This is the fourth cigar reviewed as part of our Home Roll cigar series. The blend was submitted by Jim D. Like most of the cigars in this series, the exact vitola is not known so we will categorize it as best we can. It has taken quite a bit of time to get a review series like this off the ground, so it is very satisfying to see the reviews of the home roll cigars continue towards completion of the series. As with all of the home roll cigars in this series, the true nature is about the passion and desire to learn about the craft. They may be rough on the outside, but the drive to learn the technique and art of rolling a fine cigar is evident when you talk to the people who have taken this on as a hobby.
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.
This cigar and many others in this series will show that the tobaccos you can access to make your own cigars at home can be as good, if not better than, those used in the finest cigar factories on earth. Today we are reviewing the unnamed cigar submitted by Jim, and it should be noted that the reviewers did not know that these were Home Rolls, they were received with cigars from many other manufacturers in one batch of cigars to be blind reviewed.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Lonsdale
Length: 6.5″
Ring Gauge: 44
Country of Origin: U.S.A.
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Shade Seco
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Nicaraguan Seco, Nicaraguan Ligero
Factory: n/a
Blender: Jim D.
Number of reviewers: 5 – Ryan H. (Ryan H.) John A. (John A.) David F. (dfafjf) Mickey T. (irratebass) Jason H.(Jokey Smurf)
Price: n/a
Age: 1 Year 5 Months
Release Date: n/a
Contributed by: Jim D.
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 83
“Light brown and very rustic veiny wrapper. Single cap and slightly uneven cut foot makes this a dead give away for a homemade stick?” –John A. (John A.)
Aroma: 86
“Aroma notes are very light. Hard to pick up much. I detect the somewhat typical barnyard and hay flavor but not much more.” –David F. (dfafjf)
“The draw is really tight on the cold draw, I I really don’t get any flavors on the cold draw….interesting. Draw is really tight, but I am chugging along. It’s a medium strength cigar, I am getting some oatmeal raisins out it with some cream. Mostly nuts and raisins on the retro.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
“The first puffs of this cigar are moderately heavy in black pepper but after about three puffs it fades almost completely and is replaced by a very unique, musty (in a good way) note that just reminds me of well aged tobacco. I feel like the smoke is really oily at this point as well and makes the roof of my mouth feel slick. I’m addition there is a flavor that I can’t identify yet… I’m leaning toward salted caramel but it’s just not clear to me… What is clear is that this is gonna be an interesting cigar adventure!” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)
“Strength is still light medium, sweetness darkens to burnt marshmellow bitter walnut is getting more bitter. All sweetness disapates. Profile consists of woody nutty campfire.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“The cigar remains extremely mild moving into the second 1/3. I am able to pick up a bit more hay and the sweetness that I enjoyed continues to appear but only on occasion. A bit of salty / nutty flavor also appearing but the cigar lacks depth.” –David F. (dfafjf)
Final Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
Blind Cigar Review: Home Roll | HR104 Jim D.
“The final third picks up a bit in complexity and overall strength. Still very little (if any) spice present in this cigar but sweetness continues to build. As the strength increases slightly so does the ashy flavor which is not enjoyable.” –David F. (dfafjf)
“Getting some marshmallow flavors in the final 3rd. Still getting plenty of nuts, no spice to speak of.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 87
“Was tighter than i like. But not bad.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
Burn: 93
“From the visible wrapper construction I thought this cigar was going to burn really weird but it held a nice burn line the entire time.” –David F. (dfafjf)
Construction: 86
“Construction was ok, not great, but it worked and the ash held on for about a quarter of an inch.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Light-Medium
Experience Overall: 86
“This wasnt a bad cigar. It could definately be improved upon. The profile in the begining if it had stayed that way I wouldn’t have had near the complaints.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“This was a long smoke, probably due to the tight draw. I feel the Cigar could greatly benefit if the draw was loosened quite a bit. The beginning flavor profile was quite interesting but luckily halfway through a transition into something more favorable to my palate. I would like to try larger ring gauge in the same blend as I feel it could greatly benefit.” –John A. (John A.)
“I just did not like this cigar. Very bland, little to no spice, and it was hard to detect flavors. I believe this is my lowest rated cigar so far and I would be shocked if this wasn’t a one off custom rolled cigar.” –David F. (dfafjf)
“This was an ok cigar, with plenty of flavor transitions to keep my attention, but really had to struggle with it.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
“In totality this was one damn fine smoke. When broken into portions the ending was a bit of a let down but I believe it was due to being under filled versus being inferior tobacco. My overall perception is that the tobacco has some significant age and honestly I’d love to smoke another one right now. This was an interesting cigar that I feel is worth a shot in your trial rotation.” –Jason H. (Jokey Smurf)
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.
Blind Cigar Review: Home Roll | HR104 Jim D.
Overall Score – 86 – Fair
Blind Cigar Review: Home Roll | HR104 Jim D.
Summary
"This was a long smoke, probably due to the tight draw. I feel the cigar could greatly benefit if the draw was loosened quite a bit. The beginning flavor profile was quite interesting but luckily halfway through a transition into something more favorable to my palate. I would like to try larger ring gauge in the same blend as I feel it could greatly benefit. " -John A. (John A.)
