Cigarro: Tabaquería 1844 Campesino Series Robusto Definitivo
Fábrica: Undisclosed
(but I've heard it's the same factory responsible for Chogui Dos77 & I've also heard the factory literally doesn't have a name)
Country: Dominican Republic
Capa: Dominican (HVA Navarrete)
Capote: Dominican Criollo 98
Tripa: Dominican
Dimensions: 5 x 52
Vitola: Robusto "Robusto Definitivo"
Production: Regular Release/Core Line
MSRP: $7.10 USD (21/Box $149.10)
Released: March 2014 (US Release Summer/Fall 2015)
Founded by Edgar J. Sued in 2013, Tabaquería 1844 is based in Tamboril, Dominican Republic. It is one of the up and coming boutique or smaller production cigar companies coming out of the DR recently. There is also a related cigar lounge located in the coastal region of Cabarete, DR, aptly named Casa de Tabaquería 1844. The inaugural cigar release is a Dominican puro with the given name Campesino Series. It is available in 2 parejo sizes, Robusto Definitivo (5 x 52) and Buey Manso (6 x 54) (MSRP $8.00 USD), the former of which I'll be reviewing today. I received these from Sales Director Luis Fernandez who happens to live not too terribly far from me.
The band is simplistically elegant using a white background and gold color scheme, along with a few text in black. "Campesino Series" is displayed in gold font right below the same flower logo that is utilized with the Tabaquería 1844 graphic. There is a golden border that highlights the overall face of the band. Coming around the band you will also find in smaller black font "Puro Dominicano", the Tabaquería 1844 emblem, and "Pequenas Producciones" which I quickly assume will translate in to small batch or small production.
"Before The Flame"
The moment I picked this cigar up it felt hefty in hand and was firm all the way through. The HVA wrapper is a medium brown with a slight orange tint, oily, with some tooth. Despite the tooth it has a leathery smooth feel when ran by my fingertips. There are a few visible seams and veins. I honestly could not determine whether this was a double or triple cap, suffice it to say, there is more than one. Upon embracing the aroma through my nostrils I am getting wood, leather, and a mildly sweet natural tobacco. Now as I said before this was a hefty stick, the foot displayed just a great bunch of a lot of tobacco with just enough spacing in between for me to really get the feeling this was rolled to perfection. I chose to clip the head with my Xikar Xi3 Phantom which produced a flawlessly clean cut. The cold draw immediately confirmed my suspicions, on that this was well rolled, just the perfect amount of resistance from a well packed cigar. I was greeted with one of the most interesting flavored cold draws, salty butter. Butter, let’s try this again, yes definitely buttery, with a little pepper. So what are we waiting for...?
1/3 "The Appetizer"
I toasted with a single flame Xikar Allume without having any issues then finished off with my Xikar EXII soft flame. Initial draws began producing a good amount of wood notes, black pepper through the sinuses, and faint floral note. After a few minutes I am greeted with that cold draw flavor, a buttery cedar along with pepper. Though I have never tasted it until this cigar, it was so pronounced on the cold draw that it just seemed that it would have to translate into a flavor note once lit, and that it did. Here comes some toasty notes and spice. The spice quickly becomes easier to pin down and I'm able to tag it as a cinnamon. Natural tobacco can also be tasted. I get a tertiary sensation of herbal tones. The peppery cedar increases and the salty butter, which came about screaming, isn't really that loud now. The black pepper on the retrohale has morphed into a white pepper. The smoke has a somewhat oily feel to it as it enters the mouth but surprisingly the finish seems so clean. Also to note there is a faint sweetness to the profile, I can't really say it's a flavor, but rather a characteristic. This has been present almost through the entirety up to this point.
2/3 "Main Entrée"
By the 2nd the white pepper has come more into the foreground. A citrus zest starts to evolve and the herbal note seems to have disappeared in the night. The ash is now longer than 2 inches and not looking like it's going anywhere. The cedar is still present and the butter has increased just a notch, but still a secondary flavor. There goes the ash, past the halfway mark. The sweetness has risen slightly. It finds a groove with the noted flavors until reaching the 3rd.
3/3 "Dessert"Here comes some coffee entering in to the picture. Nice and smooth. I can tell it's going through a transitioning period, but it's happening quite smoothly. I start picking up a spice that isn't cinnamon; it will remain a generic spice of sorts, and a little barnyard. The sweetness intensifies just a bit more and plays well with the coffee and spice. Along with the aforementioned, I experience flavors of clay, cedar, and toast. And even this late in the game the buttery goodness is still hanging out, just about to the nub.
Intensity
Both the body and strength were medium, while I pegged the flavor to be medium plus.
Construction
When I first received the cigar I thought it was a bit too firm and I had my concerns. Those concerns were put to ease once I actually got to them. Campesino Series has phenomenal construction through and through. The draw was oh so perfect. The smoke output was just a tad above what I consider average and not hardly any smoke while resting. The burn line never had to be touched up even once, though I wouldn’t say it was completely razor sharp it stayed its course, and when it got a little off it was quick to get back where it needed to be. The veins of the wrapper at times would appear as if the oils were going to cause a problem with the burn but the combustion of those were good as well. Ash was light grey and white, firm, and only fell off once throughout the smoke. Nub was cool and firm. Burning rate is perfect with wiggle room, it can be smoked relatively faster, but the combustion is really good so you can take your time without having to worry about it going out on you. If you ever wondered why one of your cigars had bad construction, it's because whoever rolled these Campesino Series isn't rolling all cigars. I wish they were rolling all cigars.
Closing Thoughts
The Campesino Series Robusto Definitivo is absolutely a solid smoke. It is well balanced and offers a medium level of complexity. I can't really think of anything negative to say about it, at all. But with that being said, the flavors are good and even intriguing, but it also isn't a continuous "wow" rollercoaster ride. To me it fits the traditional Dominican cigar performance though doing so on its own accord. I imagine most smokers could start the day off with this or use it as a first smoke after dinner. The finish is unusually clean with this cigar and leaves almost nothing behind. I could have kissed my wife 5 minutes afterwards and she wouldn't have known I was smoking a cigar. I wouldn't give this to a buddy who has never tried a cigar but I would give it to a novice who has had a little time under their belt and seems as though they are working their way to becoming a dedicated cigar consumer. I feel it's a great cigar to throw in to rotation especially with the onslaught of fuller sticks we see. At the price point of 7-8 bucks this is a great value and I could recommend a box split, but for the more reserved consumer a 5 pack would present the opportunity to experience a really good cigar. Edgar Sued has really done something good for his first release in the industry and I can’t wait to see how the follow up to this will be. With that being said look forward to a small batch release hitting the US Market in a year or so timeframe.
Smoking Time: 2 hours 3 minutes
Pairing: Zero Water
Scoring: 89/100
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