Cigar Review: Ortega Cigars Serie D

Vitola: #9 (Lancero)
Size: 6.5” x 38 ring gauge
Price $8.70
Purchased at Burns Tobacconist

Background

The first cigar Eddie Ortega produced under his own banner in 2012 was the Serie D Maduro. In the 2 years since the Ortega Cigars was founded, it seems like Eddie has never been at rest…the Serie D Natural, the Wild Bunch that took up all 2013, and the Minis have all stolen their share of the spotlight. But sometimes it’s good to go back to the beginning. For the 2013 DC Cigar Tweetup, Eddie produced a special size of Serie D, a Lancero…actually a shorter-than-normal Lancero, but since he’s calling it a #9 instead of a “Lancero” I guess that’s okay…after all, what is a #9? In this case, it’s not anywhere near either #8 or #10, certainly not close in size to a #20…if this sounds at all familiar, it’s because I’ve had this rant before. The “what the hell were they thinking when they named these vitolas” rant. Sometimes it just makes no sense to just randomly call something “#12” or “Sublime” or whatever. There are established size names and ranges of variation that go have been accepted to go along with them…is it so hard to use them? Geez…rant over…love ya, Eddie.

Anyway, here’s the story from the Ortega website:

The Ortega Serie ‘D’ Maduro is an enchanting smoke. Draped in a dark San Andres maduro wrapper, and stuffed with long filler tobaccos from Esteli and Jalapa, the smoker can expect a medium to full-bodied that unleashes a rich and bold flavor. The cigar exudes rich notes of dark cocoa, coffee beans, with hints of dried fruit. The Ortega Serie D has been meticulously crafted to perfection at the factory in Esteli, Nicaragua, these cigars are box pressed beauties.

Mostly accurate, but I think that was just a general description of the Serie D, as all the other sizes are box-pressed, but this #9 is not. As stated above…Nicaraguan filler and binder along with a Mexican San Andres Maduro wrapper. I smoked one of these when they first showed up at Burns (late last year) and then they sold out. We got more in at some point, but I didn’t see them until a couple weeks ago when I bought one for this review.

Prelight

Was it Keith who looked at the Serie D band and thought “Christmas!”? I can’t remember, but someone said that to me and now I can’t look at this band without thinking the same thing. I didn’t feel that way at first, but the combination of red, green, and gold with white lettering does make for a very festive, “holiday” appearance. Eddie should market a line of Christmas tree ornaments with this look…I’m sure they would sell well to cigar smokers…Eddie, if you do this, I don’t need royalties…just send me one!

The San Andres wrapper was dark chocolate brown in color and rough–almost sandpapery–under my finger tips. It did have some oiliness, just plenty of tooth as well. I gave it a good sniff and got earth, anise and a raisin-y sweetness; there was more earth on the foot. I clipped the end and took a cold draw; I got plenty of airflow and a mix of dark roast coffee and semi-sweet cocoa flavors.

Flavor

The taste of Mexican wrapper tobacco was definitely there upon lighting the Serie D #9. The initial wave of flavor was very earthy and a little bitter, although with a good amount of balancing sweetness. I picked up notes of coffee and raisin, cedar and anise, dark chocolate and chili pepper. In some ways this blend is like the old EO Murcielago brand…but I have to say this is better…at least it hits my palate in a way that the Murcielago never did.

As I finished up the first third and burned into the second, I noted a citrus sourness that played along well with the sweeter elements of the flavor profile. The pepper spice diminished a bit on the nose, but on the palate it continued to be a nice, steady burn. At the end, the cigar kept billowing out clouds of thick, oily, full-bodied smoke that had lots of earth, plenty of sweetness and an even dose of pepper.

Construction

Build quality was excellent on this vitola of Serie D. No complaints.

Value

I’m always on the lookout for small-brand Lanceros with big taste and a wallet-friendly price. This definitely meets those criteria.

Conclusions

I’m on record many times as not particularly liking Mexican wrapper leaf. Despite experiences with blends I don’t like though (Murcielago and La Aroma de Cuba Mi Amor spring to mind, both made by the same factory that made this cigar), I keep coming back to try it again. Every now and then I find something really great…this is one of those times. The Serie D was always a solid smoke for me, but in this vitola, it really shines.

By-The-Numbers

Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9.5/10