Originally published on Tiki Bar Online.
No. Fifty Four (toro grande), 6” x 54 ring gauge / MSRP $6.49
The people over at General Cigars were kind enough to send along some samples of this cigar for Dave and I to try. Dave’s review on this cigar along with the info on the blend can be found here. I was able to smoke one example before the two that were sent to me for review.
The first thing I noticed about the cigar is how oily the wrapper is. It just shines in the light. The wrapper is a nice even milk chocolate brown in color. There are a few veins but nothing that detracts from the look of the cigar. I really like the colors and the look of the new band. It really compliments the look of the wrapper. It is definitely a departure from all of the gold foil of the previous releases. Putting my nose to the wrapper I noted the aroma of leather with a strong aroma of barnyard coming from the foot. The cigar was fairly firm to the touch and there were no soft spots. After clipping it and taking a cold draw on it I noted a great draw with only a light sweetness on the tongue.
As soon as I lit it up the red pepper spice on the tongue was there. The wasabi like burn on the retrohale took a few puffs to be at full strength. The cigar produced a large billow of smoke from almost the first puff. After a few more puffs I started to get the flavors of leather, earth, wood with a hint of cinnamon. As I mentioned earlier the draw was great. The burn was slightly wavy but nothing that needed a torch. It started off in the upper end of medium in regards to strength.
The spice started to mellow a bit as I got into the second third. The flavors changed slightly to grilled meat, wood, coffee and leather. The draw continued to be perfect with the burn still slightly off. The cigar continued to be in the upper end of medium. I will also note that I started to feel the oils of the wrapper coating my lips.
The final third saw the spice start to build back up, although not to the point of the first third. The flavors morphed into leather, coffee, cinnamon with a hint of green herbal notes. I started to get a slight nicotine hit from it but it never really got out of the medium-full range. The draw continued to be perfect right up to the end and the burn evened itself out without any help from me.
Before I smoked this cigar I really wasn’t expecting much. I don’t care for the regular Serie R release and like Dave mentioned there hasn’t been much to pique my interest since Ernesto left other than the Artesanos de Tabaqueros. However after smoking my first one I was really impressed with the cigar. I’m like Dave in that I smoke a lot a Nicaraguan tobacco for enjoyment which puts this cigar right up my alley. It has a good amount of spice, lots of flavor and a near perfect construction. The almost bargain price is also another major plus for it. I will caution you that if you are a big Serie R fan don’t be disappointed that this is very different. I will definitely be smoking this cigar again.
Body: 7/10
Strength: 7/10
Complexity: 6/10
AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10
Nice review buddy I find my self skipping over much of Generals stuff but this one has peaked my interest I may have to pick up a few. Good job and thanks for the info.
I’ve only had one of these and I’ve heard several people, including yourself, talk about how the pepper (people have used red, white and black to describe it) was so prominent. I liked the cigar and I guess it’s time to buy another and see what I missed the first time.