Bonita Smoke Shop 18th Anniversary

Jackie from the Bonita Smoke Shop offered to send me some of their specially blended house blend cigars. Bonita’s 18th Anniversary Blend was specially blended by ETB cigars. These cigars are in celebration of 18 years in the biz. From what I understand, Jackie worked closely with ETB to dial in the cigar she envisioned. I’m always a little nervous trying shop house blends, so let’s see how the Bonita 18th Anniversary treats me. I paired this cigar with water.

 

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra

Binder: Nicaraguan

Filler: Nicaraguan and Dominican

Size: 6 x 50

Price: $6.95

 

Pre-Smoke & Construction:

The wrapper had a somewhat rugged look, but had minimal flaws. When holding to a light, I noticed a nice sheen, and small to medium sized veins. The wrapper had an interesting sweet spicy odor with some earthiness. The foot had a similar smell, but was a bit mellower. The cigar was very firmly packed and hard to the touch. This resulted in a draw that was a little snug, but not over the top for me. The pre-light draw had a sweet natural tobacco taste with slight spiciness and hints of earth.

The burn required a couple minor corrections, and the ash held for over an inch.

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Flavor:

The first third began with a smooth earthy flavor, and a nice pepper through the nose. After about an inch, I could swear that fruity notes were hiding behind a woody flavor. A coffee or espresso entered the picture after about 1.5 inches in. The pepper developed into a spicy sweetness that I enjoyed. Despite the somewhat snug draw, there was a lot of smoke volume. This third had a nice ramp up of complexities and flavors.

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The second third kept those nice woody flavors combined with espresso or coffee. I had a hard time pinning down some flavors. Eventually I found a nuttiness that would be present in some draws, and absent in other draws. That fruitiness I spoke of before seemed to come and go, and hid itself way in the background. When passing smoke through the nose, the sweet peppery spice had an easy yet nice punch. It was interesting how each draw seemed to switch it’s dominant flavor. The smoke began to coat the inside of the mouth for a lingering and complex aftertaste.

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The last third kept a similar pace as the second third, which was a good thing. A sweet spicy cinnamon left a little tingle in the nose and in the mouth and lips. The dominant flavor was wood and espresso, but like before, sometimes the flavor profile would change from draw to draw. The body crept into the full range. Otherwise the last third was very much like the second… A well refined melding of flavors that frankly I had a hard time picking apart at times.

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Conclusion:

This was a very good medium to full bodied cigar. I was relieved that this house blend didn’t have that typical cheap house blend taste you so often run across. The complexities had me stumped at times, and the overall experience was very nice. Even if you can’t run to Bonita to pick some up, they are available for a while online too. This slow burner is easily worth the asking price. Try some for yourself!

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