Nice and chilly out this morning, temperature in the mid thirties, however plenty of sunshine that feels really good. Holding the cigar in the sunlight, the dark brown wrapper glistens with oil and has a couple of prominent veins running the length. It’s quite heavy in the hand, is a bit lumpy, however very firm when squeezed. I punch the cap with the largest ring on my knife and find the draw has perfect resistance with a dark, earthy tobacco taste coming through.
I take my time torching the foot, getting a nice, even burn, and then take a few puffs to get the smoke flowing well. My first good draw brings a medium black pepper spice on the back of the tongue and throat, however not overpowering at all, with the smoke itself definitely full strength, yet quite smooth over the palate. There’s a deep, rich earthiness in the flavor with sweetened cocoa, dark roasted nut, and a somewhat lasting finish left on the palate.
Through the first third and into halfway, the burn is sharp with a medium gray ash forming and full strength smoke flows well through the perfect draw. The spice is now a low medium, just right on the tongue and throat. Flavors are rich and very good with dark earth being most prominent, the finish semi-lasting.
As I head into the final third, I can definitely say this cigar would probably be more suited for after having a large meal. Luckily my tolerance is high, and I enjoy full strength cigars, however I can imagine this would do some serious damage to someone just getting into cigars. My head is saying put it down, however my taste buds say no as I’ve hit what I feel is the sweet spot with the flavors intensifying to incredibly rich with a long, lasting finish. With that however, the strength and spice too has intensified making me slightly woozy, but in a god way.
I thoroughly enjoyed this cigar as it performed perfectly throughout with sharp burn, perfect draw, and rich, dark flavors of earth and leather with just the right amount of sweetness in the finish. Many thanks Dave for the opportunity to smoke an excellent cigar!
