Selected Tobacco Byron 19th Century Epique Poemas – Blind Cigar Review

Cigar Info

The Byron 19th Century Grand Poemas is made by Nelson Alfonso and his company Selected Tobacco, the same company as Atabey and recently reviewed Bandelero. This cigar is a line extension of the original Byron line that comes in 25 count limited edition humidors. The company says the cigars have been aged for 5 years.

In 1848 Jose and Eusebio Alfonso, cousins, opened a small cigar factory in Santiago de Las Vegas, a province of Havana, Cuba and created a cigar brand named Lord Byron in honor of this world renowned English poet. He was one of the greatest authors of romantic poetries of his day and an avid cigar smoker. Some researchers say Lord Byron became the first cigar brand to adorn a lithographed cigar band and label with a name on it. More than eighty years later, in the 1930’s, The Great Depression hit and Lord Byron cigars were gone, until 1998 when the original owners’ great-great-great grandson Nelson Alfonso resurfaced the Byron brand name.

Vital Stats:

Vitola: Churchill
Length: 7″
Ring Gauge: 54
Country of Origin: Costa Rica
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Shade
Binder: Undisclosed
Filler: Undisclosed and Nicaraguan & Peruvian Ligero
Factory: Undisclosed
Blender: Nelson Alfonso
Number of reviewers: 5 – Kevin A. (Kevin A.) Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi) Chad M. (Chad Tchad) Kevin J. (maninblack77) Lauren S. (Lauren S.)
Price: $37.00
Age: 3 Months
Release Date: 2017
Contributed by: United Cigar

Initial Impressions – Selected Tobacco Byron 19th Century Epique Poemas

Appearance: 94

“Very large vitola, with a dark brown oily wrapper. It appears to be 6 7/8 x 54 if I were to guess. Seams are well done and barely visible and blend with the small veins running throughout the wrapper. The wrapper is quite smooth without much tooth, while the surface is rippled with bumps throughout.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)

Aroma: 93

“A slightly sweet and fruity note off of the foot. Somewhat reminiscent of cherries.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)

First Third

Flavor: 92
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium

“This cigar comes right out of the gate in the medium range with a mouthful of flavor. Cookie Crisp cereal, milk chocolate, and a citrusy zing start it all off, with cabinet spice and a little bit of red pepper flake in the retrohale. Strength, on the other hand, is mild to medium. The burn is a little lopsided, and the draw is somewhat tight, keeping the smoke output light. The cigar seems to settle into this profile moving into the middle part.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)

“The opening notes are dark and robust. Cacao is the dominant note but there are undertones of sourdough bread. The retrohale has a creamy texture with cherry cordial notes. As I reach the halfway point the cordial notes spread to the palate. Coating every inch of my mouth. The smoke has a syrupy feel to it while the finish is medium in length.” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)

Second Third

Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium

“As I moved into the second third, it’s overall more of the same earth, leather, and coffee. The first hint of pepper comes through on the tip of my tongue. A sweet cedar flavor has also been introduced, and the retrohale gave a warm smokiness.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)

“The second third offered no major flavor transitions. The same leather, nutmeg, and cinnamon notes were present. The star of the show thus far has been the burn, razor sharp. But the burn doesn’t do much to keep my interest peaked. The flavors are far too mild and muted. I would love to see this wrapper on a much smaller ring gauge. I have a feeling it would shine as a corona extra or robusto.” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)

Final Third

Flavor: 88
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium

“Nothing changed in the final part of the cigar, it maintained the same enjoyable profile from the previous part. Nothing earth-shattering excellent or different, but enjoyable. The draw remained tight throughout, and there were some minor burn issues in the final part requiring maintenance because of it.” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)

“The final third is by far my favorite of this blend. A sweet pepper flavor has come to the forefront. The cedar and earth hang in the background, and a spicier black pepper sneaks into the retrohale.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)

Overall Impressions – Selected Tobacco Byron 19th Century Epique Poemas

Draw: 91

“The draw was tighter than I preferred, but I was able to open it up with the draw-poking the top couple inches of the stick.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)

Burn: 90

“A thin, tight, burn line was straight for the entire smoking experience. Never once thought about a touch-up.” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)

Construction: 88

“The burn was uneven and a crack developed in wrapper midway through.” –Chad M. (Chad Tchad)

Overall Strength: Medium
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium
Experience Overall: 89

“Overall this was an enjoyable cigar. It makes me wonder if the draw was on point, how much better it may have been, The chocolate notes in the prelight, that didn’t appear until later in the cigar would have made this cigar a star from start to finish. I will be interested to see what it is and see if it comes in a smaller size, as I typically do not have the 2+ hours of time required to smoke this monster. All in all, it was an enjoyable experience” –Kevin A. (Kevin A.)

“If you have the time to commit to this cigar you will be rewarded. There are some great transitions in this flavor bomb. If you are looking for a cigar that is full on flavor yet medium in strength this might be what you are looking for. I recommend that you enjoy this cigar as a late afternoon/early evening cigar reflecting on the day’s events.” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)

“The smoke was not that interesting and very light on the flavors. Light coffee with some leather and earth flavors. Very light retrohale of black pepper. It was a long smoke that did not really offer anything overall for me during the smoking experience.” –Chad M. (Chad Tchad)

“As you can probably tell from this review, I’m not a fan of large ring gauge cigars. I guess they have their niche in our community, but I really wish it was a trend that would die off. The flavors were there but severely muted. A gorgeous cigar but it definitely underperformed. It’s like buying a Camaro with a 4 cylinder engine. Just doesn’t do it for me. But I think in a smaller ring gauge, this wrapper would shine.” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)

“If the whole cigar were like the final third, I would return to this blend often. As a whole, it is still an excellent blend with classic earth and leather opening. A slight bit of mocha and fruit notes to start and a great addition of sweet pepper in the final third give a lovely interest to the palate. Definitely, a blend worth trying and smoking again, and I’d personally be interested in trying another size.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)

Smoking Time (in minutes): 130

To view the complete scores and notes, click here.

Selected Tobacco Byron 19th Century Epique Poemas – Blind Cigar Review