Cigar Info
After appearing in a limited edition humidor and then as a TAA exclusive for retail members, the La Flor Dominicana‘s Air Bender Maduro became as a regular production item in July of 2015. A notable change in the wrapper from Brazilian to an Ecuadorian habano wrapper occured during the switch to the regular production. The fillers are still Dominican tobaccos from the company’s La Canela farms, as is the binder.
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.
Air Bender Maduro is offered in Chisel (6 1/2 x 54, $9.20), Matatan (5 x 50, $7.60) and Valiant (6 1/4 x 60, $9) sizes, all of which are offered in boxes of 20.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Torpedo
Length: 6.5″
Ring Gauge: 54
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Brazilian Habano
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic and Nicaragua
Factory: Tabacalera La Flor S.A.
Blender:
Number of reviewers: 4 – Sandeep (Djangos) Steve (ThaGreatWazoo) Gregg (McGreggor57) Matthew T. (A Huge Nerd)
Price: $9.20
Age: 5 Months
Release Date: July 2015
Contributed by: La Flor Dominicana
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 91
“Although the near ebony wrapper was peppered with visible veins and seams, there was a pleasing rustic quality about it. The chisel cap really set of the finish.” –Gregg (McGreggor57)
Aroma: 89
“The aromas coming from the foot almost knock me over. Very pronounced smells of coffee and leather. The wrapper also adds some sweet hints to the profile. Cold draw is spicy and leathery.” –Matthew T. (A Huge Nerd)
First Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“The intial third starts off with a leathery and barnyardy character. The leather is more prominent with the grass and hay in the back ground. As the third progresses more tobacco is revealed. There is an oily feeling on the tongue as well. The pepper really does not pick up till about a half to three quarters of an inch in. The draw is tight and most likely due to the shape. Did cut some more off but still remained slightly tight throughout the length. Mostly no issues with the burn. The ash is tight and holds the entire length of the third.” –Sandeep (Djangos)
“A peppery char overtakes everything else for the first half inch or so. Eventually a nice cedar and leather mix well with some grasses in the background. There are remnants of spice remaining on the palate and retrohale for the duration of this third.” –Gregg (McGreggor57)
Second Third
Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“The middle third is still the same flavor of leather and tobacco. The hay and grass like flavors have receded to the very back. The oily coating on the tongue becomes more prominent and has a nice tobacco taste as well. The pepper remains quite mild and not really providing the extra oomph that this cigar desperately needs. Pleasant nonetheless. The burn line begins to skew towards the end of the third and the wrapper is beginning to crack as well. The ash held till the mid point before falling off.” –Sandeep (Djangos)
“Overall body and complexity is still full with big bold flavors. There seems to be a lot of smoke producing from the draw and burn and part way through I cut more of the chisel cap to try to induce more draw and smoke. The flavor profile is still wood and nut heavy with a crisp peppered finish. This cigar is very bold and good, but the draw and burn are hindering it.” –Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
Final Third
Flavor: 86
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“The final third is also the same one dimensional flavors of leather and tobacco. The oiliness to the tongue persists to the very end. The pepper remains muted to the very end also. The burn line is very skewed and needs two touch ups but does not straighten, and the wrapper also cracks at multiple points but luckily does not unravel. I think this is related to the odd shape and construction. A one dimensional cigar that is pleasant but marred by construction issues possibly due to the shape.” –Sandeep (Djangos)
“Sadly the final third has some issues. The cigar just goes out on me only a few seconds after a nine full draw. Then it shuts off for some reason. After relighting the cigar the flavors are mostly replaced with bitterness and harshness. A sour flavor shows up and does not combine well with the dry characteristic that is still present from earlier. Then it goes out again. I relight again but the flavors have tanked even though smoke output is still good. When it went out a third time I decided to call it quits.” –Matthew T. (A Huge Nerd)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 86
“Based on the chisel cap, I can’t be overly picky with the draw. I gave it a fair rating because the build hindered the cigar from the beginning. The draw was a big downside which was unfortunate.” –Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
Burn: 84
“Overall the burn was OK. One or two very minor touch-ups were needed. The big problem was the cigar going out in the final third. I’ll cover that in the Construction notes.” –Matthew T. (A Huge Nerd)
Construction: 84
“The cigar held till the mid point after which started to have wrapper cracks and breaks. a part of the wrapper peeled off but luckily the rest of the wrapper kept the shape. Also the burn was skewed for about half of the smoking time. May be related to the shape of the cigar and filling.” –Sandeep (Djangos)
Overall Strength: Medium-Strong
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
Experience Overall: 86
“Overall this was a pleasant cigar and probably would have scored a little higher had there been no construction issues. There were both burn and draw issues that detracted from the experience. One dimensional with mostly leather and tobacco and very little pepper. May try again to see if this was just an odd one that I got.” –Sandeep (Djangos)
“I really want to write this cigar higher, however, based on the burn and draw difficulties I had to score lower. The flavor profile and aroma were on par with some really high end cigars. I feel that with a more simple construction the cigar itself can open up and provide all it has to offer. If you’re in for a long slow burning smoke this one will reward you with good flavors, however, prepare yourself to have to work for it.” –Steve (ThaGreatWazoo)
“While this cigar may have taken it’s time developing, it was worth the wait. A mediocre first third transformed into a delicate balance of leather, cedar, allspice and nutmeg. The pop of vanilla, florals and citrus in the final third created quite an interesting cigar.” –Gregg (McGreggor57)
“I wanted to rate this cigar higher. The beginning and middle had some really nice flavors coming through. The smoke output on each draw was plentiful. The oily wrapper and chisel tip made it easy to smoke. All that, and then the final third hit a brick wall. Relights galore and harsh flavors just made the overall rating from me fall off a cliff. I would hope this stick was an anomaly in an otherwise solid blend. If I had stopped after the second third I would be happy.” –Matthew T. (A Huge Nerd)
Smoking Time (in minutes): 93
|
Reviewer
|
Appearance
|
Aroma
|
1/3
|
2/3
|
3/3
|
Draw
|
Burn
|
Constr.
|
Overall
Experience |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sandeep | 90 | 88 | 87 | 87 | 85 | 83 | 83 | 83 | 85 |
| Steve | 92 | 90 | 90 | 87 | 87 | 85 | 85 | 87 | 87 |
| Gregg | 90 | 90 | 87 | 95 | 90 | 90 | 90 | 90 | 90 |
| Matthew T. | 85 | 88 | 87 | 87 | 83 | 87 | 85 | 78 | 83 |
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.