Blind Cigar Review: D’Crossier | Selection 512 Lancero

Cigar Info

The D’Crossier Lancero is the latest creation from Pure Aroma Cigars and has been added to the Selection 512 lineup. Launching in New Orleans at IPCPR 2015, this cigar pays homage to the family of its creator, Isais Santana-Diaz, and to the values which he picked up from his father back in his native land of Cuba.

Santana-Diaz was inspired to create this cigar by the memory of his father’s earlier years studying for his master’s degree in economics. He vividly remembers the days when his father could be found sitting in the living room on his favorite green couch with nothing more than a giant university book and a cigar. His father’s cigar of choice was a Lancero Vitola, which was provided primarily to government officials in those days. The image of this Vitola remained fixed in the mind of Santana-Diaz, awaiting the time and place when he would reinvent it.

This special Lancero is a tribute to the man who raised a son with patience and passion to pursue perfection in his endeavors. D’Crossier Lancero Selection 512 will be available in a 7- ½ x 38 Vitola blended using Ecuadorian habano 2000 wrapper, Nicaraguan fillers, and an undisclosed binder.

Vital Stats:

Vitola: Lancero
Length: 7.5″
Ring Gauge: 38
Country of Origin: Costa Rica
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano 2000
Binder: Undisclosed
Filler: Nicaragua
Factory: Pure Aroma Cigars S.A.
Blender: Isaias Santana Diaz
Number of reviewers: 4 —– Sandeep (Djangos) Alan (Eulogy) Wes (SosaCub4Life) Ryan (Youngryan216)
Price: $13.00
Age: 6 Months
Release Date: July 2015
Contributed by: D’Crossier Cigars

Initial Impressions

Appearance: 96

“This cigar is a dark tan, well made, firmly packed lancero with a twisted, double cap. The cap is unusual — imagine a pigtail cap cut level with the cigar’s top, instead of sticking out.
The seams are well pressed, and I am excited to light this up based on construction and size.” –Ryan (Youngryan216)

Aroma: 91

“The aroma is one of cedar and tobacco. The dry puff definitely leaves a strong pepper and leather taste to the mouth. There is also a mild sweetness to the tongue after the puff.” –Sandeep (Djangos)

First Third

Flavor: 89
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full

“The initial third is almost pure pepper with intervening flavors of leather and tobacco. I can get a mild woodsy notes of cedar once in a while. The pepper is very strong the the first two inches and then slowly becomes less prominent. The pepper is pervasive and covers the entire mouth. The smoke is thick but slightly acrid. The burn is slightly skewed but I always have that isuue with lanceros. No issues with the draw. The ash is flaky and holds only for an inch before falling off.” –Sandeep (Djangos)

“The cigar starts off very sweet and smooth with some spice in the background. Great start to this stick.” –Wes (SosaCub4Life)

Second Third

Flavor: 87
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium

“The strength has picked up a little this third but the flavor profile hasn’t gone through any real changes. There is still an oily pepper that dominates the woody overtones and no changes to the flavorless retro-hale. The draw has slightly improved over the first third but it is still far too stiff for me.” –Alan (Eulogy)

“While the flavors have not gained complexity, it seems the heat is here to stay for the whole party. The grassy astringency is an aspect of the blend I find a bit offensive, but the spice does a decent job of covering most of that up in this portion of the cigar. There is also a bit of nuttiness that fades as this portion of the smoke nears its end. I am disappointed that this blend seems to be a bit one-dimensional. With the level of construction displayed on this lancero, I was hoping for a more clever blending approach.” –Ryan (Youngryan216)

Final Third

Flavor: 87
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium

“There is a faint sweetness that I can’t place that has joined the oily pepper and woodiness. It’s not much of a profile change but it is a welcome addition. The draw is still pretty lackluster and requires quite a bit of effort to produce even a modest amount of smoke.” –Alan (Eulogy)

“The spice made a real nice return during the final 3rd. The cigar is ending with some good creamy spicy goodness. Cigar is still rather mushy…” –Wes (SosaCub4Life)

Overall Impressions

Draw: 93

“Draw was very good despite the cigar turning mushy.” –Wes (SosaCub4Life)

Burn: 90

“There were a couple touchups because the cigar wanted to go out very quickly. It almost seemed as if the cigar wanted me to smoke it faster in spite of its powerful heat and body. The ash held on in large, 2-inch chunks.” –Ryan (Youngryan216)

Construction: 89

“This was a very nicely rolled cigar. There were no soft spots, the seams were very tight and nicely rolled, and the slight pigtail on the cap gave it a very attractive look.” –Alan (Eulogy)

Overall Strength: Medium-Strong
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
Overall Experience: 86

“Overall this cigar was a pepper bomb and very one dimensional. There were issues with the burn possibly because it was too dry. May benefit from time in the humidor. Will not try this as it is now.” –Sandeep (Djangos)

“The poor draw made this a chore to smoke. The flavors weren’t bad by any means but the strength made it a bit overpowering for me. I really enjoy lanceros but a tough draw isn’t all to uncommon for them. I’d probably wouldn’t purchase another one of these but would give it another shot if someone handed me another.” –Alan (Eulogy)

“Overall this was a very enjoyable cigar. The spices came and went. The cigar started off very sweet and then turned into a nice smooth creamy smoke with some spice. I’d like to smoke again hoping that the cigar stayed more firm.” –Wes (SosaCub4Life)

“As excited as I was initially, the looks of this cigar were deceptive in that it was not at all what I was expecting. I was getting a lot of spice and grass notes, which for me, are two of my least favorite flavors to find in cigars. And while this is a size I usually dig, something was off in the flavor department for me for the smoke’s duration. ” –Ryan (Youngryan216)

Smoking Time (in minutes): 65

Reviewer	Appearance	Aroma	1/3	2/3	3/3	Draw	Burn	Constr.	Overall Experience
Sandeep	Djangos)	88	90	88	85	85	95	85	88	85
Alan	Eulogy)	93	90	88	87	90	78	90	92	85
Wes	SosaCub4Life)	97	95	97	92	95	95	95	88	95
Ryan	Youngryan216)	97	92	92	87	85	90	90	97	87

To view the complete scores and notes, click here.

Blind Cigar Review: D’Crossier | Selection 512 Lancero