Cigar Info
Erik Espinosa of Espinosa Cigars, announced in March of 2015, the release of a new cigar line, the Espinosa Especial. “It’s a new line, a new blend, a new cigar, but it’s everything you have come to expect from Espinosa Cigars and La Zona”, said Erik.
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.
Available in three vitolas: No. 1 – 6-1/2 x 48, No. 4 – 5 x 52, No. 5 – 6 x 54. It has a Mexican Capa Negra wrapper and its binders and fillers are made up from the four main cigar growing regions of Nicaragua (Esteli, Jalapa, Condega and Ometeppe). The Espinosa Especial is packaged in 10 count boxes and became available nationally Sept. 2015.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Robusto
Length: 5″
Ring Gauge: 52
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Mexican Capa Negra
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Factory: La Zona
Blender: Erik Espinosa
Number of reviewers: 4 – Steve (ThaGreatWazoo) Wes (SosaCub4Life) Eric (smalls29) Ryan (Youngryan216)
Price: $8.25
Age: 10 Months
Release Date: September 2015
Contributed by: Espinosa Cigars
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 88
“A nice deep brown wrapper adorns this cigar. The wrapper does not have nice smooth lines and looks as if it was hastily applied. The seams of the wrapper are very visible and there are bumps throughout that I have never seen before. The body does not have a nice, smooth appearance but rather one of a bumpy road. The cap looks layered and suspect to crack and peel when punched. We will see.” -Eric (smalls29)
Aroma: 89
“There was a real nice hint of blackberries and a slight black pepper coming off of the wrapper and the foot. The overall aroma was quite pleasant and had me ready to light the cigar up.” -Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
First Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“The overall strength and complexity to begin the cigar was in the medium range. The initial flavor profiles were that of deep blackberries and a slight hint of dark leather. The retrohale was very crisp and the finish had just the right amount of pepper. Really great start to this cigar.” -Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
“This stick started on a a very salty note. “Salty” is definitely a trending flavor with many blenders today, but this seems unintentional. There are notes of straw and oats but little else at this point. Towards the end of this first third, the saltiness recedes, but the core flavors remain muted and uninteresting.” -Ryan (Youngryan216)
Second Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“During the second third the deep blackberry flavor still stays true and a slight cream finish presents itself. The retrohale is still crisp and still has a nice touch of pepper to the finish. The burn and feel of the cigar stay nice and continue to produce a good amount of smoke.” -Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
“The start of the 2nd third really mellowed out and became more creamy than spicy. But then later on the strong pepper spice would return on some draws.” -Wes (SosaCub4Life)
Final Third
Flavor: 87
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
“During the final third, the heat picks up a little bit but there is no harshness to be found. The blackberry has kind of subsided to a more predominant pepper and leather flavor profile. The wrapper seems to be falling apart during the final third and needs to be checked constantly.” -Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
“At this point I cannot keep the cigar lit and it has a very hard draw. Even though I keep my humi pegged at 72% humidity, it smokes as if it has been left out in the open. The charred flavor has mellowed and the after tastes have almost gone away, I still have a bad taste in my mouth. Not a good cigar in my opinion.” -Eric (smalls29)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 90
“The draw was quite good, until the final third. However, I suspect that was construction related.” -Ryan (Youngryan216)
Burn: 89
“This cigar had a really nice burn. There was very little upkeep or maintenance that was needed to keep this thing smoking perfectly.” -Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
Construction: 83
“The cap split and cracked when I punched it. The overall feel was one of a hard stick. The cap deteriorated over time leaving bits of leaf in my mouth.” -Eric (smalls29)
Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium
Overall Experience: 87
“Overall this was a very nice cigar. The flavor profile of fruit combined with the pepper made for a really great smoking experience. The cigar was a good size that I told her was a good fit and everything came together quite nicely. Grab some of these if you can sit back and enjoy.” -Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
“Overall this was a very nice cigar. It started out with a bang of strong pepper spice but then transitioned into more of a smooth creamy cigar with the pepper coming and going” -Wes (SosaCub4Life)
“Overall not enjoyable at all. The flavors were poor. Lots of charred wood or even charred meat with a bad after taste. I almost did not finish this cigar because of the taste. it reminded me of a cheap, liquor store cigar. I would not recommend this to my friends.” -Eric (smalls29)
“It started with the cap coming apart after only slicing a tiny circle off of the top. It ended with a ton of relights and disappointment. The core flavors of oats and straw were not inviting, and there is nothing here impressive enough to bring me back to this blend.” -Ryan (Youngryan216)
Smoking Time (in minutes): 74
|
Reviewer
|
Appearance
|
Aroma
|
1/3
|
2/3
|
3/3
|
Draw
|
Burn
|
Constr.
|
Overall
Experience |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steve | ThaGreatWazoo) | 90 | 92 | 90 | 92 | 90 | 88 | 95 | 87 | 92 |
| Wes | SosaCub4Life) | 95 | 97 | 95 | 95 | 92 | 97 | 92 | 95 | 95 |
| Eric | smalls29) | 88 | 88 | 83 | 83 | 83 | 83 | 85 | 78 | 78 |
| Ryan | Youngryan216) | 88 | 88 | 83 | 83 | 83 | 92 | 83 | 82 | 83 |
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.