WRAPPER: Honduran
BINDER: Honduran
FILLER: Honduran, Nicaraguan
FORMAT: Toro (652)
ORIGIN: Honduras
INTENSITY: Med.-full/Full
NOTES:
Leather | Grain | Compost
What happened to that cinnamon cold draw? Once lit there's a trio of huddled if not muddled notes: scorchy leather, dark grain, and dried compost. Black peppercorn pushes those three off a cliff onto a zipline and wheeeee. On a fast line, they whiz through dark chocolate and Italian roast coffee beans. At the half, things slow a bit, and some red pepper and smoked paprika join in. Edgy. Boldness doesn't translate to much of a finish but there is a salted hibiscus hint there.
Coming out of the half, a bit of molasses joins in. There's a spiced rum vibe. Then, quickly again, it all shrinks back to that initial trio. Although, sans pepper, it all sits broad and flat. We must've made it across the gorge, so that's good. Whew. Harmony is lacking, as are delineation and structure. Ends a bit like the bottom of a charcoal grill after the burgers are (well)done. My throat hurts a bit and I might need to rest my fragile palate some after this. Milk toast sounds lovely.
The only knock on this thing's build is that it softens some via progression. That doesn't hamper a quite-nice draw, however. Seams and cap stay in their tight places. Ash is dry but not overly-flaky and stacks on to an inch at a time, then stubbornly rolls off in my tray. The voluminous smoke out-put doesn't offer much aroma or room-note and is a tick ashy-alkaline. The band is cool if you like busy business and needs to be mangled to be removed. The final third harshly drags on. How do I get back across?
TASTE: B
DRAW: A-
BURN: B
BUILD: B+
FINAL GRADE: B
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79
Special thanks: Cigar Craig.
::: very :::