On May 4th I attended Cigar International's Cigarfest and was lucky enough to get my hands on a freshly rolled cigar straight from the hands of Willy Herrera himself!! It was slipped to me from Marvin Samel of Drew Estate while I was hanging around the Drew Estate compound on the second floor! This was probably because I was rocking my Undercrown t-shirt! :eyebrow: I was told that this was a pre-release prototype to the upcoming brand Herrera Esteli, blended by Willy Herrera and produced by Drew Estate. I have had the cigar sitting in my humi for the last three and a half months and decided to finally smoke it on my trip to Cancun, Mexico! I figured it would be a great cigar to do a review on...
The cigar is a robusto (not sure exact measurements). The construction looks perfect. The color of the wrapper is a nice light brown with a slight tone of orange. Very smooth to the touch with very light veining. The aroma from the wrapper was a very light cedar and cocoa but not much coming from the cigar. After a small snip with a double guillotine the prelight draw had an earthy, tobacco, and slight cocoa flavor with a perfect amount of resistance.
First third: Upon lighting the cigar i was only hit with a small amount of spice and some sweet tobacco. After about five puffs the spice really started to come in. Not a really strong spice but a good amount that lingered in the mouth for a good bit, almost the whole time between puffs! Along with the sweet spice I could taste a little dried fruit flavors and hints of cinnamon and cocoa. Very enjoyable so far with about a medium body and strength. Burning very nicely so far and producing a good amount of smoke.
Second third: Still a good amount of spice on the palette, but a good spice that still lingers between puffs. Definitely not overpowering, you just know it's there. The flavors are similar to the first third but have transitioned into a slightly darker profile. Still a slight sweetness to the tobacco but not as much as before. Still burning great especially considering I am on the beach with a steady breeze! Starting to feel a little bit of the nicotine (could be the Dos Equis) but wouldn't say it is anything above a medium-full right now. Still very tasty!
Final third: Transitioning into the final third the spice is dying down a bit but still there. The flavors are now of dark cocoa, dark tobacco, and a hint of really dark roast coffee. I caught a hint of vanilla at the beginning of the final third for only about two puffs and then it was gone which was weird. Wish it had stayed but the flavors that hung around were still enjoyable. Burn finally started to wave slightly due to the wind but nothing too serious. Still medium-full in body and strength. Didn't want to put it down but was running late for our dinner plans and ended this one at about an inch and a half.
Overall: I thoroughly enjoyed this smoke! Surprised at how long the spice hung around throughout the cigar and glad it did, especially since it was a nice, enjoyable spice, the kind you might see in some cc smokes. The flavors were nice and the burn was exceptional! Not sure how close this blend was compared to the blend that will be released but if it is anything like this I will definitely pick some of these up! I would also be interested in trying them in other sizes. It was awesome to get a chance to try one of these cigars especially one rolled by Willy Herrera himself!! It was great to meet Willy Herrera and Marvin Samel and a big thanks to both of them for hooking me up with this smoke! I had high hopes for this cigar and it didn't disappoint, Drew Estate teamed up with Willy Herrera is definitely a win!
Didn't have a chance to take a final pic...
The cigar is a robusto (not sure exact measurements). The construction looks perfect. The color of the wrapper is a nice light brown with a slight tone of orange. Very smooth to the touch with very light veining. The aroma from the wrapper was a very light cedar and cocoa but not much coming from the cigar. After a small snip with a double guillotine the prelight draw had an earthy, tobacco, and slight cocoa flavor with a perfect amount of resistance.
First third: Upon lighting the cigar i was only hit with a small amount of spice and some sweet tobacco. After about five puffs the spice really started to come in. Not a really strong spice but a good amount that lingered in the mouth for a good bit, almost the whole time between puffs! Along with the sweet spice I could taste a little dried fruit flavors and hints of cinnamon and cocoa. Very enjoyable so far with about a medium body and strength. Burning very nicely so far and producing a good amount of smoke.
Second third: Still a good amount of spice on the palette, but a good spice that still lingers between puffs. Definitely not overpowering, you just know it's there. The flavors are similar to the first third but have transitioned into a slightly darker profile. Still a slight sweetness to the tobacco but not as much as before. Still burning great especially considering I am on the beach with a steady breeze! Starting to feel a little bit of the nicotine (could be the Dos Equis) but wouldn't say it is anything above a medium-full right now. Still very tasty!
Final third: Transitioning into the final third the spice is dying down a bit but still there. The flavors are now of dark cocoa, dark tobacco, and a hint of really dark roast coffee. I caught a hint of vanilla at the beginning of the final third for only about two puffs and then it was gone which was weird. Wish it had stayed but the flavors that hung around were still enjoyable. Burn finally started to wave slightly due to the wind but nothing too serious. Still medium-full in body and strength. Didn't want to put it down but was running late for our dinner plans and ended this one at about an inch and a half.
Overall: I thoroughly enjoyed this smoke! Surprised at how long the spice hung around throughout the cigar and glad it did, especially since it was a nice, enjoyable spice, the kind you might see in some cc smokes. The flavors were nice and the burn was exceptional! Not sure how close this blend was compared to the blend that will be released but if it is anything like this I will definitely pick some of these up! I would also be interested in trying them in other sizes. It was awesome to get a chance to try one of these cigars especially one rolled by Willy Herrera himself!! It was great to meet Willy Herrera and Marvin Samel and a big thanks to both of them for hooking me up with this smoke! I had high hopes for this cigar and it didn't disappoint, Drew Estate teamed up with Willy Herrera is definitely a win!
Didn't have a chance to take a final pic...
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