Vitola: Corona Gorda- 6” x 46 ring gauge
- MSRP $10
- Purchased at Islands Cigar Lounge, Brea, CA
Background
About 5 years ago, Espinosa Cigars released a cigar that would become a game-changer in the way the company was viewed and the way many people viewed Nicaraguan cigars. Previously they had been known mostly for their very full-bodied and strong cigars like the 601 series and especially the 601 La Bomba series. Laranja Reserva brought a new innovative wrapper leaf in a medium-bodied cigar. Laranja is a Brazilian leaf known for its orange tint…Laranja is Portuguese for “orange.” Maybe not coincidentally, the leaf also carries a good deal of sweet citrus flavor. The use of this non-mainstream leaf was daring…and I don’t know of anyone else that has begun using it in the interim time.
It took some time, but last November, Espinosa debuted the darker, stronger version of the cigar at La Zona Palooza, then released it to the world at large in mid-2019. It’s described variously as “Maduro” or “Oscuro,” but the official name is Laranja Reserva Escuro. It uses Nicaraguan filler and binder leaves along with a Brazilian Mata Fina wrapper. Mata Fina is a varietal often used for Maduro cigars, so I’m going to guess either name is acceptable.
As a commentary note, before even trying the cigar, I have to express a little disappointment in that the new Laranja Escuro does not actually use Laranja tobacco, instead substituting the wrapper with another Brazilian varietal. Maybe it was tried and didn’t work out, but I would have gone to great lengths to use some Laranja leaf as binder or filler to keep the name of the cigar relevant.
This review is based on my first experience with the cigar. I bought it at Islands Cigar Lounge in Brea, California. I got some background for this article from Cigar-Coop. Our site sponsor, Small Batch Cigar, offers these for sale.
Prelight
Presentation is mostly the same as the original Laranja release with stained wood boxes. Nice and nothing over-the-top. The band is the same design as the original, with the orange being swapped out for black to give it a unique, but familiar, look. There is also a change from orange to white for the ribbon around the foot of the cigar.
Not that the band needs to be different with the wrapper leaf so much darker. The leaf was dark chocolate brown with a fairly smooth and oily feel to it and a few visible veins and spots. The aroma from it was barnyard and anise and leather. The foot had earth and cocoa powder aroma.
The cold draw was very good and tasted of earth, semi-sweet chocolate and anise, along with a touch of pepper spice.
Flavor
The Laranja Escuro took a minute to get fired up properly and evenly. Once I got it going, I got a mix of earth and cedar up front, with cocoa powder, cinnamon and a light pepper spice coming in just behind. There was an overall sense of sweetness even without a specific note to tie it to. The retrohale was full-bodied with woody and nutty notes, along with a sharp pepper near the end.
Anise came on stronger in as the second third got really going and I noted that the cigar was burning really quickly even though it showed no signs of being dryer than it should be. There was still plenty of earth and cocoa powder, along with a slight spicy burn on the palate for minutes after each puff.
The last third finally featured deep, dark chocolate notes that seemed to be promised in the color of the wrapper leaf. There was also a strong earthiness along with fainter notes of cedar and anise.
Construction
I had a solid ash, fairly even burn line and very good draw.
Value
I like the cigar, I like the price…so I like the value.
Conclusions
Despite the Laranja Escuro not sharing much of the original Laranja blend, it is a very good cigar on its own merits, with a full-bodied complexity that I honestly had not expected. The flavors presented themselves in combinations that were unusual and pleasing to my palate. I can recommend it to anyone who enjoys full-bodied Nicaraguan Maduro blends.
By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10
