Cigar Info
Dissident Cigars is a company that was launched in 2013. They are run by two individuals known as “Gweedo C” and “Red Ryan”. The company itself has said it has a goal of “bringing unique, quality handmade premium cigars with a D.I.Y. punk rock style to the boutique cigar market.”. At the same time, the company seems to have aimed at producing some traditional styled cigars. Since the company has launched they have launched two lines – the Dissident Soapbox and the Dissident Bloc. Today we will be reviewing the Dissident | Soapbox Rant.
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 Dissident Soapbox line is an all-Nicaraguan puro made from top-notched tobacco and expertly rolled from a well-respected cigar factory, which we agreed we would not disclose. A rich dark brown wrapper from Jalapa, paired with a binder from Esteli and assorted blend of Nicaraguan filler tobaccos from Condega, Esteli and Jalapa. The result is a solid medium bodied cigar with notes of sweet chocolate, leather, cedar wood and a hint of spice.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Corona
Length: 4.75
Ring Gauge: 46
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Habano Rosado
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Factory: Undisclosed
Blender: Undisclosed
Number of reviewers: 5 – Steve (ThaGreatWazoo) Stefan (Stefan) Gregg (McGreggor57) Ryan (Youngryan216) Wes (SosaCub4Life)
Price: $7.49
Age: 8 Months
Release Date: August 2013
Contributed by: Dissident Cigars
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 90
“A medium brown, reddish wrapper adorns this corona size stogie. There are a few tiny bumps along the body, but nothing major. The seams appear well pressed and the double cap is adhered well.” –Ryan (Youngryan216)
Aroma: 93
“Faint hay along the wrapper with some cocoa at the foot. A nice mix of chocolate and cedar can be tasted on the cold draw.” –Gregg (McGreggor57)
First Third
Flavor: 93
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium
“A little pepper combines with dark toast and dry leather. The initial flavors are on the hearty side. As the leather develops more fully, the pepper and toast become lighter. Very nice.” –Gregg (McGreggor57)
“There is some nice black pepper that really comes through on the retrohale. The draw has started a bit tight, so far the burn is great and the ash is very white. The pepper lingers on the back of my throat.” –Wes (SosaCub4Life)
Second Third
Flavor: 93
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“The strength is still holding strong and the profile is still leaning towards the pepper side. The retrohale is beginning to overpower the nostril and needs to be abandoned for the sake of the final third of the cigar. In all, the second third stays with the flavors of the beginning and no real complexity develops.” –Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
“The second third exhibits flavors of salt and pepper, citrus, and hints of mesquite smokiness and some red pepper spice on the finish. It then introduces notes of cocoa beans around the midpoint, the flavors becoming darker while never coming though as charred. As it nears the last third it then develops unexpected creaminess.” –Stefan (Stefan)
Final Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium
“Some light toast returns near the end as the leather moves into the background. Much like the second third, I find this pretty one dimensional as well.” –Gregg (McGreggor57)
“The blend started to get a little hot toward the end, but that is often the case with coronas. The flavors never got muddy, yet deepened and intensified as the cigar burned. The honey sweetness was really something special in my opinion. It was not cloying yet notably present and well-balanced with some saltier notes of peanut and dry wheat.” –Ryan (Youngryan216)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 94
“The pre-light draw was a bit tight, but after a bit of pinch-rolling it loosened easily without damaging the wrapper leaf.” –Ryan (Youngryan216)
Burn: 88
“The burn was good, but not razor sharp. Nothing too dramatic, though touch ups were still needed throughout.” –Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
Construction: 91
“As I stated earlier there’s nothing too overwhelming with this cigar build. It does have clean lines with a nice darker color wrapper. There were a lot of visible veins on the wrapper itself, but they did not hinder the cigar smoking experience.” –Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
Overall Strength: Medium-Strong
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
Experience Overall: 89
“I wavered on this cigar during the smoke hoping that it would get better. However, there was just no complexity to be found in the flavor profile. This was definitely a straightforward cigar that offered a nice pepper profile. Unfortunately, one can only enjoy the pepperyness for so long. I don’t think rest is going to help these too much, but it’s worth a shot. These are definitely low to mid range and most likely can be found rather easily.” –Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
“I enjoyed the first two thirds a lot, but the harshness of the final third was a letdown.” –Stefan (Stefan)
“I’m a bit torn on this cigar. While I found the second and final third one dimensional and a bit flat, the limited flavors were still well balanced. This cigar started with a lot of potential that never quite developed. Depending on price point this would make an OK cigar to hand to a non-cigar friend who wanted something to try, knowing they wouldn’t be able to pick out many flavors regardless of what they smoked.” –Gregg (McGreggor57)
“I was pleasantly surprised by this cigar. I am a big fan of this vitola and this particular cigar is a great example of why. Without being overly strong, this blend likely benefited from some intensified flavors caused by the smaller ring gauge. I was impressed by the sweetness and spicy balance of this smoke for sure. I would definitely keep a few of these on hand for a lunch smoke or a quick after-dinner nightcap. I would recommend pairing this with a good black tea, as the flavors are quite complimentary.” –Ryan (Youngryan216)
“Overall this was a good cigar. I found it to be pretty one dimensional as it was mostly a rather strong pepper spice throughout. It did mellow out during the last third. The burn was perfectly razor sharp throughout.” –Wes (SosaCub4Life)
Smoking Time (in minutes): 50
|
Reviewer
|
Appearance
|
Aroma
|
1/3
|
2/3
|
3/3
|
Draw
|
Burn
|
Constr.
|
Overall
Experience |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steve | 90 | 88 | 90 | 90 | 87 | 95 | 88 | 90 | 88 |
| Stefan | 90 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 85 | 95 | 90 | 90 | 90 |
| Gregg | 90 | 90 | 90 | 88 | 87 | 88 | 85 | 88 | 88 |
| Ryan | 90 | 93 | 92 | 92 | 92 | 95 | 90 | 95 | 92 |
| Wes | 95 | 95 | 95 | 92 | 90 | 93 | 100 | 97 | 90 |
| #REF! | |||||||||
| #REF! | |||||||||
| #REF! | |||||||||
| #REF! | |||||||||
| #REF! |
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.