a nice creamy flavor. This, like the mint, is very short-lived. The finish stays medium in length, due to the cinnamon biting the tip of my tongue.” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)

Final Third

Flavor: 92
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium

“Deeper, darker wood notes steal the show at the end of this session. The draw continues to be slightly less open than in the early stages. Not a deal-breaker, just an observation. Some coffee and roasted earthiness also become apparent, particularly above the band. ” –John I. (John I.)

“Creamy, sweet flavors with almost a burnt nutty taste on the finish. Touch of pepper also. This cigar is beginning to build in strength and definitely a kick of nicotine. The aroma is quite nice. Construction is still amazing other than the burn line canoeing a touch.” –Adam B. (Bushboi)

Overall Impressions – D'Crossier Golden Blend Reserva Cañonazo

Draw: 93

“This larger ring cigar had a really splendid draw from first to last puff. Initially, I was concerned based upon the heat I was getting from the early puffs but that quickly settled and the smoke cooled pleasantly, probably contributing to the mellowing of the cigar as I reached the nub.” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)

Burn: 89

“Burn with light and airy and lead to a very easy draw. Burn line wavered occasionally but I only needed one quick touchup in the first third. Burned a little quicker than some cigars of this ring gauge. Could possibly be because the density of the tobaccos? Seemed a bit looser than some.” –Adam B. (Bushboi)

Construction: 93

“This was an attractive and solidly built cigar. While smoking the ash was fish and light gray, never falling unless I tapped it off the cap remained perfectly intact, even through my chomping and there were no cracks or flaws in the wrapper. Very well done!” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)

Overall Strength: Medium-Strong
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium
Experience Overall: 93

“Overall this is a pretty good cigar. Construction was fantastic to the point where I considered if it was machine rolled. Absolutely flawless. Very lightweight. For a Toro cigar rolled with this precision I would expect more oily and heavier tobacco's. Not a bad thing, but lead to easier smoke output and a quicker burn. Flavors kept me guessing the whole time and we're always interesting. Quite different from the beginning of the cigar to the end in a pleasant way. Will definitely smoke this one again.” –Adam B. (Bushboi)

“This was another excellent cigar for me to review. The cigar mellowed significantly while smoking but never fell below medium strength which is what I enjoy. If you like some changing flavors and don't mind a bit of strength then I'd highly recommend this. I'd be proud to share these with any of my cigar smoking friends!” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)

“I am going to repeat myself a little. This was a plugged cigar. If I wasn't smoking it for this review I would have walked away from a whole lot sooner. Which is a shame cause this was a beautiful-looking cigar. It is the saddest part of being a cigar smoker. You can spend your hard-earned money on a great-looking cigar and then you find out that it is plugged. As of now, I cannot recommend it to anyone but I will revisit it to make sure it is not a constant issue. Enjoy!” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)

“Solid overall experience. I liked a lot of the flavor notes here. There was a nice range beginning with creaminess and soft leather, and by the finale, the strength had picked up slightly, but the flavor yielded richer roastier flavors of wood, coffee, and rich earthiness. Not something I'd make a great effort to smoke again, but if the price was right, this could be a regular feature in my humidor as a nice everyday option.” –John I. (John I.)

Smoking Time (in minutes): 75

To view the complete scores and notes, click here.

D'Crossier Golden Blend Reserva Cañonazo – Blind Cigar Review