Cigar Info
When Casa Cuevas launched their own cigars to the market in 2017 after making cigars for other companies for years, they initially came out with three blends: Connecticut, Maduro, and Habano.
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 Casa Cuevas Habano uses an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, Nicaraguan Binder, and Dominican and Nicaraguan filler. It comes in four sizes: Robusto 5X52, Toro 6X50, and Gordo 6X60 and Clásico Prensado 6×48. Prices range from $7.20 to $8.40.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Toro
Length: 6″
Ring Gauge: 50
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan
Factory: Tabacalera Las Lavas S.R.L.
Blender: Luis Cuevas Sr.
Number of reviewers: 4 – Alan (Eulogy) Kevin A. (Kevin A.) Sean F. (fullermaine) Matt Cade (CADE)
Price: $7.60
Age: 10 Months
Release Date: April 2017
Contributed by: Casa Cuevas Cigars
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 88
“This cigar comes in an attractive light brown wrapper with quite a bit of tooth. One thing noticeable is there are quite a few visible raised veins running throughout. The cigar is firm to the touch, and softens up slightly at the foot. The cap to the cigar is nicely applied.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
Aroma: 88
“The cigar wrapper emits the familiar aroma of fresh cut grass and there’s a slight hint of mint on the cold draw.” –Matt Cade (CADE)
First Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“The first few puffs give a very smooth, creamy profile. There are notes of graham cracker, baked bread and cereal, all brought together with a coffee with cream finish. The retrohale has just the slightest amount of white pepper, along with a sweetness akin to butterscotch pudding. This cigar is starting off very sweet and pleasant to the palate. The strength is mild medium, with the body in the medium range, as it is very flavor forward without a lot of strength driving it. Draw is solid and what is expected from a premium hand rolled cigar. Burn is pretty good, with only a slight amount of waviness to it. The ash is tightly packed and almost white. It is going to be very interesting to see how this cigar progresses when it is this flavorful right from the beginning.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
“The draw is damn near perfect with a good smoke output. There’s a lot of sweetness from a rich tobacco and cedar flavor. I find that subtle notes of chocolate, baking spice, and a mild peppery finish round out the profile. Even though I find that the cigar is firm to the touch it does seem to be burning rather quickly for its size.” –Alan (Eulogy)
Second Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“The ash falls while sitting on the rest just getting into the second part of the cigar. Draw and burn continue to be on point, with the slight waviness to the thin black burn line. The flavors have remained consistent from the beginning, with a baked bread note becoming dominant, and some vanilla mixed with a little cinnamon is creeping into the game. The butterscotch sweetness on the retrohale has faded to only a slight hint and now there is a hint of floral, that actually sits on the palate for a while through the retrohale and balances well with the white pepper.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
“At the beginning of the second third, an earthiness enters the profile all but eliminating the leather note. It’s a tad harsh at first but fortunately it mellows out quickly. The mint component that was hinted at in the cold draw also arrives on the nose and it works nicely with the coffee flavors.” –Matt Cade (CADE)
Final Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“Complexity of notes. Everything from tea to licorice to earthy notes are present.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
“Getting into the final part of the cigar, I surprisingly need a little touch up. Nothing major, but the cigar started to burn unevenly. Not sure if it was me or the cigar. The baked bread has continued to be present throughout, but the graham cracker and cereal notes have faded. Coming into the game in the final stages of the cigar are notes of raisin and nutmeg. The floral white pepper note is still going strong on the retrohale and it is only slightly more amped up as the cigar nears the finish.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 90
“About as perfect a draw as it gets. It’s somewhat subjective but it is at the sweet spot for me.” –Alan (Eulogy)
Burn: 86
“Slight waviness throughout with one touch up needed with about 2 inches left to go on the cigar. The ash remained tight and almost white from start to finish, never appearing loose and falling on it’s own about the one inch mark each time on it’s own.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
Construction: 86
“I was watching The Shinning so I’ll say it’s the Shelly Duvall or cigars. Not necessarily pretty but it’s got something going for it.” –Alan (Eulogy)
Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
Experience Overall: 86
“It’s a great cigar. It won’t wow you with dynamic flavor changes or unusual notes but it’s so solid in the flavors that it delivers I find it a winner. Just an easy to smoke and enjoy cigar.” –Alan (Eulogy)
“All-in-all, a very pleasant cigar to smoke. I loved that the flavor profile started off with a great combination, only to add more to the game as the cigar smoked. No drastic changes, just enough change to sense a difference on the palate and enhance the overall smoking experience. This is a very flavor forward cigar that has much more body than strength. I honestly feel that smokers of all levels will find some enjoyment here. This would be a great cigar for first thing in the morning with a cup of coffee or tea, or an after dinner cigar with a spiced rum or low proof bourbon. Any beverage with a lot of strength or spice will overrun it versus elevate it. I would be proud to have some of these in my humidor.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
“Rough draw leads to a tri-colored to a quad-colored ash. A lot of notes from sugar to oak to earth are present. Major touch up needed on the front half. Uneven burn finally leads to a nice even burn at the end. Major split in the wrapper and ash makes this a rough smoke.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
“Appearance and burn issues aside (which really didn’t hurt the overall experience that much), the arrival of the minty retrohale really took this cigar from average up a level. That mint combined with the dominant dark roast coffee note on the draw made for a winning combination that saved the day. Or at least it saved the hour I spent smoking this cigar…” –Matt Cade (CADE)
Smoking Time (in minutes): 93
Reviewer
|
Apr
|
Aro
|
1/3
|
2/3
|
3/3
|
Draw
|
Burn
|
Const
|
Ovr
All |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Alan | 90 | 90 | 92 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 90 | 95 |
Kevin A. | 87 | 87 | 90 | 90 | 88 | 90 | 87 | 87 | 87 |
Sean F. | 85 | 87 | 88 | 88 | 88 | 85 | 85 | 85 | 83 |
Matt Cade | 87 | 87 | 88 | 88 | 90 | 90 | 85 | 85 | 87 |
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.