Falto Mentor
Tuesday, February 15th, 2011Luis Falto was kind enough to send me a box of these for review. The Falto Mentor is in honor of Luis’ teacher, Manuel Inoa. Manuel is the master blender and production coordinator for La Aurora. Luis and Manuel have been working together for around 16 years. What attracted me to the Mentor was the beautiful, classy looking box. Inside you find 20 great looking cigars, and an autographed note explaining what this cigar is about (in Spanish). Falto is a small boutique company, which means Luis can be directly involved in every aspect of his brand.
I paired this cigar with water, and offer you my thoughts on the Falto Mentor.
Wrapper: Habana Vuelta Arriba grown in Ecuador
Binder: Brazilian grown Sumatra & Cameroon
Filler: Dominican, Brazilian, & Nicaraguan
Size: 5 3/4 x 54
Price: Around $7.50
Pre-Smoke & Construction:
The chocolate bar looking wrapper had no real flaws, and had a few medium sized veins. Holding it in the light, it had an oily glisten. Sniffing the wrapper, I found it to have a mild cedar and earthy odor. The foot had a mild natural tobacco smell. Squeezing the cigar, I found no inconsistencies, and barely any sponginess. The pre-light draw was free, with just a little bit of resistance. The pre-light draw had a sweet cedar flavor.
The ash held for about two inches, and the burn required no corrections.
Flavor:
The first third greeted me with pillowy clouds of smoke. Initially there was a smooth woody taste with earthy undertones. The flavors opened up a bit after the first inch. When passing smoke through the nose, there was a pleasant spice that had a little kick. The smoke became somewhat creamy and took on some sweetness. That sweetness eventually became co-co with a coffee-ish tint.
The second third remained smooth and creamy. The core flavors were basically the same. There were woody notes, but the prominent flavor was a coco-ish, sweet creaminess. Coffee notes were still there, and I could swear I picked up some fruity undertones from time to time. Through the nose, the spice was still pretty mild, but the strength of it’s kick varied. The aftertaste lingered on the palate long after exhaling.
The last third basically rotated dominant flavors. Sometimes it was real woody, and other times it was creamy coco. All the while cinnamony spice made the mouth tingle. Through the nose, the spice kicked up a notch in strength with a cinnamon spice.
Conclusion:
This was an excellent medium bodied cigar that may have crept into the full range in the last third. The overall flavor profile was very good and well refined. I still am debating on if my crude review does it justice. No matter, this cigar tastes good, burns slow, and made me relax. Luis – Thanks for being so generous and letting me try this cigar. The Falto Mentor is a winner, I say try it!
