Last year, Altadis' Grupo de Maestros collaborated once again with the Plasencia family for a sequel to their 2014 Montecristo Espada, the MontecristoEspada Oscuro. As with the original, this blend is a Nicaraguan Puro. This version uses a HabanoRosadoOscuro wrapper instead of the original blend's Nicaraguan Habano. The wrapper for this blend was chosen by Rafael Nodal, Head of Product Capability for Tabacalera USA. Nodal, Grupo de Maestro Pedro Ventura and the Plasencia family worked together on the blend.
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.
The MontecristoEspada Oscuro comes in three vitolas: Ricasso: 5 x 54 $13.27 MSRP, Guard: 6 x 50 $13.80 MSRP, and Quillon: 7 x 56 $14.60 MSRP. It comes in 10-count boxes.
“A fantastic looking toro. Draped in an oily chocolate brown wrapper, this sample glimmers in the light and has a nicely prepared wrapper leaf with minimal veins showing.” –John A. (Bostoneo)
Aroma: 92
“Aromas on both the body & foot gives off hazelnut mixed with manure, but more so on the foot.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Flavor: 90 Strength: Medium Body/Complexity: Medium
“I pick up sweet tobacco with peanuts, salt, cocoa and leather on the cold draw. Lots of leather and walnuts coming out of this smoke so far. No real sweetness and bit of strong spice on the retro, no tears, but it it is spicy. Strength is at a medium to full.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
“Sweet licorice covers the palate on the dry draw. First light is heavy on what I detect as a cinnamonesque profile with a black pepper retro. The finish has a mineral twinge that last a long while. The first third is heavy on spice like anise and clove with a honey like sweetness that takes over the finish. As you get further in the spices meld together nicely creating a sweeter overall profile which I like better.” –James H. (Keikan Jim)
“Going into the second third, still getting a plethora of chocolate and almonds with that kick of cayenne. There is also an introduction of cedar and cloves, especially on the retro. This makes for a nice bit of complexity that still is complementary.” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
“The second thirds profile contains a tasty mix of caramel, charred oak, worn leather with a touch of black pepper and must. Halfway through, warm chocolate pudding and malt shines through, especially on the retrohale, decadently delicious.” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“Cream is on the way out and milk chocolate is becoming more bitter like bakers chocolate or dark chocolate. Burn required no touch ups. Draw was phenomenal through the whole experience.” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“Getting cream mixed with leather this time. There are some nutty wood flavors on the finish along with some spice hiding in the bushes.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 96
“The draw was excellent, nothing to report. Nice and open with a lil bit of give.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
Burn: 92
“Burn is a bit uneven throughout, but there's a breeze out there. So, I'm going to give it a pass for right now.” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
Construction: 95
“The draw and burn of this cigar is testament to the quality of its construction.” –James H. (Keikan Jim)
“I was leery about the first third, hoping it may have some complexity of this blend, however i was delightfully surprised bu the last two thirds. A menagerie of roasted and tasty charred flavors intermingling with sweet caramel and chocolate flavors made this end up being two thumbs up for me! Paired with flawless appearance, construction and burn made it all the better. Top notch med-full bodied smoke!” –John A. (Bostoneo)
“I would buy multiple boxes of this cigar, and hope that it was not limited release or hard to find, what a shame that would be. Buy them all fellas and ladies” –Ryan H. (Ryan H.)
“This cigar was OK. There were a few transitions that held my attention, but nothing really wowed me. I did get sweet tobacco, some cream, but the majority of the cigar was mostly wood and leather.” –Mickey T. (irratebass)
“To be honest, I didn't think I was going to enjoy this cigar with the flavors in the beginning. Once this stick warmed up, however, the flavors blended nicely and produced a great smoking experience. Burn was close to perfect with a razor sharp burn line with a very smooth retro and long finish. I'd pair this with a pleated Scotch or Stout.” –James H. (Keikan Jim)
“I enjoyed the complexity and transitions while smoking this cigar. Most of the flavors seemed to work well together. My only gripe was some bitter harshness towards the end of the smoke.” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
"I was leery about the first third, hoping it may have some complexity of this blend, however i was delightfully surprised bu the last two thirds. A menagerie of roasted and tasty charred flavors intermingling with sweet caramel and chocolate flavors made this end up being two thumbs up for me! Paired with flawless appearance, construction and burn made it all the better. Top notch med-full bodied smoke!" -John A. (Bostoneo)
