Aganorsa Leaf Aniversario Maduro Gran Robusto – Blind Cigar Review

Cigar Info

Last year, just before the PCA trade show, Aganorsa Leaf announced that their Aniversario Maduro will return that year, but now as a regular production line and in new sizes. The blend remains the same 100% Aganorsa Leaf tobaccos covered in their proprietary Shade Grown Corojo Maduro leaf.

The new, and now regular production, vitolas are: Gran Robusto 5 x 54 box-pressed $13.50, Toro 6 ¼ x 52 boxed pressed $14.50, and Gran Toro 6 x 58 box pressed $15.50. Artwork for the boxes and bands has also been updated to emphasize the Aganorsa Leaf logo as well as differentiate it from the Aniversario Corojo line, which are the inverse of the dark and lighter colors. The Aganorsa Leaf Aniversario Maduro is packaged in 10-count boxes. The Aganorsa Leaf Aniversario Maduro Gran Robusto was also the highest scoring cigar in our blind tasting event at Rocky Mountain Cigar Festival last year.

Vital Stats:

Vitola: Robusto
Length: 5″
Ring Gauge: 54
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Shade Grown Maduro
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Factory: Agricola Ganadera Nortena S.A.
Blender: Max Fernandez
Number of reviewers: 5 – Mickey T. (irratebass) John A. (Bostoneo) Alan (Eulogy) Jason H. (Jokey Smurf) Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
Price: $13.50
Age: 9 Months
Release Date: August 2022
Contributed by: Aganorsa Leaf

Initial Impressions – Aganorsa Leaf Aniversario Maduro Gran Robusto

Appearance: 91

“I like the soft boxed pressed shape with the chocolate brownie wrapper. The seams are pretty tight with a few medium-sized veins running the length of the wrapper. The double cap is a little undersized but serviceable.” –Alan (Eulogy)

Aroma: 88

“Traditional aroma of leather and cedar notes, which isn’t exciting, but it typically is a good indicator of things to come.” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)

First Third

Flavor: 90
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium

“The draw is a bit tight but the flavors are very engaging. It is a fairly standard profile of leather, red pepper, and cedar but it works really well here. Even though I find the draw a bit snug the smoke output has a nice creaminess to it.” –Alan (Eulogy)

“Upon lighting this cigar up, I am greeted with a complex medium-bodied profile of slightly sweet tobacco met with a peppery finish. Moving past the break-in period, this cigar is smoking like a true champion, burn is great, draw is near perfect, flavors a little of the heavier side with primary notes being very peppery tobacco with lingering tingling sweetness on the lips.” –John A. (Bostoneo)

Second Third

Flavor: 91
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium

“At the halfway point now and there is a delicate balance of sweet and saltiness that works together beautifully. Interestingly enough, the retrohale is not nearly as peppery as it was early on, but instead just some warm baking spices.” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)

“The earthiness is all but gone now. The strength went from a medium to a mild medium. There is much more tobacco sweetness and cream with this cigar than there was when I first started. It’s quite lovely. ” –Mickey T. (irratebass)

Final Third

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

“Into the final portion, the cereal note is completely gone and now I’m picking up a black licorice note that is amazing, and a lingering note of walnut that leaves my palate tingling after every puff. This final portion is honestly like dessert and I couldn’t be happier.” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)

“Going into the final stretch, a transition hits, and this time the cigar reduces to a heavy dose of freshly baked bread. Combine this with the retrohale of a ramped-up jalapeño, it makes for a really interesting finish.” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)

Overall Impressions – Aganorsa Leaf Aniversario Maduro Gran Robusto

Draw: 93

“The draw was a little too tight the entire time but it had a rich creamy texture.” –Alan (Eulogy)

Burn: 93

“This cigar started out great with a razor sharp burn line, however after that, it was all over the place but didn’t need a touchup.” –John A. (Bostoneo)

Construction: 93

“The cap shredded a bit when I cut it and it was a bit undersized. Everything else looked well made with tight seams and a slightly over-the-bunched body.” –Alan (Eulogy)

Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
Experience Overall: 89

“This was a very good cigar. It started out with quite a bit of earthy tones with wood and walnuts, as the cigar progressed it produced more sweet tobacco notes as well as some creaminess. The cigar ended up with sweetness, cream, and then a bit more wood flavors to finish the cigar. I would definitely smoke this again. I would say this is at least worth a fiver purchase.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)

“This cigar smoked very quickly, 40 minutes for me to be exact… yes I was taking my time. The flavors it emitted were in line with a quality stick for myself with wonderful cedar notes throughout all the thirds. I’d love to try this stick again to see if I get the same results as the construction was a bit off as this thing burned in record time for a Robusto-sized cigar. Not bad, give it a go!” –John A. (Bostoneo)

“Other than the tight draw it was an awesome cigar. I really liked the stone fruit notes and creamy body. It is a cigar that I would look forward to trying again.” –Alan (Eulogy)

“I can honestly say I was not impressed with the flavors of the first third of this cigar. Fortunately, the cigar progressed wonderfully into what amounts to a three-course meal, culminating in a dessert treat that has me wanting to light another. I’m completely enthralled at this point and can’t wait for the reveal!” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)

“With a beautiful wrapper, I had some high hopes for this cigar. It lived up to them in some ways and fell short in others. This is a situation where you end up walking away just going meh. When that happens, it tells you maybe you need to give it another shot down the road, but not right away. The issues definitely felt like this cigar needs some time before trying one again.” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)

Smoking Time (in minutes): 86

To view the complete scores and notes, click here.

Aganorsa Leaf Aniversario Maduro Gran Robusto – Blind Cigar Review