Black Plague
New Member
Talked about for a while, decided I'd finally freaking do it.
Last year, I renounced Cuban snobbery. I finally came full circle and realized that, while Cuban cigars are great, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic are also producing excellent cigars. Going back and looking at all the brands I'd formerly ignored, I started to think about all the cigars I loved back in the day. Specifically, all the cigars I loved that nobody every talks about anymore.
What happened with those cigars? Did our tastes change? Did they change?
I thought a great way to start this off would be with a cigar that people were prepared to kill for during the 90's cigar boom: the La Gloria Cubana Wavell Maduro.
I decided on this one because of an article I'd read featuring Boom-era smokers' memories of La Gloria Cubana (LINK). After strong endorsements from Cigar Aficionado magazine and Rush Limbaugh, this brand blew up. They started as the Carillo family's little cigar brand, but eventually, General Cigar/Swedish Match snatched them up and they've become a national brand that you can find in any tobacconist's humidor.
So do they still deserve the praise they got back in the 90's? Let's see.....
La Gloria Cubana
Wavell Maduro
5 x 50
Produced in the Dominican Republic and Miami, USA
Connecticut Broadleaf Wrapper, Nicaraguan Binder, Dominican and Nicaraguan Filler
Prelight: Box-pressed, hinting that it was most likely produced in the DR, as most Miami-rolled LGCs are round (the box-pressing reduces transit damage). The wrapper was a dark French roast color, nearly oscuro. It looked absolutely great, evenly-colored with hardly a visible vein the whole length. The texture was rough and sandpapery. The filler leaf bulged slightly from the foot.
Beverage: Just water.
Flavor: Toasted the foot and started to draw. From the start, bitter and not very pleasant. Finish was dark coffee grounds, a tad vegetal, with some notes of dry dark earth and varnished wood. One inch in, it got a little better, but was still sour and acidic. It did pick up some chocolate and some woody herbal notes. The smell wasn't much better, having a burnt and ammoniac aroma to it. Halfway through, much the same. Still very woody, herbal, developing a mild black pepper flavor and a touch of licorice. It remained much the same until the end.
Construction: The burn was decent, needing a few corrections. The draw was good and the ash a solid-structured gray-white.
Summary: I have to admit I've never been much of a fan of maduros. To me, they seem to all have that woody flavor that dominates the flavor profile. The overall expression of this Wavell was that it showed promise, but I believe that El Credito may be selling them much too young. The piece of Connecticut Broadleaf that this was wrapped was obviously extremely high-quality, and my fingers and lips didn't turn black, so I'm sure it is naturally that incredibly even color and not "painted."
Many have voiced the opinion that they just aren't as good as they used to be. I believe it may be due to the pressure of becoming a national brand (since General Cigar/Swedish Match distribute them) and having less time to age tobacco before rolling it up and shipping out to tobaconnists. These could become great quality smokes (worthy of the reputation they held during the Boom) if anyone is patient enough to lay them down for a year or two.
If there's a cigar you'd like me to cover for this new series, just shoot me a PM.
Last year, I renounced Cuban snobbery. I finally came full circle and realized that, while Cuban cigars are great, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic are also producing excellent cigars. Going back and looking at all the brands I'd formerly ignored, I started to think about all the cigars I loved back in the day. Specifically, all the cigars I loved that nobody every talks about anymore.
What happened with those cigars? Did our tastes change? Did they change?
I thought a great way to start this off would be with a cigar that people were prepared to kill for during the 90's cigar boom: the La Gloria Cubana Wavell Maduro.
I decided on this one because of an article I'd read featuring Boom-era smokers' memories of La Gloria Cubana (LINK). After strong endorsements from Cigar Aficionado magazine and Rush Limbaugh, this brand blew up. They started as the Carillo family's little cigar brand, but eventually, General Cigar/Swedish Match snatched them up and they've become a national brand that you can find in any tobacconist's humidor.
So do they still deserve the praise they got back in the 90's? Let's see.....
La Gloria Cubana
Wavell Maduro
5 x 50
Produced in the Dominican Republic and Miami, USA
Connecticut Broadleaf Wrapper, Nicaraguan Binder, Dominican and Nicaraguan Filler
Prelight: Box-pressed, hinting that it was most likely produced in the DR, as most Miami-rolled LGCs are round (the box-pressing reduces transit damage). The wrapper was a dark French roast color, nearly oscuro. It looked absolutely great, evenly-colored with hardly a visible vein the whole length. The texture was rough and sandpapery. The filler leaf bulged slightly from the foot.
Beverage: Just water.
Flavor: Toasted the foot and started to draw. From the start, bitter and not very pleasant. Finish was dark coffee grounds, a tad vegetal, with some notes of dry dark earth and varnished wood. One inch in, it got a little better, but was still sour and acidic. It did pick up some chocolate and some woody herbal notes. The smell wasn't much better, having a burnt and ammoniac aroma to it. Halfway through, much the same. Still very woody, herbal, developing a mild black pepper flavor and a touch of licorice. It remained much the same until the end.
Construction: The burn was decent, needing a few corrections. The draw was good and the ash a solid-structured gray-white.
Summary: I have to admit I've never been much of a fan of maduros. To me, they seem to all have that woody flavor that dominates the flavor profile. The overall expression of this Wavell was that it showed promise, but I believe that El Credito may be selling them much too young. The piece of Connecticut Broadleaf that this was wrapped was obviously extremely high-quality, and my fingers and lips didn't turn black, so I'm sure it is naturally that incredibly even color and not "painted."
Many have voiced the opinion that they just aren't as good as they used to be. I believe it may be due to the pressure of becoming a national brand (since General Cigar/Swedish Match distribute them) and having less time to age tobacco before rolling it up and shipping out to tobaconnists. These could become great quality smokes (worthy of the reputation they held during the Boom) if anyone is patient enough to lay them down for a year or two.
If there's a cigar you'd like me to cover for this new series, just shoot me a PM.
Wait, I know. 
