Archive for the ‘Esteban_Carreras’ Category

Esteban Carreras Covenant

Monday, March 25th, 2013

My pal Ed had an Esteban Carreras event recently. Naturally, this meant I had to pick a few up. The Covenant is a fairly new release (to me). Considering my lack of reviews lately, it became my random choice for today. Let’s get to it…

 

Wrapper: Habano Oscuro

Binder: Nicaraguan

Filler: Nicaraguan

Size: Toro 6 x 54

Price: $7.95

 

Pre-Smoke & Construction:

The wrapper was velvety smooth, and had an odor of earth and barnyard. Overall, the cigar was evenly packed, and very soft when squeezed. This led to a draw that was very free. The pre-light draw had a simple earthy flavor.

Esteban_Carreras_Covenant cigars Tunnel

True to many box pressed cigars, the burn required quite a few minor corrections. In the first third, there was a tunnel in the center of the cigar. Luckily it was short lived, but made getting smoke difficult for about a half of an inch. Thankfully, this only happened on one cigar, the others were fine. The ash held for just over an inch.

1 Esteban_Carreras_Covenant cigars

Flavor:

The first third started out with smooth earthiness. In short order, the smoke feel became creamy and sweet. Retrohaling revealed an easy, peppery spice. Simple, but not bad at all.

2 Esteban_Carreras_Covenant cigars

The second third saw a decrease in creaminess. This allowed the sweet spice to stand out. Earthiness fell to the background, and was replaced by nuts and creamy coffee.

3 Esteban_Carreras_Covenant cigars

The spice became sweet and creamy in the last third. Not the burn your face off spice, just smooth, sweet, and with a  little kick. Like before, nuts and creamy coffee followed behind. Earthiness pretty much went away completely.

4 Esteban_Carreras_Covenant cigars

Conclusion:

This was a good medium to upper medium bodied cigar. It started out fairly bland, but quickly built in strength and complexity. The loose packed nature of this cigar made me skeptical, but it turned out to be no problem. While there was really nothing unique or special, I think it’s still worth a try.

Esteban Carreras 5150

Thursday, September 15th, 2011

It’s been a busy week. So I resigned myself to missing todays review. You see, I often schedule reviews a week or two ahead of time. Basically the reviews you read are often written a week or two ahead of time. Not today. Here I sit on a Thursday night, determined to meet my self imposed deadline. While I’m at it, a quick Ed & Tom update… We will most likely get together on the 24th. The review will follow about a week after that.

On the menu today was a cigar I first tried at an event Ed had recently. I liked the sample that I smoked, and found one in the humidor that I bought awhile back at the Habana Cigar Factory. As for the name 5150, are they talking about Van Halen’s first album with Sammy Hagar? Maybe they are referring to the California Welfare and Institutions Code that basically means you are nuts. “Joe got 5150’d last night.” Who knows. Who cares. I paired this cigar with water as always…

 

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra

Binder: Nicaraguan

Filler: Nicaraguan

Size: Toro 6 x 50

Price: Around $5.00

 

Pre-Smoke & Construction:

The chocolaty brown wrapper had a nice oily look to it, and had minimal veins and flaws. The wrapper had a dark sweet smell. The foot had more of a spiciness. The cigar was solidly packed, with barely a hard or soft spot. The draw had some resistance, but feel within my tolerances. The pre-light flavor was sweet earthy tobacco.

The ash held for around an inch, and the burn required no corrections.

1 Esteban_Carreras_5150 cigars

Flavor:

The first third opened up with a simple earthiness. After about 1/4 of an inch, an interesting woody flavor joined in. The smoke took on a thick feel with a tinge of sweetness. After about an inch in, a nice spice joined along with a little pepper. Passing smoke through the nose there was cedar, sweetness, and spice.

2 Esteban_Carreras_5150 cigars

The second third developed into a nice sweet mocha. Mixed with it was a tingly spice that clung to the inside of the mouth and sinus. Woodiness and earthy notes fell into the background. Occasionally they would stand out, and then fade into the background again. At the mid way point I picked up black coffee and the associated bitterness. I don’t mean a strong, bad kind of bitterness. The smoke feel was sweet and creamy.

3 Esteban_Carreras_5150 cigars

The last third kept that sweet mocha-ish flavor, with a bitter sweet aftertaste. Coffee was up next. The woody and earthy flavors were still in the background. Basically the flavors stayed the same, but the delivery switched up a little, much like in the second third.

4 Esteban_Carreras_5150 cigars

Conclusion:

This was a good, solid medium to upper medium bodied cigar. The flavors were smooth and refined. The complexities in the flavor profile were nice as well. Basically it hit the spot for me. As I often say, it wasn’t anything groundbreaking, but this cigar delivered. Considering the price point, I’d say it met or even exceeded it. This cigar is worth a try.

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