Repeated review, a lower cost option and the Fuente line between heavier flagship smoke. The smoke output on this is absolutely insane. The flavor is simpler, mostly of clean tobacco and pepper, keeping a fairly decent burn line.
After over a year of aging this smoke is phenomenal! reminds me of a Don Carlos just not as elegant. Starts off with a sweet tasting wrapper along with a silky smooth texture smoke. Just enough pepper with a pleasant retrohale.
Didn’t know what to expect going into this. AF makes some great cigars, but a number of companies flub the economic side of things. Upon first glance I could already see where corners were being cut. The wrapper itself was not injured, but there seams were visible, the veins were all over, and the cap was ragged and not set deeply, or very well for that matter. Also, the whole stick was much softer than most of AF’s other offerings. On the bright side, it smelled promising. Unlit, it gave a good barnyard and strong coffee off the wrapper, and some mix of baking spices off the foot. The cap was no match for a straight cut. It fell apart even before lighting. Cold draw gave spices and earthiness I wasn’t expecting. Thankfully it lit easily, and the first flavors I got were nutty. Very nutty. Peanuts, almonds, and walnuts. Also got some saltiness, dry crackers, and a little white pepper. Oddly, there was almost no pepper on the retrohale. It was smooth from the first light. Moving into the first third and a small amount of cream was evident along with that buttered toast flavor I get from a lot of connecticuts, which I was not expecting since the stick did NOT have a CT wrapper. The burn began to canoe and required touching up. The draw was good, but just a touch too open the entire length of the cigar. Foot smoke in the first third was pleasant. Not quite aromatic, but also not offensive. Ash was bright white and not very flaky. It held on past the end of the first third and into the second. Keeping the stick cool and not puffing too often was the key to keeping the flavors balanced and pleasant. They didn’t change much in second third, but what was there was enjoyable. Toast, cedar, and nuttiness. The burn evened out and stayed with a good line all the way up to the band. The removal of which brought in the final third. Again, no change in flavor or strength, just a hotter (temperature), good smoke. The ash did become flaky in the last 2 inches. The smoke output kept humming along though, and it was thick. It just sat on my palate till the very end. The finish was never long, but it wasn’t bad. The tobacco flavor that took over at the end never got exceedingly bitter, which made this a nubbable smoke. I finished it with less than an inch, but not where it was nearly burning my fingers like I do with cigars I find really enjoyable. I did get a few small tobacco pieces in my mouth because these do have some short filler in with the long filler, but the short pieces are of premium aged tobacco, making it the best “Cuban sandwich” I’ve tried. But that’s also why this is such a perplexing cigar. It performs like a Factory Smokes Shade, but tastes more like a Cusano M1, and yet it’s priced at two times either of those. This was just a straightforward, no frills, no tricks cigar. The BEST budget stick I’ve smoked, but not complex enough to compare it to other cigars in its price range.
This was a little better experience than my last smoke. The whiskey I had previously was too strong a flavor to pair with this mild/med-medium cigar. Pairing with coffee this time led to a more enjoyable experience. The draw was very open which provided for a lot of smoke. It burned evenly and stayed lit nicely. The flavor was an the milder side but nice. There hints of coffee, pepper and oak. When allowed to cool for a moment the smoke mellowed a bit with notes of nuts and hay. This is well worth a try, especially for the price. Even when it comes to budget cigars, the folks at Arturo Fuente rarely miss.
