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 —– Ron (shuckins) Sandeep (Djangos) Craig (WyldKnyght) Gregg (McGreggor57) Emmett (rhetorik)
Price: $8.00
Age: 4 Months
Release Date: March 2013
Contributed by: Cubanacan
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 91
“This is a gorgeous cigar to look at. The reddish-brown medium-dark wrapper is smooth, oily and a little bit toothy. There are no visible seams but there are a couple veins you can see. The nearly-perfect triple cap is the icing the cake.” –Emmett (rhetorik)
Aroma: 91
“Off the wrapper, I got some nice chocolate aromas. The foot smelled like coffee and the dry puff was that of pepper.” –Craig (WyldKnyght)
First Third
Flavor: 89
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“A little peppery on light up. A taste of leather came to the front pretty quick bringing a hint of coffee with it. A dry but sweet cedar flavor could be detected lingering in the background during the first couple of inches of the cigar.” –Ron (shuckins)
“The first few puffs are pretty spicy in a good way. Next comes some nice cedar flavors and they are mixing nicely with the spice. The construction of this cigar is phenomenal, the ash has stayed on the entire third, the draw and burn have been great.” –Emmett (rhetorik)
Second Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“Once again the major flavors are leather and a damp earthiness. The pepper is quite prominent in this third. Surprisingly, I am getting a buzz. There is not much of change in the flavors. The ash is holding quite well for over an inch. Also, the burn, draw and smoke production are close to perfect.” –Sandeep (Djangos)
“The spice continues through this third and the wood has been replaced with a leather flavor. Towards the end of the third, the flavors balance out a little more and the spice is less apparent. This was a very good third.” –Emmett (rhetorik)
Final Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“Creamy tasting leather is up front as the cigar nears its end. Coffee is still in the background as the cedar remains dry tasting. A splash or two of cocoa showed up and helped with the creaminess even though the allspice kept a bit of pepper with it to give a pleasant kick to the cigar at the very end.” –Ron (shuckins)
“The coffee is picking up somewhat but leaving a slight creosote on the finish. I’m hoping this is short lived. While the oiliness eventually subsides, its presence remains enough on the finish to end the cigar on a low note.” –Gregg (McGreggor57)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 98
“As close to a perfect draw as you can get. A couple of tight draws towards the middle kept it from being perfect. It still produced plenty of cool tasty smoke for me to enjoy.” –Ron (shuckins)
Burn: 94
“A wavy line here and there but a solid ash and lots of smoke.” –Gregg (McGreggor57)
Construction: 93
“The construction was excellent. From its appearance to its performance it was very good. If not for the slight burn issues, it would have been perfect.” –Emmett (rhetorik)
Overall Strength: Medium-Strong
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
Overall Experience: 88
“A very enjoyable cigar to smoke. It had some great palate pleasing flavors and I would love to smoke another one as well as recommend it to others.” –Ron (shuckins)
“Overall, the cigar held my interest but barely. The harshness that I experienced in the beginning as well as the final third were quite detracting. the major flavors were leather, nutmeg and an almost damp earthiness. I will smoke this if available but may not go looking for one.” –Sandeep (Djangos)
“Unfortunately, from this experience I could not recommend this cigar. Although it got better near the end, I just couldn’t smoke through two thirds of a cigar to get to that point. As well as the burn issues, this did not help matters either.” –Craig (WyldKnyght)
“It’s interesting that one can anticipate different directions a profile might head based on the flavors that develop. Every turn of this cigar had potential but seemed to zig when I was hoping it would zag. The herbal notes of the tea hung on longer than I would have liked and the richness of the coffee turned harsh rather than provide a needed balance. The creosote that developed during the final third left my palate coated with an oily aftertaste. I believe this cigar has some potential and I would certainly smoke another one…but would also be quick to toss it if there were no improvements from this experience.” –Gregg (McGreggor57)
“I really enjoyed this cigar, and I could tell this is a super-premium. I think these have a lot of aging potential if some of the spice would lessen over time and let more of those leather and woody flavors come through, and maybe more. It did get a little hot in the final third, and I would have liked a little more complexity, but I think time will be good to it. Highly recommend.” –Emmett (rhetorik)
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Smoking Time (in minutes): 92
AppearanceAromaFirst ThirdSecond ThirdFinal ThirdDrawBurnConstructionOverall Experience
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