Esencia Belicoso - 5 ½" x 52
Smoked this one at work on Sunday (1/11/09) and have smoked all of the other vitolas. This is a cigar made by the folks that manufacture the Palio Cutter, BOTL LLC. A lot of people know the quality of the Palio Cutter, which carries on with their cigars. There are four vitolas within the line; Corona Gorda, Belicoso, Petite Corona and the Robusto. Traditionally, I love to smoke the PC and CG to taste the true blend of a cigar. I personally believe that these vitolas show the strengths or weaknesses of any blend.
Esencia Cigars are Nicaraguan puros. That's right 100% pure. Made with Criollo, Corojo and Ligero leaves, this cigar represents years of hard work by the owners of BOTL LLC. I know Marc Aub and his partners, John Sheerin and Michael Daversa, are all proud of this cigar. It is touted as a full flavored, full strength cigar.
Upon inspection of my cigar, I noticed a nice medium dark brown wrapper. The cap was well applied and there were no construction issues noted. The band is a simple, but elegant band. Pre-lights hints of wood, pepper, and cinnamon were present. After cutting the cigar with my Palio, pre-light tastes of a nice medium black pepper, toasted nuts, wood, leather and cinnamon were present. I noticed a clean draw with just the right amount of restriction.
I toasted this cigar with my Dupont Xtend lighter and this cigar lit well. The black pepper, oak/cedar mix, toasted almonds and the sweetness of cinnamon showed off the blend. This cigar allowed the earthiness to shine through making the first third enjoyable. The burn was a little off, but was easily corrected with a touch up. There was also a large amount of smoke present, which was a nice light grey and thick.
The second third continued with the great flavors. A nice balance of sweetness and spice, but a creaminess began to develop. The construction remained great. The ash was slightly flaky and ashed too easily, but I did bump my hand which may have caused this.
The last third continued with the black pepper, the sweetness of the cinnamon and the creamy flavor, but the toasted almond and leather flavor disappeared. The oak/cedar mix was still present, as was a espresso or dark roasted coffee flavor which developed.
From start to finish, the cigar had a great flavor, a lot of smoke and burned well. There were no construction or draw issues present. The finish was excellent with a minor hint of nicotine present as I nubbed this one. I loved the amount of smoke this cigar produced. It was definitely a full flavor, medium strength cigar.
Overall I rate this cigar well. I do feel that this is a prime example of a cigar that will get even better with some aging. It is good now, but with a few years, it will be fantastic. This is a cigar that I will definitely smoke again and again. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate this one as a 9. I throughly enjoyed this cigar. I should note that the PC is even better and my favorite of this brand.
Thanks for taking the time to read this and hope it helps.
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