Well, Cigar Affianado placed this one in their top 25 cigars of 2008, so I had to try one. These cigars were created for Xikar by Jesus Fuego, a fifth generation Cuban tobacco grower and expert blender. These are a
Nicaraguan Puro; Nicaraguan Shade Grown Criollo wrapper aged for 4 years, a Nicaraguan Sun Grown Corojo binder and Nicaraguan filler.
The Cigar: Defiance Sentry - Corona Gorda - 6 X 46
Pre-light inspection of this cigar shows a nice oily, medium brown cigar. Minor veins and no apparent construction issues were present. Hints of cedar, light white pepper and a sweetness were present. After cutting this cigar with my Palio, tastes of Carmel, pepper and cedar came through. No hints of draw restriction on this cigar.
I toasted this cigar with my Dupont Xtend lighter and this cigar took off. A great amount of light grey smoke came off this cigar. A slight restriction developed in the first third of the cigar, but this did not cause any difficulty in smoking this cigar. Cedar, leather, white pepper and the carmel remained in this cigar. After approximately 1/2" to 3/4", I noticed a crack develop at the foot of the cigar. No other contruction issues came to light. The cigar had a nice mottled light grey ash, which remained somewhat firm on the cigar. The crack continued to grow as this cigar progressed.
The 2nd third continued with the same tastes, allowing the meld of pepper and sweetness to shine through. The crack continued to grow, causing the wrapper to unwrap at the foot. The ash remained firm and the smoke continued to be a good amount. Just prior to the final third, this cigar went out for no reason. After a few attempts to relight this cigar, it finally took off again.
The final third kept the cedar, leather, sweetness, but the white pepper started to slightly overpower the cigar taste. Hints of mild nicotine started to come through also. The earlier crack finally subsided though.
Overall, this was an alright cigar. Nothing spectacular and no way should this one be in anyone's top 25. Just my opinion though. The blend was good. The construction was overall good, but the crack was iritating. The finish was not bad, leaving no harsh aftertaste. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate this one at about a 7.2. This cigar was nothing special, but rather an okay cigar. At a price point of $6.75 (MSRP), I would expect something better. Possibly with some age, this cigar might get better.
I should note that I smoke 2 others after this cigar. THe flavors remained, but one of the other cigars I smoked also developed a crack at the foot. The two that developed cracks were smoked at a local B & M, and the other was smoked after sitting in my humidor for 2 weeks. No issues developed.
Thanks for taking the time to read and hope it helps.
Nicaraguan Puro; Nicaraguan Shade Grown Criollo wrapper aged for 4 years, a Nicaraguan Sun Grown Corojo binder and Nicaraguan filler.
The Cigar: Defiance Sentry - Corona Gorda - 6 X 46
Pre-light inspection of this cigar shows a nice oily, medium brown cigar. Minor veins and no apparent construction issues were present. Hints of cedar, light white pepper and a sweetness were present. After cutting this cigar with my Palio, tastes of Carmel, pepper and cedar came through. No hints of draw restriction on this cigar.
I toasted this cigar with my Dupont Xtend lighter and this cigar took off. A great amount of light grey smoke came off this cigar. A slight restriction developed in the first third of the cigar, but this did not cause any difficulty in smoking this cigar. Cedar, leather, white pepper and the carmel remained in this cigar. After approximately 1/2" to 3/4", I noticed a crack develop at the foot of the cigar. No other contruction issues came to light. The cigar had a nice mottled light grey ash, which remained somewhat firm on the cigar. The crack continued to grow as this cigar progressed.
The 2nd third continued with the same tastes, allowing the meld of pepper and sweetness to shine through. The crack continued to grow, causing the wrapper to unwrap at the foot. The ash remained firm and the smoke continued to be a good amount. Just prior to the final third, this cigar went out for no reason. After a few attempts to relight this cigar, it finally took off again.
The final third kept the cedar, leather, sweetness, but the white pepper started to slightly overpower the cigar taste. Hints of mild nicotine started to come through also. The earlier crack finally subsided though.
Overall, this was an alright cigar. Nothing spectacular and no way should this one be in anyone's top 25. Just my opinion though. The blend was good. The construction was overall good, but the crack was iritating. The finish was not bad, leaving no harsh aftertaste. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate this one at about a 7.2. This cigar was nothing special, but rather an okay cigar. At a price point of $6.75 (MSRP), I would expect something better. Possibly with some age, this cigar might get better.
I should note that I smoke 2 others after this cigar. THe flavors remained, but one of the other cigars I smoked also developed a crack at the foot. The two that developed cracks were smoked at a local B & M, and the other was smoked after sitting in my humidor for 2 weeks. No issues developed.
Thanks for taking the time to read and hope it helps.
