The tagline is “Not Your Daddy's Connecticut.” That's the idea behind the CaldwellEastern Standard, a twist on the Connecticut wrapped cigar. The blend uses rare and aged Grade A tobaccos starting with a hybrid wrapper of Connecticut Shade and Brazilian Mata Fina, Habana Dominicano binder, and Dominican Criollo '98, Dominicano Corojo Ligero, Nicaraguan Habano fillers. It comes in 6 sizes all in 24 count boxes except the Manzanita which comes in a 27 count box.
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.
The available sizes for Eastern Standard are: Cream Crush 7 x 48, Corretto 5 x 50, Cypress Room 6 x 54, Manzanita 4 x 42, The Silk Road: 7 1/2 x 40 (Limited Production), and Euro Express 5.5 × 44. Eastern Standard is part of the Caldwell Collection which also includes “the King is Dead”, “Long Live the King” and the more recently added “Midnight Express.” All cigars in the Caldwell Collection use rare and “Grade A” tobacco. Also recently, Robert Caldwellcollaborated with Cigar Dojo to release Far Eastern Standard, a fresh-rolled lancero using Colorado-shade Nicaraguan Habano leaf, Indonesian binder, and fillers from both Nicaragua (Habano) and the Dominican Republic (Piloto Cubano).
“Looks of brown leather. I could see a seam from the molds down one side. It also sported a nice flattened pigtail.” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
Aroma: 91
“I'm only find a slight note of hay on the wrapper. The foot has more going on with a faint barnyard essence, baking spice, a sweet woodiness, and mild pepper finish. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
Flavor: 92 Strength: Medium Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“The overall profile is very dry. I'm finding some hay, leather, cedar, mild pepper, and a slightly bitter walnut flavor. There's a slight sweetness to the woodiness and the smoke output is good but not great. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
“Mild oak and a very distinct cedar note pour through the draw while the retrohale is a balanced mix of Sumatra coffee and cream (Coffee-Mate® to be exact). The cigar's aroma is terrific and it quickly saturated the air as the cigar's smoke production is impressive. ” –Matt Cade (CADE)
“At the start of this third there was a lot of sweet woody flavors, leather, pepper, and a hint of nuttiness. It's starting to get very astringent, I think from the walnut flavor. There's moments where the flavors are a bit sweeter and the other flavors can come through but by and large it's very bitter. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
“In the second third a sharp ground pepper spice appears on the nose and it compliments the oak and cedar on the draw quite well. The coffee and cream on the retrohale remain as well but they, perhaps briefly, take a backseat to the pepper. Construction overall has been fairly spot-on with a slightly uneven burn line that corrects itself entirely around the halfway mark.” –Matt Cade (CADE)
“Getting to the end of the cigar, the tea and cardamon has transitioned to a strong black coffee. The earthiness has returned as well, with a strong note of charred oak along with a vegetal note reminiscent of dry grass. There is still a small amount of burnt sugar sweetness here, and the profiles are still complimenting each other. The anise has also faded from the retrohale which has now transitioned to strong black coffee with a little bit of black pepper on the finish. The draw has opened up to an acceptable resistance, and the burn righted itself without the need for a touch-up.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
“Creamy Pepper is indeed a thing (it is in fact the name of a condiment sauce you can add to your burger at Whataburger) and that's the dominant profile through the nose in the final third. The oak and cedar are still very ouch present on the draw but the creamy pepper on the retrohale is what's memorable about the last act of this cigar.” –Matt Cade (CADE)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 88
“The draw all the way up to the final third was just a little to much on the tight side” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
Burn: 91
“The burn line is slightly uneven throughout the smoking experience but it didn't require touch-ups.” –Matt Cade (CADE)
Construction: 90
“The little touch with the pigtail cap was nice but there has to be something wrong due to the draw. It felt firm to the touch, the cap wasn't spongy with bit, and the seams and roll were very tight. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
“I found the overall bitterness to be a bit off putting for me. It might pair well with a beverage in hopes of cutting said bitterness but I don't know. I would want to try it again to see if it was the same experience. I probably would have enjoyed it even a little more if I wasn't fighting the draw the entire time. As is, the thin smoke and bitter profile just didn't do it for me. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
“The cigar had the looks with the pigtail flattened down against the cap and the nice brown leather appearance. But after that it had nothing. It lacked in flavor. It lacked strength. And all in all it was you know a difficult cigar to smoke, it just wanted to fight the whole time it seems. I'm over it.” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
“An excellent cigar from beginning to end. Notes of oak, cedar, and cherry make this an enjoyable cigar. A slight unraveling towards the end doesn't need a touch up. Overall, a cigar I'd want in my humidor or one I'd share with friends.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
“This is a great cigar with distinct flavors and a very clear path of flavor transitions that really work well in its favor. I paired this cigar with a Cabernet Sauvignon / Merlot blend and they played very well off of each other BUT I could see this cigar working equally as well with a Guinness or, even better, a Boddingtons Pub Ale. So yes, I would certainly smoke this cigar again given the opportunity. ” –Matt Cade (CADE)
“While there was a little bit of concern from the mid-point on, all in all this cigar offered a very pleasant smoking experience. The transitions from start to finish were well defined and each complimented the next. It is firmly in the medium full range in strength and body, and would be most enjoyed by smokers with a little experience under their belt to truly appreciate what the cigar has to offer. This is definitely a cigar I would like to smoke again. ” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
"While there was a little bit of concern from the mid-point on, all in all this cigar offered a very pleasant smoking experience. The transitions from start to finish were well defined and each complimented the next. It is firmly in the medium full range in strength and body, and would be most enjoyed by smokers with a little experience under their belt to truly appreciate what the cigar has to offer. This is definitely a cigar I would like to smoke again. " -Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
