El Tiante Habano Oscuro
Wednesday, May 16th, 2012Once again, I am reviewing an El Tiante cigar. The Oscuro was included in a sampler that I won on the Stogie 411 first anniversary show. Thanks again to Stogie 411 and El Tiante for the smokes! Like the Rosado, the Oscuro is made in the My Father Cigar factory in Esteli, Nicaragua. You know the routine… I paired with fine filtered Florida tap water.
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro
Binder & Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: Piramide 6 x 52
Price: Around $8.00
Pre-Smoke & Construction:
The dark wrapper had virtually no flaws, just a visible seam or two. It had an earthy smell, while the foot was more of a straight up natural tobacco. The cigar was solidly packed, with some minor soft and hard spots. Nothing was drastic enough to be of concern. The draw had slight resistance. The pre-light flavor was a musty, earthy flavor.
The ash held for just over an inch, and the burn required a couple small corrections.
Flavor:
The first third: Pepper. Nice pepper with a zing. It didn’t take long for black coffee to join in. The aftertaste hung around for awhile, and kept that peppery tingle.
The pepper calmed just a bit in the second third. It became more of a sweet dry cocoa mixed with pepper. Coffee was up next. Eventually everything evened out and had equal strength. Like before, the aftertaste left a spicy tingle on the tongue and lips. Everything just came together in this third.
The last third kept the same core flavors – peppery sweet spice, cocoa, and black coffee. What changed was the delivery. Strength increased, and everything just tasted richer than before.
Conclusion:
This was a good, solid medium bodied cigar. The flavor profile was pretty simple and straight forward, but well refined. Construction was great as well, which is what we’ve come to expect from anything out of the My Father factories. What about the price? It’s a little on the high end, but the cigar does deliver. You’ll have to judge for yourself. I liked it!