This review is the eighth in a series of collaboration reviews that we will be doing. We have invited cigar reviewers from other cigar review sites, podcasts, blogs, etc. to join the Blind Man’s Puff staff in doing some blind reviews using our format. If this initial series goes well, then we may reach out to even more sites to make these collaboration reviews a semi regular event. This collaboration review is with Will from Cigar-Coop, Matt from Cigar Memoir, Rob from Cigar Federation and Craig from Half Ashed.
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.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Toro
Length: 6″
Ring Gauge: 52
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Ecuador
Binder: Ecuador
Filler: Nicaragua
Factory: Cubanacan Cigars Factory S.A.
Blender: Omar González-Alemán
Number of reviewers: 5—–Craig (Half Ashed) Will (Cigar-Coop) Matt (Cigar Memoir) Rob (Cigar Federation) Robert (NavyPiper)
Price: $7.66
Age: 4 Months
Release Date: March 2013
Contributed by: Cubanacan
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 88
“Todays review is a light brown Toro. It has a nice looking appearance. There is a mild sheen to the wrapper and no blemishes were noticed. The head is almost flat, and has a short rounded shoulder.” –Robert (NavyPiper)
Aroma: 88
“The pre-light notes were a bit boring. The wrapper smelled mildly of hay and nuts. The cold draw was clean and tasted of more hay and sweet tobacco. Much like the appearance, the pre-light aroma was nothing exciting.” –Rob (Cigar Federation)
First Third
Flavor: 89
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“White pepper on the nose accompanied by caramel on the palate to start. The smoke exhibits a velvety texture, yet at the same time, doesn’t allow for the finish to last too long. Inching along into the first third, the caramel-like sweetness transitions into a more citrus-like sweetness. Also, cedar and hints of leather make their initial appearance. Short finish consisting of citrus, cedar and leather.” –Matt (Cigar Memoir)
“In the first third, the flavors were a mix of wood, mild spice and pepper, none of which were overpowering. It was a very nice blend and quite smooth.” –Robert (NavyPiper)
Second Third
Flavor: 91
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“Same flavors of natural tobacco and cocoa continue. There is now some more sweetness coming from the natural tobacco. The spice is a still a combination of cedar and pepper and is more of a secondary note” –Will (Cigar-Coop)
“The profile gets much more interesting in the middle. The baking spice on the retro grows in flavor and intensity. The profile takes a turn toward the sweet and creamy. The creamed coffee is joined by a baked caramel flavor. The balance of sweet and spice is quite nice. There is not much going on by way of strength, making this a nice morning smoke. This would pair nicely with a light roast coffee.” –Rob (Cigar Federation)
Final Third
Flavor: 91
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“The cookie flavor adds a cocoa sweetness with a minor nutty flavor on the finish. Brown sugar dances in and out and a citrus sweetness rounds out the tannic sensation.” –Craig (Half Ashed)
“I didn’t find much transition in the final third and that was fine with me. The intensity of the profile may have stepped up a few notches, but this was still a mild cigar. The sweet and creamy profile was again balanced out by the baking spice on the retrohale and this cigar ended on a high note.” –Rob (Cigar Federation)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 98
“Great draw, very open and easy to work with. For most people this would have been perfect, but I prefer just a slight amount more resistance to a draw.” –Matt (Cigar Memoir)
Burn: 91
“The burn line started out razor sharp. I found it did need some more touch-ups in the middle third, but the burn was never in danger of tunneling or canoeing. The ash was firm and came off the cigar in nice clean chunks. The ash itself had a nice salt and pepper color.” –Will (Cigar-Coop)
Construction: 92
“The construction was great. There were no real issues to speak of.” –Rob (Cigar Federation)
Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium
Overall Experience: 86
“I would smoke this cigar again. I would buy this cigar again. I would enjoy this cigar again.” –Craig (Half Ashed)
“Overall, this was a real nice cigar. I really liked the balance of the natural tobacco and cocoa flavors as both had a nice synergy throughout the cigar. The medium to full strength and body of this cigar really worked well with this flavor profile. This is definitely a cigar I would smoke again – and it’s certainly worthy of a box split.” –Will (Cigar-Coop)
“If this cigar’s third-to-third experience had been opposite, meaning that the first third was lacking instead of the final third lacking, my overall experience would have been better. But because the final third was so much worse than the previous two thirds, my experience with this sample was sullied due to my last impression of it. Could it have been due to the wrapper cracking? Certainly. But the fact that the wrapper had cracked in the first and second third, seemingly not being affected by it, I’m led to believe this cigar wasn’t meant to be good down the stretch.” –Matt (Cigar Memoir)
“Overall, I enjoyed this cigar. Once I got through the first third, the flavors were balanced nicely. It was a somewhat mild cigar for my taste, but I enjoyed it. I would seek it out again as a morning smoke or something to take out on the golf course. Will it be in my humidor on a regular basis? Probably not because there are other cigars out there that are in the same vein that I feel perform better. With that being said, this was a solid smoke, and depending on the price point, I would pick up a few to have on hand.” –Rob (Cigar Federation)
“Overall, it wasn’t a good time. The first third was pretty good, and the second was showing good until the wrapper let go, then it just gradually went down hill from that point on. I’d like to give one another shot, as the flavors were nice and worked well together. I guess I got a fluke, it happens. But I would like to try another to see how it goes.” –Robert (NavyPiper)
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Smoking Time (in minutes): 86
| Reviewer | Appearance | Aroma | 1/3 | 2/3 | 3/3 | Draw | Burn | Constr. | Overall |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Craig | 97 | 75 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 100 | 85 | 90 | 95 |
| Will | 88 | 88 | 92 | 92 | 92 | 98 | 90 | 92 | 92 |
| Matt | 97 | 90 | 90 | 90 | 75 | 98 | 92 | 92 | 83 |
| Rob | 88 | 88 | 88 | 90 | 90 | 98 | 95 | 95 | 87 |
| Robert | 88 | 88 | 88 | 88 | 85 | 85 | 75 | 88 | 83 |
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.
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