Oscar Valladares showed off their new Altar Q line at the IPCPR trade show in 2018. Altar Q comes in only one size, a 6×52 toro that uses an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, and binder and filler from Copán, Honduras. It comes in 16-count boxes.
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 name comes from a monument found in Copán, Honduras that decodes the history of city. Mayan King Yax Pac hired Altar Q in 776AD to create buildings and monuments that showed his divine right to the throne. Part of this project was a square block with each side featuring four of his predecessors totaling all 16 rulers. The box for the Altar Q cigar is a replica of this monument and each cigar represents one of those 16 rulers, each with their own name on the band. Each footband of that each of the 16 cigars is unique with a different name.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Toro Length: 6″ Ring Gauge: 52 Country of Origin: Honduras Wrapper: Ecuador Sumatra Binder: Honduras Filler: Honduras Factory: Oscar Valladares Tobacco & Co. Blender: Oscar Valladares Number of reviewers: 5 – Alan(Eulogy) Sean F.(fullermaine) Kevin J.(maninblack77) Matt Cade(CADE) Kevin A.(Kevin A.) Price: $10.50 Age: 2 years Release Date: July 2018 Contributed by: Oscar Valladares
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 93
“The wrapper has a nice sheen to it. Medium-brown in complexion, there’s a very slight oiliness to the touch, and a few dense veins. The seams are mostly well applied with a few bunches and one spot where the leaf looks a little miss cut. Still, it is quite a handsome cigar that feels a little heavy in the hand and a bit of flourish with a pigtail cap. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
Aroma: 93
“Rich coffee, caramel and chocolate notes come from the foot, with just a hint of earthiness. Moving to the wrapper, the caramel and earthiness are the primary notes detected. The prelight draw gives an almost perfect amount of resistance. The dominant pre-light notes are hay and walnut” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
First Third
Blind Cigar Review: Oscar Valladares | Altar Q
Flavor: 92 Strength: Medium Body/Complexity: Medium
“Toasted the foot and the first few puffs were epic! The citrus and floral notes melded together with a honey like sweetness. Wow! I’ve noticed that the more reviews I do of these milder cigars, the more I like them and the more flavors I notice in them. The first third was extraordinary! So many flavors working together that is truly pleasant on my palate. Hopefully the rest of the cigar carries on in this fashion. ” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
“It’s quite impressive how long the flavors stay on the palate. The notes of baking spice and cedar seem to sit there for a long time between draws. It’s not that there’s a ton of varied flavors but they’re very rich. Leather, a light amount of pepper, cedar, baking spice, and a hint of sweet tobacco round out the draw. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
Second Third
Blind Cigar Review: Oscar Valladares | Altar Q
Flavor: 92 Strength: Medium Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“The flavor profile remains consistent in the second third, a creamy cedar through the draw with a now dialed-down pepper on the retrohale. A bolder woodsiness in the spirit of oak joins that cedar right after the halfway mark. ” –Matt Cade (CADE)
“Moving along in the cigar, the pepper and cedar have actually mellowed out a little bit, keeping the intensity just into the medium-strong range. The vegetal note is still present, along with the coffee. Getting to almost halfway, a cinnamon sweetness with a hint of floral emerges and blends nicely with the existing profile. Burn and draw have been on point with the cigar ashing on it’s own when placed on the ashtray. Retrohale is still pretty tame, with hints of coffee and pepper, with a lingering floral note. ” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
Final Third
Blind Cigar Review: Oscar Valladares | Altar Q
Flavor: 91 Strength: Medium Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“Continues down the tobacco forward profile like the previous third. The staying power of the draw has fallen off but it’s still a good tasting cigar. The sweetness has dialed back considerably but the core flavors are all still there. The pepper is almost nonexistent at this point though. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
“A lot of flavors show up. Cherry notes are still present. To balance the cherry, notes of walnut, vanilla, and black pepper are coming forth.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 93
“Damn good draw from start to finish.” –Matt Cade (CADE)
Burn: 96
“Wow! Nice even burn with a grayish-white ash. The ash hangs on for awhile. I had a nice two inch ash before it broke on its own.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
Construction: 97
“Construction was top notch throughout the smoking experience. A consistently smooth draw with a relatively solid ash and no relights required.” –Matt Cade (CADE)
Overall Strength: Medium Overall Body/Complexity: Medium-Full Experience Overall: 96
“The sweet tobacco notes were very pleasant but that was most of the flavors after the first third. I think a bit more pepper would have helped keep it more interesting. For its size it seemed to burn very fast but it never got hot or developed an ashy flavor. It is a good cigar but not overly memorable or something that I would feel the need to chase down. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
“Excellent cigar with tons of flavor. Cherry notes throughout. The cherry is balanced out with notes of roasted nuts, grass, leather, vanilla, and black pepper. A cigar I would want in my humidor.” –Sean F. (fullermaine)
“Rarely is ever do I have a cigar experience that is as epic as this was. The flavors and aromas were beyond extraordinary and they worked so well together . Citrus, salted nuts, slight sweetness, and a retro so smooth it should be criminal. I’d easily give this a 98. Multi box worthy. Trust me, you’re gonna enjoy this if you enjoy what time and great tobacco can do together. ” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
“I enjoyed this cigar quite a bit! Solid construction and nice, highly enjoyable flavors lead me to think this would be a fantastic morning cigar with a cup of coffee or a nice pairing with an ice cold pilsner on a hot Texas afternoon. And with a final third that introduces some unexpected flavors, you can’t go wrong with this sucker.” –Matt Cade (CADE)
“All in all an enjoyable cigar to smoke. It transitioned from the low end of medium strong to almost full and back to the middle of medium strong. Flavors transitioned throughout and complimented each other well which is what I like in a cigar. One thing I noticed is there was never a flavor that became dominant, there were always flavors playing together and elevating the enjoyment of each other. This would be a good cigar for any smoker, as it does not have the strength to deter a newer smoker, and has enough strength and flavor to keep the experienced smoker entertained. ” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.
Blind Cigar Review: Oscar Valladares | Altar Q
Overall Score – 94 – Excellent
Blind Cigar Review: Oscar Valladares | Altar Q
Summary
"Rarely is ever do I have a cigar experience that is as epic as this was. The flavors and aromas were beyond extraordinary and they worked so well together . Citrus, salted nuts, slight sweetness, and a retro so smooth it should be criminal. I'd easily give this a 98. Multi box worthy. Trust me, you're gonna enjoy this if you enjoy what time and great tobacco can do together. " -Kevin J. (maninblack77)
