Wrapper: Sun Grown Criollo
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $9.00 - $10.00
When I first looked at this cigar, it didn’t look like much. But, I was warned not to judge it by its looks. I was told not to smoke it on an empty stomach because of its sheer power. So I did exactly the opposite. I woke up early Sunday morning, around 7 am, and went out back and lit this cigar up. Yes, I smoked this cigar without eating or drinking anything first. And just so you know ahead of time, that wasn’t smart.
The cigar is very visually appealing. The dark wrapper is completely flawless. There are no veins throughout the entire wrapper. This is also the first cigar I have ever seen that is capped on both ends. Both are completely flush too. This cigar is ridiculously solid without a single soft spot in it. The cigar smells very earthy and very spicy.
The initial flavor was exactly what I was expecting, a ton of spice. Shortly into the stick, there was a bit of earthiness that complimented the spice that helped to smooth out the flavor. The draw actually had a little bit of sweetness to it. I was picking up some honey notes as well as chocolate notes. Now I was only getting these notes on the draw, once I exhaled the smoke, the remaining flavor was leathery and spicy.
About halfway into this stick, the spice mellows out quite a bit. This was a surprise to me because the first half was loaded with spice. There were some woody notes that took over. The spice is still strong, don’t get me wrong, but it was nothing like it was earlier. There are some strong oak notes that become much more prominent. The sweetness on the draw is the still there, but very mellow. The end of this cigar was quite different. The spice mellowed out a little more, but now the leather flavor coats the palate. The flavor of the smoke is still very earthy.
The ash surprised me a lot. It was so solid that it held on for three quarters of the stick. It was a nice combination of grays as well as being layered. The burn was even for the most part, it had a some little waves at times. The draw was very tight at first, but eased up as the cigar progressed. The smoke was very thick and gave off a very spicy aroma.
This cigar truly is a powerhouse. The name says it all. If you are a newer smoker, walk away from this little guy. One of the fullest cigars I have ever had. I give this one a 8.5 out of 10. I would definitely smoke this one again.
Thanks for reading,
Zack the Stogie Man
Awesome. My local shop just got some of these. They are ~15/stick I think locally, but sound like they may be something to add to my list. Glad you had a review up.
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