Cigar Info
Sinistro Cigars came out with their La Fabrica Series in 2020. This consisted of limited releases made at the El Artista and La Aurora factories. In 2021. Sinistro added El Burro to the Fabrica Series. Sinistro El Burro comes in two blends, maduro and corojo, in the same three sizes.
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 Sinistro El Burro Maduro uses a Mexican San Andrés wrapper, U.S.A. binder, and fillers from Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Pennsylvania broadleaf. It is rolled at Tabacalera El Artista in the Dominican Republic. The three available sizes are: Robusto 5 x 52 $5.50, Toro 6 x 54 $6.00, and Presidente 7 x 58 $6.50. El Burro comes in boxes of 20 and is a regular production smoke.
Vital Stats:
Vitola: Robusto
Length: 5″
Ring Gauge: 52
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Mexican San Andrés
Binder: U.S.A.
Filler: Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, U.S.A. (Pennsylvania Broadleaf)
Factory: Tabacalera El Artista
Blender: James Agopian
Number of reviewers: 5 – Kevin J. (maninblack77) Lauren S. (Lauren S.) Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi) Doug S. (Unpossible_1) Isaac M. (The Nothing)
Price: $5.50
Age: 1 Year
Release Date: May 2021
Contributed by: Sinistro CIgars
Initial Impressions – Sinistro El Burro Maduro Robusto
Appearance: 92
“This is a very dark and rustic-looking cigar. Sporting a rough tooth throughout and some shiny areas from what appears to be glue. It is rolled tight with slightly visible seams and finished with a triple cap. Very firm to the touch and weighty in hand. For a short cigar, it makes its presence known.” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)
Aroma: 89
“There’s enough leather, earth, and barnyard here to make you feel like you’re in a rerun of Green Acres.” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
First Third
Flavor: 90
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Full
“After toasting, and taking the first few puffs, there is a deep rich cocoa nibs flavor covering the entire palate. Once the smoke is gone there is a finely ground black pepper covering the tip of the tongue. This brings some nice balance to the richness of the cocoa nibs. The retrohale is a combination of pepper and freshly tanned leather. The smoke production is light but oily. The finish is long and flavorful. ” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)
“Wow! This blend starts as a pepper bomb. Extremely heavy spice both black and cayenne notes to me. There is also a bit of hickory smokiness sneaking in, in the background.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)
Second Third
Flavor: 91
Strength: Medium
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“The second third brought on some more flavors such as cocoa nib and chocolate brownie and kept the coffee and cashew tastes from the first third. The flavors were fairly light at the beginning but increased in intensity throughout the portion of the cigar. ” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
“Things transitioned a bit heading into the second third. The flavors and strength were turned down a notch or two but it still had those same dark espresso bean, coffee, and chocolate flavors. Right in my wheelhouse for flavors. Burn is very impressive. The draw is damn near perfect. Blown away so far by this cigar.” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
Final Third
Flavor: 90
Strength: Medium-Strong
Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
“Heading into the finale and there’s a slight uptick in strength. And while there are no real transitions in terms of flavors, that’s not a big drawback to me. I’m still getting lots of those bold earthy flavors. There was an instance of a slight bitterness a time or two but they quickly disappeared. This was a cigar that was smoked to the nub. Truly remarkable. ” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
“The sweetness has stepped back and a charred meat note has jumped to the lead. The pepper is back to the lead when I push smoke through the sinuses. This balances out the charred notes on the palate wonderfully. Though the body and strength have jumped a full level as I get into the last inch it is still not overpowering. The smoke production is perfect now. Rich thick smoke covers the whole palate leaving a long flavorful finish. All of this is making me burn my fingers as I enjoy it well passed the band. ” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)
Overall Impressions – Sinistro El Burro Maduro Robusto
Draw: 92
“A little tighter than I prefer but not so bad I felt the need to guillotine instead of my usual crown cut. Decent smoke production as well.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)
Burn: 93
“A pretty solid burn with minimal wobbles that required no interference from me to correct.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)
Construction: 94
“There is a term used in some social media circles that is very fitting to this cigar, this cigar is a dime stacker. All the leaves are perfectly positioned making for a phenomenal combustion rate. The filler is packed so tight that ash is firm and held on for an inch at a time. ” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)
Overall Strength: Medium-Strong
Overall Body/Complexity: Medium-Full
Experience Overall: 89
“This cigar impressed me from beginning to end. Each bold flavor hit my palate right in the sweet spot. Earthy, bold, strong with enough to keep me interested. I can’t wait to see what this cigar is so I can grab some more to smoke. If you like big bold flavors with a nice amount of strength, this is for you. Highly recommended. ” –Kevin J. (maninblack77)
“I do enjoy a good pepper bomb on occasion, and this one started with a solid mix of red, black, and cayenne notes. As it settled the hickory and leather flavors were a very solid old-school Maduro. Sadly the final third turned so harsh and burnt along with smoking hot, that it turned me off the blend. I would try this cigar again to see if perhaps I smoked too fast or just was a bit off that day especially since it started so well.” –Lauren S. (Lauren S.)
“I use to be a leather tongue smoker but over the last few years, that has shifted to a more balanced profile fan. So it is nice that find a cigar that walks the tight rope between these two profiles. This cigar did just that. It is a full-on flavor but without that heavy punch that most cigars have these days. This cigar will appeal to a wide range of smokers. Easily smokable under any situation. I will for sure be looking for them once I know what it is. ” –Estevan Z. (TheRealBanzi)
“I like the play of sweet and spicy, but some of the dry notes take away from this experience. I didn’t get that mouth-watering satisfaction I was hoping for with the profile it started out with. I’m also a little disappointed in finding physical issues that should have been caught during the quality inspection. All that said, it was still a solid smoke and I’d be willing to give it another go. ” –Doug S. (Unpossible_1)
“This cigar showed that it had a lot of potential for a great tasting cigar. Unfortunately, I think the tough draw choked back a lot of the flavors and presented a lesser version of itself. Based on what I got out of the cigar, though, I do look forward to giving this one another chance in hopes to find a great cigar with an improved draw.” –Isaac M. (The Nothing)
Smoking Time (in minutes): 87
| Reviewer | Appear. | Aroma | 1/3 | 2/3 | 3/3 | Draw | Burn | Constr. | Overall Experience |
| Kevin J. | 97 | 97 | 97 | 95 | 95 | 100 | 100 | 97 | 97 |
| Lauren S. | 92 | 85 | 90 | 92 | 85 | 95 | 95 | 95 | 90 |
| Estevan Z. | 92 | 92 | 92 | 92 | 95 | 92 | 95 | 95 | 95 |
| Doug S. | 85 | 90 | 90 | 88 | 85 | 88 | 90 | 85 | 88 |
| Isaac M. | 90 | 88 | 88 | 88 | 90 | 83 | 90 | 88 | 85 |
To view the complete scores and notes, click here.