This year marks Joya de Nicaragua’s 50th anniversary. They are the oldest and first premium cigar factory in Nicaragua. In 2018, the introduced a cigar to commemorate this, Cinco Décadas. Cinco Decadas is not only about a celebration of being first, but also of being best, and even just being. It is meant as a a testament to the ultra premium quality that is the entire the Joya family. The Cinco Décadas uses only the absolute finest prime extra-vintage leaves, to give an incredible balance of sweet and spicy notes. The cigar was shown off at the 2018 IPCPR trade show. Only 5,000 boxes were rolled.
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.
Cinco Décadas comes in two vitolas Diadema: 6 x 54 – $19.99/cigar (msrp), and El General: 7×50 – $18.99/cigar (msrp). It is presented in white and gold lacquered box of 10 cigars with embossed golden leaves and 50th Anniversary seal that guarantees its historic origin, the Joya de Nicaragua factory. These are the same vitolas that were first rolled at the Joya production floor back in 1968.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Perfecto
Length: 6″
Ring Gauge: 54
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Factory: Fabrica de Tabacos Joya de Nicaragua S.A.
Blender: Juan Martinez
Number of reviewers: 5 – Mickey T.(irratebass) Jeff (ExpendableYouth) John A.(Bostoneo) John I. (John I.) Ryan H.(Ryan H.)
Price: $19.99
Age: 3 Months
Release Date: July 2018
Contributed by: Joya de Nicaragua
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 92
“This cigar has a dark, semi-oily wrapper, with a tight almost seamless construction. It is also in a pretty unique double-perfecto shape and is a really beautiful cigar. ” –Jeff (ExpendableYouth)
Aroma: 92
“Lots of wood and coffee on the body and foot. ” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
First Third
Flavor: 93
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“Upon firing this beauty up, coffee and toffee notes appear. After the initial minute, the profile takes a slight shift in the creamy department in addition to the aforementioned flavors. The burn line is a bit uneven and the ash slightly separate from the main bulk. On the back end a mellow profile of silky chocolate and slightly spicy leather take over. ” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“Pre-light there are curry spice notes. Once lit there are big toasted earth and coffee notes off the bat, with some sweetness on the retrohale. Pairing really well with dark roasted coffee. Twenty minutes in things are still pretty consistent flavor wise. The burn started wavy and at this point is definitely tending to one side. Not unusual for a perfecto, but the foot on this had some girth so I’m a little surprised. ” –John I. (John I.)
Second Third
Flavor: 92
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium
“A silky smooth combination of whipped chocolate icing and spicy leather begin this third. Not much has changed throughout this third flavor wise, however the flavor profile it has chosen to keep is extremely delicious. ” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“Burn is doing well. Draw has improved must have been a knot somewhere in the first third. Earth becomes very dominate. And a wonderful burnt sugar graces us with its presents.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“The spiciness amps up here. The ongoing delicious profile of cocoa and leather keep their dominate presence throughout the whole experience. ” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“All systems have shifted into a higher gear in the finale of this smoke. All of the primary flavors continue to dominate, but ramped up considerably across board, as does the strength. Up until this point it’s been a really solid, but not really a mind blowing cigar, the finale is making me rethink that a bit. ” –John I. (John I.)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 92
“Perfectos can be a little wonky. This one was done right. Really nice draw. ” –John I. (John I.)
Burn: 91
“As noted, there was some correction needed, and for a considerable portion of this cigar the burn was significantly off, but it never really impacted the experience beyond marring the appearance. ” –John I. (John I.)
Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
Experience Overall: 90
“The cigar started out really nice with an interesting Vanilla flavor that I haven’t had in a cigar in awhile. There was some white pepper as well. As the cigar finished up the 1st third some spice, wood, coffee and tobacco was seeping in, but then there were too many burn issues to deal with and I had to put it down. ” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
“I am not sure if I got a bad sample but there was very few redeeming qualities to this cigar. There was a strong burning paper flavor from the start to finish, the vegetal note was interesting but completely overshadowed, and bitter coffee note slowly faded into an indiscernible bitterness from the rest of the cigar. I hope my fellow reviewers had a more pleasant experience but for me this cigar is a hard pass. ” –Jeff (ExpendableYouth)
“Overall this was a very very tasty smoke. The profile of chocolate and leather and spiciness was thoroughly enjoyable for my tastes. That being said, the cigar was not very complex at all as it pretty much have the same flavor profile the entire time with minor variations on the same flavors. The burn and construction were slightly lacking which made it burn a bit funny at times as well. Definitely something I would pick up to smoke again though.” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“The most impressive portion of this cigar in terms of flavor came at the end, but combined with the top notch construction leads me to rate this a bit higher than I might. It burned really nicely for much longer than I usually nurse a cigar, and I’m a fool for a big ol perfecto. ” –John I. (John I.)
"The most impressive portion of this cigar in terms of flavor came at the end, but combined with the top notch construction leads me to rate this a bit higher than I might. It burned really nicely for much longer than I usually nurse a cigar, and I'm a fool for a big ol perfecto. " -John I. (John I.)
