The Taíno people were thought to be who originated the practice of rolling tobacco into cylinders and smoking them…they invented cigars! This blend by Serino Cigars is a way of honoring those people using a Nicaraguan-heavy blend featuring Ometepe Criollo ’98, Estelí Corojo ’99 + Criollo ’98, Jalapa Corojo ’99 fillers, an Estelí Corojo 99 binder, and an Ecuadorian Habano Medio wrapper. It was a collaboration between Anthony and Carson Serino to provide a cigar easy enough for beginners, but nuanced enough for veterans of cigar smoking.
The wrapper was a medium brown color with plenty of reddish tint and an aroma of mixed leather and earth. The foot of the cigar was strong with earthiness, along with a bit of cedar. Once lit, the Taíno had tons of pepper spice on palate and nose, along with earth and cedar notes. Once the pepper faded a bit, more bready and nutty notes came through.
I paired this cigar with Dr Pepper Zero, which added a little sweetness to the proceedings. That was one thing I felt was missing in the cigar…a little sweetness. But that was about the only thing. Very good cigar and one that I would definitely buy again.
