La Flor Dominicana in the past couple of years has earned a reputation for full bodied bombers like the Double Ligero and Litto Gomez Diez cigars. But that’s not all they do. The Reserva Especial is a real sweetheart of a cigar that aims for finesse rather than a crushing blow to the senses.

Cigar Insider (as featured on the LFD website) calls the LFD Figurado a belicoso. It isn’t really, because torpedoes and belicosos are like parejos in that they have straight sides. “Torpedo” and “belicoso” are often interchangeable terms, it seems, but they are distinguished from pyramids, which are figurados having non-parallel sides and a slightly conic cylinder. This Figurado, I believe, is actually a pyramid. No doubt somebody will disagree with the way I’ve split these hairs, and that’s okay.

The dimensions of this figurado are 6 1/2 inches by 32 graduating to 52 at the foot. (Don’t ask me where the 32 comes from. I think there’s some theoretical mathematics at work here.) The wrapper is an even and smooth Ecuadorian grown Connecticut seed leaf with a little bit of ripple in the veins. The binder is Nicaraguan, and the filler is piloto cubano from La Flor Dominicana’s farm in the DR.

The aroma from this pretty stick is sweet and elegant. It’s floral like the best Connecticut wrapper often is, but with a dollop of spice as well. The flavor is very mild for the first inch or so, and then gentle flavors of nuts and wood enter into the mix. The smoke is creamy at first and just gets more so until it reaches an almost buttery texture. At the mid point the flavors pick up a little more heft, but stay basically the same, while the rich aroma continues its long-legged strut down the catwalk. There’s a little bump in the octane at this point, but nothing to kick it past medium grade.

The foot unraveled a bit at first, which I’m going to attribute to operator error; aside from this, it burned perfectly and had no construction defects. I’m not sure if there was much age on this particular stick since I received it in a trade, but I’ll be picking up a few more to experiment with. At six dollars apiece, or about $150 a box, it’s not a thoughtless purchase. I might have to sample a few more singles and give them some thought.

This is a gorgeous, if somewhat flamboyant cigar. It’s not huge on flavor, but it’s long on looks and aroma. I’d hand this out to deserving new smokers in a heartbeat, but first I’d put a few in reserve for myself.