A friend gave me this 5x50 Dominican Fonseca vintage robusto in a trade. Now I am not a fan of the Cuban marca Fonseca and my experiences are that the non Cuban versions of Cuban brands are usually not worth smoking, except for the Partagas Spanish rosado which I liked. I found out that these non Cuban Fonseca cigars are made by Matasa in the Dominican Republic.

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The wrapper is yellowish, mild oily and has a few veins. I smell a mild wood smell. The construction feels good and the predraw is fine.

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I taste musty paper, not full or strong, and some cardboard. After an inch I only taste cardboard

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Halfway the flavors change from cardboard only to cardboard and licorice.

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This cigar had a smoke time of an hour. The draw was good and I got a decent amount of medium thick smoke. The salt and pepper colored ash is firm. This cigar is mild flavored and mild bodied. The burn was great.

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Would I buy this cigar again? Don't think so

Appearance: 6 / 10
Construction: 7 / 10
Draw: 7 / 10
Burn: 8 / 10
Smoke & ash: 7 / 10
Aroma first part: 6 / 10
Aroma second part: 6 / 10
Aroma third part: 5 / 10
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I won't waste time on this cigar either, thanks.
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Wont buy one but will accept as a gift... :-)
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next time I get one, it's yours Rico.
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Dry, crisp cardboard or wet, musty cardboard? :-)
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Certainly not in my wheelhouse!!
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Well, there's licorice. So it's got that going for it, which is nice.
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