Cigar Info – La Aurora 107 Corona
La Aurora released the 107 in 2010 as a celebration of the company’s 107 years in business. The goal of this cigar was to release a medium-bodied cigar with a good amount of spice at a reasonable price.
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.
La Aurora 107 came in three sizes at launch: Robusto 4 1/2 x 50, Toro 5 1/2 x 54, and Belicoso 6 1/4 x 52. In the years later, there have been many sizes added including a corona, lancero, Zeppelin, and Gran 107. There were also a number of subsequent lines based on the original 107 line such as 107 Maduro, 107 Nicaragua, 107 Ecuador, and 107 Cosecha 2006. The blend for the original 107 uses an Ecuadorian Sungrown wrapper, Dominican Corojo binder, and finally, Dominican and Nicaraguan filler.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Corona
Length: 5 1/2″
Ring Gauge: 43
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sungrown
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic, Nicaragua
Factory: La Aurora S.A.
Blender: Manuel Inoa
Number of reviewers: 4 – Vance T. (Vance) Kevin A. (Kevin A.) Matt Cade (CadeTNCC) Sean F. (fullermaine)
Price: $6.95
Age: 3 years
Release Date: July 2010
Contributed by: Blind Man’s Puff
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 88
“The small, lightweight cigar features a medium brown wrapper that’s chock full o’ veins (they look like tributaries on a map) and there are several darker spots scattered along the body of the cigar. When squeezed between two fingers, the cigar has some glaring soft spots. Well, boys and girls, she certainly isn’t the prettiest girl at the dance but she’s all alone so let’s dance…” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)
Aroma: 89
“Chocolate cake, pepper, and a little bit of leather are coming from the foot. The body of the cigar has a little bit of chocolate and some earth. Prelight draw is sourdough bread, cedar, and earth.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
First Third
Flavor: 87
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“Once I cut and try the cold draw, I’m eager to light this one up. I get a nice pungent earthiness, some red pepper, and sweetness I can’t yet define. As I light up, I’m torn. On one hand, the draw is perfect and I really enjoy the red pepper note that lingers warmly on my palette. On the other hand, the sweetness I detected on the cold draw is coming into focus as a floral perfume which I really don’t appreciate in a cigar.
The pungent earthy note from the cold draw tastes saltier now, almost like seawater. All told it’s a nice complexity. Joy of Joys! About an inch into the first third the floral note, while still there, has toned way down and is no longer so perfume-like. It’s coming through now as more of a hibiscus and brown sugar caramel.. I still get a touch of saltiness and the cayenne and all in all I feel the flavor profile settling into a zone. Unfortunately, I do get a crack in the wrapper at this point but so far It’s not impacting the experience. We’ll keep an eye on that.” –Vance T. (Vance)
“For me, the cigar starts off right in the middle of the med/full range in strength and body. There is a substantial sourdough bread note, along with baker’s chocolate, with a little cherry undertone. The draw is pretty tight and combined with the small ring gauge, I am having issues keeping it burning right from the start. Getting just a little farther in there is a faint note of charred meat sitting on the tongue and on the retrohale. Interesting for sure.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
Second Third
Flavor: 86
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“The ash drops off at the beginning of the second third. The retrohale is still equal parts black pepper and generic mineral. A woodsy oak note has joined the earth on the draw. Construction so far has been fine, after the additional cuts to the cap there has been no further maintenance required. ” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)
“Hickory notes are still hanging around.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
Final Third
Flavor: 86
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium
“There’s an overall harshness to this cigar that started towards the very end of the second third and it’s continuing to build. You win some, you lose some, that’s the name of the game. Construction remains fine and that earth and oak combination is giving me just enough enjoyment on the draw to keep on truckin’. ” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)
“Flavors take a turn towards bitter in the final third, with leather, earth, and charred wood being at the forefront. There is an anise undertone on the retrohale which is primarily black pepper. The draw is still tight, but the cigar has remained burning throughout. The sweetness from the middle of the cigar is gone, as are the chocolate and sourdough notes. The cigar ends close to full strength.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
Overall Impressions – La Aurora 107 Corona
Draw: 82
“While the initial draw was quite tight, a few extra clips off the cap did the trick and the draw was serviceable after that. ” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)
Burn: 93
“Despite the tight draw and small ring gauge, the cigar burned flawlessly after one touch-up early.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
Construction: 88
“Overall, the cigar featured good construction with a decent ash and relatively low maintenance required once the initial draw issue was rectified. ” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)
Overall Strength: Medium-Strong
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
La Aurora 107 Corona – Experience Overall: 85
“Overall, I enjoyed this cigar. While every flavor wasn’t for me, I appreciated the balance and complexity of it. I’m not sure it’s one I would buy again, but I could see this being a daily smoker for some of you.” –Vance T. (Vance)
“I actually was not a fan of this one. Strong and sour at the start, a little bit of sweetness in the middle, and strong and bitter at the finish. I would like to try it again if I could find one with a proper draw.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
“This cigar wasn’t pretty, it wasn’t complex, and it was rough goings early on with a tight draw that eventually opened up to acceptable levels of airflow. While I wouldn’t seek out this cigar to smoke again, to use a favorite line my hero Larry David, “having said that” I could think of worse ways to spend 52 minutes.” –Matt Cade (CadeTNCC)
“Not a cigar I’d want to smoke again. Rough draw, hollow ash, uneven burn, and no much flavor. Notes that did come through made this stick bland. Not worth the hassle to smoke.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
Smoking Time (in minutes): 60
| Reviewer | Appear. | Aroma | 1/3 | 2/3 | 3/3 | Draw | Burn | Constr. | Overall Experience |
| Vance T. | 85 | 88 | 92 | 95 | 90 | 97 | 97 | 90 | 90 |
| Kevin A. | 90 | 90 | 87 | 85 | 85 | 82 | 90 | 85 | 85 |
| Matt Cade | 85 | 85 | 85 | 85 | 85 | 85 | 90 | 87 | 85 |
| Sean F. | 90 | 90 | 87 | 87 | 87 | 78 | 80 | 87 | 80 |
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.