This cigar was an interesting one that I feel left a lot of unanswered questions due to the looseness of the draw present in both samples.
First impressions were that this cigar looks great with no blemishes or imperfections appearing on the wrapper. Upon cutting the cigar and experiencing the initial cold draw, however, I discovered the insanely loose draw. The first third provided clouds of thick white smoke and went by quickly due to the wide open draw. The smoke texture was thick and chewy which got me excited to see what flavors would emerge. As it progressed the cigar was burning fairly straight and didn’t require any touchups. It might have been more even if it could be smoked slower without extinguishing itself. Hints of sea salt, toasted almonds, milk chocolate, and black pepper on the retro is a flavor profile right up my alley.
Upon entering the final third things started to heat up, and not in a good way. I continued to slow down my smoking as much as I could without letting the cigar go out. The toasted almonds stuck around with some coffee notes emerging, which was rather nice. However the loose draw got the better of this cigar and the flavors turned to a hot bitterness that I eventually had to put down and walk away from. This cigar almost had it all going for it, but even with all that potential the construction really plagued the selections I reviewed.
Total smoking duration: 1h 10m
Suggested smoking time: Mid-day or after dinner
Wrapper: Cameroon / Binder: Ecuadorian / Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan
Vitola: Toro / Size: 5.75 × 54
Factory: La Aurora / Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
Milk chocolate, barnyard
Milk chocolate, barnyard
Barnyard, earthiness, slight milk chocolate
Grass, hay, leather, toasted almonds, and black pepper
Sea salt, cedar, milk chocolate, toasted almonds, and black pepper
Cedar, toasted almonds, coffee, woodiness, and black pepper
The reviewing process at Cigar Public ensures that each cigar is reviewed blindly. This cigar was sent without any bands and without any information about the cigar. Cigar Public does not attempt to influence or alter any scores given by any of our reviewers.
Alec Myers
I’m a tradesman by day in the boating industry specifically in the body work side of things. I work with my hands every day to build some the finest sport yachts in the industry so I can definitely understand the blood sweat and tears that go into the craft of cigars and that is something I appreciate. The culture, experiences and the friends I’ve made along the way are priceless, and I am so thankful to have this opportunity.