Stogie_Bear
Chulo Savage
Review: Curivari Buena Ventura – Gordo 560
Size: 5.5x56
MSRP: $5.50
Date: 24th day of November, the year 2014…..
Smoking Environment: Well, it has become increasingly difficult to find some quiet time. Most everyone has succumbed to the “holiday fever” and either forgotten how to do their job or just decided not to work this week. I find myself winding down from a hectic and seemingly endless Monday. Writing reviews recently has allowed me to focus on something other than the grind of another workday, as well as have some time to myself to really, REALLY, focus on the tobacco. It is a cool Florida night, 67 degrees, and a light breeze glides along the pond in the backyard and, for only an instance, fills the back patio where I sit. I take a few extra minutes to perform my usual inspection of cigar appearance and construction, dually using the time to let my heart rate settle back into a somewhat normal cadence and clearing my thoughts so that I may fully consume everything this tobacco has to offer.
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Colorado Rosado
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Appearance/construction: A smooth, dry, chocolate-colored wrapper with no heavy veining, very fine thoothiness, and almost undiscernible seams. The triple cap is simple and neat with an expert hand. The gordo shape is interesting, as it is circular at first glance but is revealed to have a boxy oval shape upon further inspection hinting at a soft box press. I wonder if this is done intentionally or if the swelling and stacking of the boxes has made this a somewhat naturally occurring property of this size. Looks like long leaf filler.
Aroma Pre-Light: Strong notes of milk chocolate and hay.
Cold draw: I opted for a straight cut for the 56 ring gauge. A little hay, but nothing else overly noticeable in the cold draw. The draw is extremely easy and airy.
Light: Toasting and lighting with “ol’ trusty,” the dual torch lighter with no name that I’ve had for more years than I can count. This stick lit quickly after toasting, but has already shown some jagged edges in the burn that could be potentially problematic. Although, it is worth noting it is far too early to tell.
First impression: A sharp bitterness from the lighting of the stick quickly fades into a smooth earthy flavor with a touch of sea salt and bread.
Aroma Post-Light: The scent carried in the smoke is hard to distinguish. I am most reminded of warm bread, but also a very light freshly steeped tea.
First Third: The burn has evened out to a nearly straight edge, with only a few bumps as it progresses through the first third rather quickly. The cigar flavors seem to be growing in depth and complexity, still with rich notes of bread and roasted barley protruding into the forefront. The ash is heavy and drops suddenly at the 1 inch mark. There is a saltiness on my lips and in the aftertaste of the draw. The retrohale reveals a white pepper spice with a bit of dark chocolate. The body of the cigar has yet to exceed a steady medium and smoke production is average.
The bread and barley flavors have deepened into an earthy, coffee bean flavor with now obvious nuances of hay and grass. For reasons yet unknown to me, I find the earthy, grassy, hay flavor always makes an appearance in Nicaraguan puros and CCs. There is still a saltiness on the lips and cocoa sweetness in the retrohale as I proceed into the middle third of this stick.
Second Third: My burn has remained relatively even, self-correcting at times, and ash consistently holding on for a precious inch until tumbling to its death and onto my shirt. It is dense and solid. I can easily pick up the fallen remains and place them neatly in the ash tray graveyard where they belong. The flavor profile, while still lacking a deep complexity, has turned to a much darker spectrum altogether. I am picking up bold notes of dark chocolate, roasted peppercorns and nuts, with a very subtle cherry grenadine flavor in the back. Smoke volume on this stick is still average, producing milky white clouds that a bouquet of hay, grass, and nut scents.
Final Third: The draw has remained open during the first two thirds but is slowly giving a tiny bit of resistance, which isn’t necessarily bad. The burn is still even and self-correcting on the small issues. There has been more complexity in the last third than in the first two-thirds of the stick. There are wild notes of dark fruit thrown in and out of each draw, but mostly the dark spices, roasted nuts, and earth dominate this last third. Also, a significant uptick in heat has opened the center palate to dark toasted bread (sounds gross but it’s not). Smoke production is on par and throwing a nice dense cloud overhead.
With another significant increase in heat, I’ll say farewell to this smoke around the 1.5 inch mark.
Overall Impression/Final Notes: This was a good smoke, overall. It could use a small period of aging in the humidor to mellow out the last third and further balance out the flavors, but I think this is one smoke that could become uneventful with more than a year in the humidor (speculation, not fact). I’ll personally be aging a few to see for myself. At the price point, this is an incredible value for a Nicaraguan puro with impeccable construction. The flavors in the first two thirds could have shown a deeper complexity, but they were still pleasant and delicious, just not enough per my personal taste. This would be a fantastic smoke after a light lunch or dinner, and paired with a lighter pale ale or citrus drink. Definitely a cigar worth my time and absolutely worth the small price tag. Great budget smoke, and cubanesque in the flavor profile. This was a medium-full bodied smoke by the end of the stick.
Smoke time: 1hr 20min
Scoring:
Appearance and Presentation: 18/20
Lighting and Burning Properties: 13/15
Construction Properties: 28/30
Taste Properties: 30/35
Total: 89/100
Author’s Note: As always, I welcome any constructive criticism so that my reviews can continue to grow in strength and depth. I will try my best to review sticks that have not been previously reviewed here and that are generally “available.” As a service to my brothers, I intend to write with as much detail as I can muster, and with an honest opinion. However, it is only MY opinion, so please try a stick before you buy a box if you have any intention of being fiscally responsible with this beloved affliction for fine tobacco that we all have. Also, all cigars are kept humidified at 68% and dry boxed for at least 8 hours before enjoying. Thanks for reading!
Size: 5.5x56
MSRP: $5.50
Date: 24th day of November, the year 2014…..
Smoking Environment: Well, it has become increasingly difficult to find some quiet time. Most everyone has succumbed to the “holiday fever” and either forgotten how to do their job or just decided not to work this week. I find myself winding down from a hectic and seemingly endless Monday. Writing reviews recently has allowed me to focus on something other than the grind of another workday, as well as have some time to myself to really, REALLY, focus on the tobacco. It is a cool Florida night, 67 degrees, and a light breeze glides along the pond in the backyard and, for only an instance, fills the back patio where I sit. I take a few extra minutes to perform my usual inspection of cigar appearance and construction, dually using the time to let my heart rate settle back into a somewhat normal cadence and clearing my thoughts so that I may fully consume everything this tobacco has to offer.
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Colorado Rosado
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Appearance/construction: A smooth, dry, chocolate-colored wrapper with no heavy veining, very fine thoothiness, and almost undiscernible seams. The triple cap is simple and neat with an expert hand. The gordo shape is interesting, as it is circular at first glance but is revealed to have a boxy oval shape upon further inspection hinting at a soft box press. I wonder if this is done intentionally or if the swelling and stacking of the boxes has made this a somewhat naturally occurring property of this size. Looks like long leaf filler.
Aroma Pre-Light: Strong notes of milk chocolate and hay.
Cold draw: I opted for a straight cut for the 56 ring gauge. A little hay, but nothing else overly noticeable in the cold draw. The draw is extremely easy and airy.
Light: Toasting and lighting with “ol’ trusty,” the dual torch lighter with no name that I’ve had for more years than I can count. This stick lit quickly after toasting, but has already shown some jagged edges in the burn that could be potentially problematic. Although, it is worth noting it is far too early to tell.
First impression: A sharp bitterness from the lighting of the stick quickly fades into a smooth earthy flavor with a touch of sea salt and bread.
Aroma Post-Light: The scent carried in the smoke is hard to distinguish. I am most reminded of warm bread, but also a very light freshly steeped tea.
First Third: The burn has evened out to a nearly straight edge, with only a few bumps as it progresses through the first third rather quickly. The cigar flavors seem to be growing in depth and complexity, still with rich notes of bread and roasted barley protruding into the forefront. The ash is heavy and drops suddenly at the 1 inch mark. There is a saltiness on my lips and in the aftertaste of the draw. The retrohale reveals a white pepper spice with a bit of dark chocolate. The body of the cigar has yet to exceed a steady medium and smoke production is average.
The bread and barley flavors have deepened into an earthy, coffee bean flavor with now obvious nuances of hay and grass. For reasons yet unknown to me, I find the earthy, grassy, hay flavor always makes an appearance in Nicaraguan puros and CCs. There is still a saltiness on the lips and cocoa sweetness in the retrohale as I proceed into the middle third of this stick.
Second Third: My burn has remained relatively even, self-correcting at times, and ash consistently holding on for a precious inch until tumbling to its death and onto my shirt. It is dense and solid. I can easily pick up the fallen remains and place them neatly in the ash tray graveyard where they belong. The flavor profile, while still lacking a deep complexity, has turned to a much darker spectrum altogether. I am picking up bold notes of dark chocolate, roasted peppercorns and nuts, with a very subtle cherry grenadine flavor in the back. Smoke volume on this stick is still average, producing milky white clouds that a bouquet of hay, grass, and nut scents.
Final Third: The draw has remained open during the first two thirds but is slowly giving a tiny bit of resistance, which isn’t necessarily bad. The burn is still even and self-correcting on the small issues. There has been more complexity in the last third than in the first two-thirds of the stick. There are wild notes of dark fruit thrown in and out of each draw, but mostly the dark spices, roasted nuts, and earth dominate this last third. Also, a significant uptick in heat has opened the center palate to dark toasted bread (sounds gross but it’s not). Smoke production is on par and throwing a nice dense cloud overhead.
With another significant increase in heat, I’ll say farewell to this smoke around the 1.5 inch mark.
Overall Impression/Final Notes: This was a good smoke, overall. It could use a small period of aging in the humidor to mellow out the last third and further balance out the flavors, but I think this is one smoke that could become uneventful with more than a year in the humidor (speculation, not fact). I’ll personally be aging a few to see for myself. At the price point, this is an incredible value for a Nicaraguan puro with impeccable construction. The flavors in the first two thirds could have shown a deeper complexity, but they were still pleasant and delicious, just not enough per my personal taste. This would be a fantastic smoke after a light lunch or dinner, and paired with a lighter pale ale or citrus drink. Definitely a cigar worth my time and absolutely worth the small price tag. Great budget smoke, and cubanesque in the flavor profile. This was a medium-full bodied smoke by the end of the stick.
Smoke time: 1hr 20min
Scoring:
Appearance and Presentation: 18/20
Lighting and Burning Properties: 13/15
Construction Properties: 28/30
Taste Properties: 30/35
Total: 89/100
Author’s Note: As always, I welcome any constructive criticism so that my reviews can continue to grow in strength and depth. I will try my best to review sticks that have not been previously reviewed here and that are generally “available.” As a service to my brothers, I intend to write with as much detail as I can muster, and with an honest opinion. However, it is only MY opinion, so please try a stick before you buy a box if you have any intention of being fiscally responsible with this beloved affliction for fine tobacco that we all have. Also, all cigars are kept humidified at 68% and dry boxed for at least 8 hours before enjoying. Thanks for reading!
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