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Size: Robusto, 5.5×55 (Apotheosis, Box Pressed)
Wrapper: Costa Rican, Maduro
Filler: Mixed long filler of Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Honduran (Aged 4 years)
Strength: Full
Price: Box of 10, $45.00
Grade: 8.7
Being a fan of the 5 Vegas Classic and Gold Double Nickel, I was really looking forward to trying out the full bodied offering from 5 Vegas (You may see my review on the Gold here). The Series A comes in an amazing 9 different shapes; ring gauges range from 44 to 58 and the length from 4.5 to 7. I grabbed these sticks from cigarbid.com at a great price and they’ve been resting for a few months; so let’s get to it!
Appearance 1.8:
The box press on this smoke is very nice and, coupled with the dark oily wrapper, it really is appealing to the eye. The cigar was firm to the touch and besides a little filler extending past the wrapper, it was perfect in construction. The black and gold label is a wonderful combo with the dark maduro wrapper. The pre-light aroma was of mocha and leather with some barnyard notes toward the foot. The cold draw produced notes of sweet tobacco with a cinnamon spice on the end. By now my mouth was watering and I was ready to fire this stick up!
Burn, 1.7:
The Series A cut, toasted, and lit well, with the first draw producing a nice amount of fragrant smoke. The smoke burned evenly throughout with no touch ups or re-lights required. The deduction in this category is a result of the ash not holding longer than about ˝ inch. This corrected itself towards the end of the smoke but for the first half it was constantly falling off and this resulted in a somewhat warmer smoke than I expected.
Flavor, 2.5:
Roasted nuts and coffee really hit me on the first draw of this smoke. I expected a shot of spice because of the pre-light draw, but it never showed up. The first third was very tasteful with notes of roasted nuts and cocoa; there was a hint of spice on the end but not cinnamon—it was more of a roasted pepper spice. The second third produced more notes of the mentioned spice, but the cigar soured a little bit in this part which was disappointing. The last third of the smoke opened back up into notes resembling the first third, but with some fruitiness showing up on the finish. I should also mention this is a full bodied smoke.
Overall, 2.7:
At a price of $4.50 a stick, this is a good buy for the money. Though not the most complex stogie on the market, it would be a great everyday smoke for those that seek out full bodied offerings. The flavor profile was interesting and, if not for the second third, it would have been excellent. All in all I’ve liked every 5 Vegas smoke I have ever had; this is a good smoke for a good price, which is what we are all looking for, right?
(Total: 8.7)
[Reply]
Nice review.
One comment though:
Originally Posted by matthewjmichael:
Filler: Mixed long filler of Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Honduran (Aged 4 years)
Use of the term "mixed" here can potentially lead to confusion or misinterpretation, as "mixed filler" is used to refer to a cigar that is rolled with a combination of short filler and long filler leaves. I think the use of the word "blend" would adequately convey your meaning while avoiding the potential confusion.
:-)
[Reply]
Very nice review. Did you feel this actually was full bodied? Sometimes CI ups the ante a bit.
If this is your first, something interesting to know about the As: each vitola in a different ring gauge has it's own flavor profile. The smaller are generally closer to being full bodied, and the larger tend more to smoother with mellowed flavors. So don't expect the same necessarily from each of the lineup.
Thanks for the review. I like your layout.
:-)
[Reply]
