Earlier this year Emmett was lucky enough to attend Drew Estate’s Cigar Safari with the Cigar Dojo crew. One of the best parts of Cigar Safari is getting to blend two of your own cigars, one at Drew Estate and one at Joya de Nicaragua. This is Emmett’s Blend from Drew Estate
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.
To blend this cigar, Emmett started with the idea of wanting to use a Cameroon wrapper with Mata Fina filler. He wanted this to be a sweet and medium bodied cigar. With some advice from Willy Herrera, he added some fillers to balance out the sweetness and was left with the final blend.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Lonsdale
Length: 6 3/4″
Ring Gauge: 43
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Cameroon
Binder: Indonesia Busuki
Filler: Dominican Republic Piloto Cubana Seco, Jalapa C-98 Viso, Brazil Mata Fina Viso, Japala Ligero
Factory: La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate
Blender: Emmett Malone
Number of reviewers: 4 – Ryan H.(Ryan H.) John A.(Bostoneo) Mickey T.(irratebass) Dave W. (mdwest)
Price: n/a
Age: 7 Months
Release Date: n/a
Contributed by: Blind Man’s Puff
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 87
“A luscious and smooth mocha brown wrapped Churchill with a fan tail cap” –John A. (Bostoneo)
Aroma: 89
“Aroma is that of a floral barnyard it is weak but good.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
First Third
Flavor: 92
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“Starting out the whole profile consist of two diffrent pepper battling for dominance ground black and crushed red. Some toasted bread is trying to make and appearance. Most spice disapates but shows back up from time to time. Everything levels out nearing the last of the first third. Leaving cream that gets sweeter and the toasted bread.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“Nice open draw lots of cinnamon, wheat and graham cracker on the cold draw. Early in I get a nice sweetness along with some must and and sweet coffee. As the cigar progresses I’m getting honey mixed with wheat and graham cracker. The cigar is mild to medium in strength and I want to add that the burn is razor sharp. ” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Second Third
Flavor: 90
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“Unsweetened chocolate and light soy sauce start off this third. After awhile we end with a transition into some graham cracker with a bit of charred wood flavor profile. ” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“Marshmallow with some citrus greets me in the beginning of the of the second third. On the retro I continue to get that honey and gram cracker sweetness, and every now and there I get a damp basement type flavor which isn’t off putting, just interesting and keeps me on my toes. ” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Final Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“Burn has performed very well. Last one third develops a salty unpleasing after taste. After the second third the cigar stays pretty consistant with the toasted bread and cream.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“No changes in flavor, strength, or complexity from the first puff to the last. This has been a pretty one dimensional cigar. That said, it was still very nice. The flavors produced were pleasant and easy to enjoy. ” –Dave W. (mdwest)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 94
“I v-cut the cigar, which caused the draw to be really nice and open. ” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
“Great construction no issues to report.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium
Experience Overall: 91
“Box worthy cigar but took forever to smoke.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“Overall I thought the cigar was pretty tasty in the flavor department, however the issues with construction, burn, and draw lessened the experience for me. Get these fixed and you’d have a much better stick! Would definitely smoke again. ” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“This cigar was fantastic. Lots of honey and graham cracker with some damp basement flavors to round it out. The cigar never really got above a medium in strength. There was plenty of smoke out put and there were several times I said out loud “This is a great cigar!”” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
“A nice, oaky smoke that paired really well with an Argentinian malbec. Definitely worth smoking again and seeking out in the future. ” –Dave W. (mdwest)
"This cigar was fantastic. Lots of honey and graham cracker with some damp basement flavors to round it out. The cigar never really got above a medium in strength. There was plenty of smoke out put and there were several times I said out loud "This is a great cigar!"" -Mickey T. (irratebass)
Initial Impressions
