Vital Statistics:

Wrapper: Honduras (San Agustin)

Binder: CT Broadleaf

Filler: Dominican Republic, Honduras, Mexico

This toro is a tasty medium-bodied cigar that is notable for its delicious aroma. It’s an attractive stick: rough, somewhat dry, and a rich colorado maduro in color. The richness of the color goes beyond the visual when at first light the smoke envelopes you in a sweet, cinnamon-laced cloud.

San Agustin leaf is also used to great effect in the Bolivar 2005 blend and the Punch Gran Puro. I don’t know what they’re doing in the San Agustin valley, but whatever it is, it’s working. The wrappers they’re growing are among the best on the market, I think.

The Spanish Rosado Familia has a perfect draw and a fairly even burn — it never needs correction, though it does go a little off at times. It forms a very light gray ash that drops with great reluctance.

The flavor is somewhat woody — a very nice complement to the cinnamon and chocolate from the wrapper. There is only the slightest bite, a tingle really, on the tongue towards the middle of the smoke. The flavor gets a little muddier, a little deeper into the earth as the stick progresses to the mid-way point. But the aroma remains rich and lovely to the end.

I really enjoyed this cigar up to the two-thirds mark when the muddy tones began to overtake the aroma. The finish is fairly strong at this point and I had to send for a diplomatic envoy — Sierra Nevada Stout — to moderate the argument between my nose and my tongue. Ultimately an agreement was reached, and the cigar was amicably extinguished.

A very nice cigar, but I think I prefer the Punch Gran Puro, which has a similar flavor profile but is a little less earthy, if memory serves. It may not.