TRE J CIGARS is company out of Ohio. It is owned by Jay Clark, John Johnson and Jerry Garrett, all first names starting with the letter J, hence the name. The three of them started out as friends that attended smoking events which lead them to start their own company. You might recognize their first line, VICARIAS which came out in 2014. INVICTIS is their second line, blended with the help of famed blender and brand owner, José Blanco. His wife Emma Viktorsson created the artwork and box design. It launched at IPCPR 2015. The name is purposefully misspelled.
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 cigar is rolled at Jochy Blanco’s Tabacalera La Palma in the Dominican Republic. The blend uses an Ecuadoran Habano wrapper, a Dominican binder, and Dominican Criollo ’98 and Piloto Cubano filler It comes in three sizes: Legions 5 1/2 x 50; Centurio 5 1/4 x 50, and Emperor 6 x 54. Pricing goes from $6.50 to $8.00.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Robusto Length: 5 1/4″ Ring Gauge: 50 Country of Origin: Dominican Republic Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Binder: Dominican Republic Filler: Dominican Criollo ‘98 and Piloto Cubano Factory: Tabacalera La Palma Blender: José Blanco Number of reviewers: 4 – Kevin J.(maninblack77) Alan(Eulogy) John I.(John I.) Diana(ArmyRN) Price: $8.00 Age: 9 Months Release Date: May 2015 Contributed by: Tre J Cigars
Initial Impressions
Appearance: 90
“Great looking cigar. Nice and dark, primarily smooth with a few fairly heavy veins. ” –John I. (John I.)
Aroma: 88
“I got a lot of dry hay and musty hay from the foot and the wrapper and not much else. Let’s see what’s in store!” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
Blind Cigar Review: Invictis | Centurio
First Third
Flavor: 89 Strength: Medium Body/Complexity: Medium
“I was greeted immediately with notes of caramel chocolate. The cigar was smooth with very little pepper except on the retro. This is a creamy smoke with nutty nuances mixed in.” –Diana (ArmyRN)
“Immediately after toasting the foot and taking a few puffs, alot of salted cashew and other nutty flavors came into play. The dry hay notes were definitely still there. Very mild cigar so far. Flavors are there but slightly muted. Retro was creamy and smooth. ” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
“The flavors are very bold now and it has a sneaky level of nicotine. The draw is still way too loose but the smoke output is awesome. The oily red pepper finish just keeps burning long after the draw and this is a very spice cigar. Notes of leather, cedar, and rich tobacco are all very good but I’m getting distracted due to the feeling of heartburn from the nicotine. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
“Going into the second third the cigar remains creamy and nutty, much like cashews or pecans. There is a nice hint of sweetness much like creamy butter. The pleasant aromas and flavor notes of the cigar are consistent at this point.” –Diana (ArmyRN)
“I wish I had something different to report but more of the same. No changes in flavors throughout the cigar. Just a lot of the same nuttiness and dry tobacco. ” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
“The flavors haven’t really changed from the beginning. Leather, pepper, earth, cedar, and oily red pepper are all still here in abundance. The strength is very full at the end and the oily red pepper has been a little rough on the palate at the intensity from start to finish.” –Alan (Eulogy)
Overall Impressions
Draw: 91
“This was a pleasant smoking experience. There was no work at smoking the cigar and the draw was nice and consistent. Easy breezy draw but not overly loose.” –Diana (ArmyRN)
Burn: 91
“Burn remained fairly straight and even throughout. Only a few touch ups. ” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
Construction: 90
“The cap held up well during the smoking experience. No cracks or lifts to the wrapper were noted and the cigar remained intact throughout the entire smoke. ” –Diana (ArmyRN)
“Overall a very one dimensional cigar from start to finish. Flavors were there but muted and nothing really stood out that gave it a wow factor. I’d give it an 83. And that’s probably being fairly generous. Would try it again because I never write off a cigar after 1 try. ” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
“Very full bodied and flavored from begging to end. It’s certainly not pretty in terms of construction and the draw was way too loose but if you’re looking for a heavy hitting cigar this is a good choice. This is good size since the profile never had any dynamic shifts but I’m not sure how I would have felt if this was in a gordo size. ” –Alan (Eulogy)
“Hopefully the massive tunneling here was an anomaly. Seemed like there may have been some positive aspects to this cigar had it burned properly.” –John I. (John I.)
“This was a tasty smoke that I wound up nubbing. The flavor notes were pleasant and complex enough that even though the cigar did not progress into a lot of different notes, it remained intriguing and enticing. I would definitely smoke this cigar again.” –Diana (ArmyRN)
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.
Blind Cigar Review: TRE J | Invictis Centurio
Overall Score – 90 – Very Good
Blind Cigar Review: TRE J | Invictis Centurio
Summary
"Very full bodied and flavored from begging to end. It's certainly not pretty in terms of construction and the draw was way too loose but if you're looking for a heavy hitting cigar this is a good choice. This is good size since the profile never had any dynamic shifts but I'm not sure how I would have felt if this was in a gordo size. " -Alan (Eulogy)
