Back in 1996, years before I smoked my first premium cigar (that was a Cuban Cohiba in Indonesia late 2005) Steve Saka started what was most likely the first consumer oriented website on cigars ever. As I mentioned, it was years before I lit my first premium cigar so I missed that Steve started working for JR Cigars as a dedicated consultant for sakes, marketing and product development. Actually, the first time I ever heard his name was after he moved to Drew Estate and created the cigar that was a game changer for Drew Estate, Liga Privada no.9, and the follow ups like the T52 and undercrown lines.
After leaving Drew Estate Steve took a hiatus before returning with his own company, Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust and his first line: Sobremesa. This cigar is made by Joya de Nicaragua but the blend is made by Saka and he actually owns the tobacco himself instead of using Joya’s tobacco. I heard and read a lot of the cigar and finally met Steve at intertabac last September. We chatted a bit and he gave me two cigars, his new blend Mi Querida and this 4 3/4 x48 Sobremesa short Churchill.
The wrapper is an Ecuadorean Habano rosado with a Mexican Matacapan binder and a filler consisting from Nicaraguan tobacco and Pennsylvania Broadleaf. The band is awesome, the shape is unique, it’s a crown, not a picture of a crown but completely shaped as a crown, very detailed and the brown of the ‘gaps’ in the crown matches the color of the wrapper perfectly. The simple yet matching foot band spells the name Sobremesa is beautiful curly letters. The wrapper is beautiful, shiny and I only see one vein. The construction feels good and the cigar has a medium strong barnyard aroma with also a hint of burned wood. I punched the cigar and found a great cold draw with some pepper and raisin.
After lighting the cigar with my Ronson varaflame I taste espresso with a woody background and a little sweetness. Soon the sweetness is stronger with wood, the espresso is gone.
After a third the sweetness is gone, the cigar now tastes like smooth oak with a little citrus aftertaste. Halfway I taste a little bit of sweetness again. The wood also changed a bit in flavor but it’s still wood. I also taste a very mild dark, mildly sweet, chocolate but is disappears quickly.
The smoke is white, thick and I get a medium amount of it. The burn starts of a bit crooked but it’s corrected itself. The ash is silver gray and beautifully layered. It’s also firm. The draw is great, no plugs and the right resistance. This is a great medium bodied yet full flavored cigar. The smoke time is about 90 minutes.
Would I buy this cigar again? Hell yeah!
Score: 93
full review including pictures om
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Thanks for the review, Ferdie. I have wondered how Steve's new smokes fare. Me, I first "met" the guy when he was in charge of the defunct JRBB, and actually met and herfed with him numerous times here in NJ while he was still with JRs. Hell of a nice dude, though a bit opinionated at times. For instance, he used to bash Acid Cigars unmercifully . . . then took a job with Drew!
:-)
Did Steve tell you his story about sharing a cigar with the old Italian man at an outdoor cafe? If not, and if you ever see him again, ask him about it. It's hilarious.
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Originally Posted by The Poet:
Thanks for the review, Ferdie. I have wondered how Steve's new smokes fare. Me, I first "met" the guy when he was in charge of the defunct JRBB, and actually met and herfed with him numerous times here in NJ while he was still with JRs. Hell of a nice dude, though a bit opinionated at times. For instance, he used to bash Acid Cigars unmercifully . . . then took a job with Drew! :-)
Did Steve tell you his story about sharing a cigar with the old Italian man at an outdoor cafe? If not, and if you ever see him again, ask him about it. It's hilarious.
He still bashes Acid cigars, but because of him Drew Estate changed its whole image, the Liga Privada was made because of Steve and all the other popular blends followed only because the Liga was such a success.
Mi Querida is a good stick too, I smoked one and will review another one later this year.
[Reply]
Originally Posted by borndead1:
Your review made me pick one of these up. A toro.
Nice smoke. A definite contender for a box purchase!
I did the same thing about two weeks ago. I haven't smoked it yet, though.
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