It’s been friggin’ cold out here in the West the past few days — in the 20’s at night, which may not sound that bad to some of you in the great frozen North, but it’s hell on us desert rats. It’s a particular challenge for cigar smoking desert rats who have to step outside for a quick smoke. So it comes down to a short fast smoking petite corona or robusto, or nothing at all. And the last option is not very attractive to me.

So I commenced to dig through the humidor to find a stick that would satisfy these rigorous criteria and came up with this Felipe Gregorio. I’ve had a few of these before, and have found them to be satisfying full bodied cigars. Many years ago they were considered one of the top quality brands, and they still are, but the quality of cigars in general has improved so much in the past few years that ol’ Felipe has more competition these days.

The information from the manufacturer:

“Felipe Gregorio cigars are the full equal of genuine factory Havanas.” Havana seed Nicaraguan filler and binder. It is full bodied with mellow spiciness and earthy flavors, including nuts and herbs.

• Wrapper : Habana 92 Sun Grown
• Binder: Condega
• Filler: Condega, Esteli

• Tabacage 2000

The wrapper on this bad boy is rough and rich looking, dark and somewhat oily. The scent is leathery with lots of barnyard. It clipped cleanly and a prelight pull reveals a nice draw and a bit of spiciness on the tongue.

Once lit this cigar billows with strong woody smoke. This is a very full bodied cigar, from the first puff to the last. The construction is quite solid, resulting in a fairly slow but even burn. The wrapper needed a little help at first, but after a little encouragement from my torch it needed no further assistance.

The Felipe Gregorio robusto is a meaty cigar that displays a lot of what I look for in a full bodied Nicaraguan– the focal taste is very woody with a delicate sweetness, and the followup is quite spicy. It tickles the sinuses and bites a bit at the back of the throat. By the midpoint the bite is almost too much for me. But by this I don’t mean to imply that it’s harsh — the smoke is actually quite smooth, but it’s so full bodied and spicy at this point that it is a little overwhelming on the palate. It’s got a little kick to it too, so it’s certainly an after dinner cigar.

This stick is packed and builds a long solid light gray ash, and much to my chagrin as I sat out in the cold, it burns quite slowly. I bought five of these from Cigarbid for less than two dollars a pop, so I didn’t feel too bad about abandoning it at the two-thirds point after about thirty-five minutes.

It isn’t the most complex cigar, and if you smoke it inside it’s guaranteed to clear the room of non-smokers. But at this price it is most definitely worth your while, if you’re a fan of full bodied cigars with a Nicaraguan flavor profile. Try it, and stay warm this winter!