Cigar Review: TAA 2015 by Tatuaje

• Vitola: Box-pressed Toro
• 5.625” x 54 ring gauge 
• Price $11.99
• Purchased at Burns Tobacconist

Background

I’m going to tell you one of my favorite things about working in a cigar shop…occasionally cigars are done in a “wet pack.” They are rolled, banded, tied together with ribbon, then wrapped tightly in foil before being put into boxes. Pete Johnson from Tatuaje is a big fan of this method of packing cigars for shipment. I am, as well, because when one of his boxes of cigars that is wet packed comes in and I get to open it…dear God. I carefully rip open the foil along the foot…careful because I don’t want to damage the cigars. Then I expose all 20 (usually) of the feet of the cigars and stick my nose right up to the bundle. The aroma is intensified and concentrated by being trapped inside the wet pack and that first few minutes is absolutely amazing from a sensory standpoint. Once I take the cigars out of the foil and back into the box for sale, the aroma dissipates within 10 minutes. But every time I get to open up a new wet pack, the same sensory overload is possible.

Such is the case with the Tatuaje TAA 2015, the 5th consecutive year that Pete Johnson has made a special release exclusive to Tobacconist Association of America stores. For this release, he elected to go back to the size and shape of the original: a 5.625” x 54 ring gauge, box-press short Toro. The basic blend of all of them has been the same, with the exception of the 2013 release, which was a blend shared with the other 10th Anniversary Tats.

These cigars are always highly anticipated and this year we got about 75 boxes at Burns (60 in the first shipment and more on the way). Total production run is unknown at this time, but it is “limited.” This Tatuaje TAA 2015 uses Nicaraguan filler and binder leaves, along with a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper. I smoked one right off the truck last week and it was pretty great. I bought a few more to bring home and made sure to let this next one (for review) sit in my humidor for 5 days before smoking time. But here goes…

Prelight

In some ways the Tatuaje TAA release is a simple statement, with the Tat special release band featuring the TAA’s Indian logo in it. It’s a familiar look that has come to mean “excellence,” but the finish of this particular cigar seems to suggest something else. The cap wasn’t evenly glued down, showing dark shadows in a couple places…and the wrapper had a spot where the same thing had occurred. Just to make sure it was an aberration, I inspected the other 3 cigars I had taken fro the same box…I found no flaws on them. It doesn’t seem to be endemic, but this does make me want to keep a closer eye on the cigars I am selling from this batch of Tats…as well as watching for construction faults on other My Father products in the future.

The somewhat sloppy construction finish on the cigar was outweighed by the beauty of the Broadleaf, with its dark chocolate color, oily touch and deep cocoa powder aroma. The closed foot is messy, but it’s supposed to be that way. Giving that I sniff, I picked up earth, coffee and more cocoa powder.

Once I cut the cigar with my normal Xikar Xi straight cut, I got a very good draw with a rich, semisweet chocolate, earth and pepper spice notes.

Flavor

Once fired up, the TAA 2015 Tatuaje had notes of roasted nut, leather, and earth layered upon dry cocoa powder, espresso bean and red pepper. The pepper came through most prominently on the nose. By the time I got 10 minutes into the cigar, the pepper mellowed out a bit and allowed for some more subtle notes of cinnamon to climb through. As I paused to think about it a bit more than I have in the past, this point is when the cigar started to go from “really good” to “really great.” There were more subtle notes of raisin and natural tobacco flowing through, as well, and I notice just how tasty this stick was.

The second third continued the complex and pleasing flavor profile of dried fruit, cocoa powder, coffee, earth, and pepper. It seemed like everything took its turn center stage at some point, before going back to playing a vital supporting role.

The last third of the Tat TAA 2015 was full-bodied but mellow. By that I mean the smoke was oily and mouth-coating, packed with the flavor of espresso and cocoa powder, earth and raisin, but at the same time it was not aggressive or overpowering.

Construction

The ash was strong and held for about 3/4 of an inch at a time, while being semi-flaky. The draw was perfect and the burn line was even enough for a Broadleaf.

Value

These are not cheap cigars, but they are one of the best things Tatuaje produces every year, so they are definitely worth the price.

Conclusions

In times past, I’ve smoked some of the TAA releases from Tatuaje, but I’m not certain I paid as much attention to the experience as I did this time. If I had done so, I probably would have thought much more highly of this cigar going into it. As it was, the TAA 2015 surprised me with its complexity and full-flavor. I’ve had plenty of other Tats that use my beloved Connecticut Broadleaf, but this is very possibly the best. This cigar is great now and will likely age very well. Get these while you can. I’m going to go out on a limb and say these will end up as a “Cigar of the Year” finalist for me.

It probably goes without saying since I work there, but…if you want to get your hands on Tatuaje’s TAA 2015 release, but don’t live near a TAA shop, you can visit the Burns website. We’ll be happy to ship some your way.

By-The-Numbers

Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 10/10