I got one of these from my friend Andy to review and I figured tonight was a great night to do it. The wife and kids are asleep, I can see the fireworks from the minor league ballpark over the mountain from my deck and it is beautiful. I grabbed a 25 oz. Bourbon and coke and went outside
The cigar contains tobacco from Esteli (Nicaragua), Jalapa (Nicaragua), and the Jamastran Valley (Honduras). It is a Toro size and has a great feel in the hand and is packed with tobacco. Very nice construction on this cigar.
The prelight aroma was very rich and peppery, in fact, i sneezed after smelling the wrapper. I smelled the foot of the stick and it had less pepper (what I refer to as white pepper) and cedar. The prelight draw wasn't too loose nor tight and I was surprised when I didn't get that black pepper bite I was expecting from my initial aromatic impression.
I used a Ronson to torch the cigar and was hit with a sweet, rich blast of volumnous light blue smoke.
The smoke was well rounded and "hugged" the back of the tongue well without any harshness. I got some smooth dark chocolate, cedar and nutmeg initially which was very pleasant. As I got into the first inch of the stick, those flavors met some coffee and cream and this cigar was also super retrohale friendly for an NC IMO. As it passed the first inch or so, a certain "creaminess" in the body of the smoke became prevalent which I enjoyed. I wouldn't have thought this from my initial prelight impressions.
As the cigar entered it's 2nd inch or so, a little vanilla (not madagascar ) came into play and I think the bourbon helped it a little. Great smoke and a tight white ash was developing.
The cigar also had a musty sweetness that stayed on the forefront of my lips and was pretty good. It is very smooth and enjoyable. The ash fell about 2 inches into the experience.
After the halfway point, the smoke became more intense. Increased cedar and nutmeg returns and the sweetness remains. Not the most complex cigar but with these flavors, who wants them to change much, it"s the undertones that increase / decrease against each other that makes this so great. Entering the last third, I'm on the phone with my friend Don so I can't take pics but cocoa is there and the smoke is getting more dominent, i also get a faint "bite" of black pepper but it is mellow and not overpowering.
Guys, from what Andy tells me, these are as pleasant to the wallet as they are to the senses, grab yourself 1 or 20 of these and enjoy them. This stick gets an thumbs up from me anyday. It's probably been my favorite Maduro next to the Padron Maddie line. Grab 'em while you can.
All the best always,
SW
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