*Note: this is not a blind review, this is just to give a quick take on a cigar that was provided to us by the manufacturer.
This Herrera Esteli 2014 Edicion Limitada Lancero was provided to us by Drew Estate as part of its promotion for the new release. The cigar measure in at 6
3/4″x38, has an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, binder from Honduras and filler from Nicaragua. The MSRP is $12.00.
Initial Impressions:
Light brown wrapper with some visible veins. The seams are easily seen. The aroma from the wrapper is very earthy. From the foot, I get a slight tobacco sweetness.
The Smoke:
The pre-light draw brings a hint of paprika. On the first puff, just a big blast of flavor and smoke. I would say
it’s an intense cinnamon spice. It lingers for quite a while on my tongue and the roof of my mouth. The retrohale is very nice and really enhances the experience as it gives off some wood and cream. Right at the end of this third, it has sweetened up a little bit.
As the second third starts, the sweetness fades away and a nice smoky oak is the primary flavor. The cigar has gone out on me twice in this third. The strength has gone down a bit, but the amount of flavor is still at a high level. It’s almost as if there is some mintiness as I get that refreshing mouth feel.
The mint flavor is continuing here in the final third. After
another half inch, a creamy cinnamon has transitioned the mint out. Right near the end, cedar took over the cinnamon and married well with the creaminess. Flavor stayed enjoyable right to the end.
Overall Impressions:
The draw had just the right amount of resistance. In this vitola, that is an excellent accomplishment. Easily the best draw that I’ve had in a lancero. The burn line was excellent. The cigar did go out a couple of times in the second third, but other than that, the burn required no attention. The pack wasn’t too tight as there was some give along the full length of the cigar. I didn’t expect the density of the pack to cause any burn issues, but that may have very well been the case with this cigar.
When you hear the term thrown around of being full flavor, I tend to roll my eyes a bit, but that is exactly how I would describe this cigar. Throughout the
smoke, you always get a lot of flavor. It provides quite a bit of smoke on each puff, but not a lot at rest which is what a lot of Drew Estate cigars are known for. The flavor transitions were good, which really kept my attention. In regards to the other vitolas in this line, this is definitely a different animal. I feel like the other vitolas are just passable, but this one is one to take note of. I would say that the cigar started out at medium-full strength and then eased back to medium for the final two thirds. I highly recommend that you seek these out.
This lasted 2 hours and 5 minutes for me. I would give the Herrera Esteli 2014 Edicion Limitada Lancero a personal score of 93.