Vitola: Toro- 6” x 52 ring gauge
- $25
- Purchased at Corona Cigar Company
Background
Last year I brought back a Davidoff Tour Gastronomique from my California trip and visit to Maxamar. It was a fantastic cigar, but I couldn’t even pinpoint the year of release or any other details about it…plus it is fairly certain I won’t be able to get it again…unless Maxamar has some left when I go back out there later this year. On my more recent trip to Florida, I found the “10 Years” version of the Tour Gastronomique at Corona Cigar Company…and they had helpfully labeled the cigar as the “Gastronomique 2014” in the store, so I know when this one came out.
Tour Gastronomique is Davidoff’s annual celebration of “culinary delights” and they produce special cigars to accompany these events. The cigar I’m smoking today was created for the 10th annual Tour. The more recent events feature the Chefs Edition cigars that were released in 2016 and 2017. I couldn’t not find out any other information about this “10 Years Tour Gastronomique” cigar, so I’m flying a bit blind, just knowing that I’ll probably love it.
Notes
The wrapper leaf had a toasted caramel color to it, with a touch of oiliness and a touch of raspy toothiness under my fingers. The aroma from it was earth and cedar, while the foot had an earthy richness along with touches of hay and wood.
Once cut, it was surprising to see how distinctly the binder stood out from the rest of the cigar. Under the thin layer of wrapper and over the varied leaves of the filler, the binder was almost like a thick orange rind…it wouldn’t surprise me to learn they used two binder leaves on this one.
The cold draw was very good and had flavors of cedar and mushroom, along with a bit of a chemical taste that I’ve experienced before on a cold draw…thankfully the note doesn’t seem to translate to the burning stick.
I lit up the Tour Gastronomique 10 Years and was met with flavors of wood and the mushroomy Davidoff funk, which I expected. On the unexpected side was the citrus, almost orange-like, sweetness right out of the gate. Subsequent puffs brought out layers of salt and red pepper.
I paired the cigar with some Redemption Bourbon that I picked up on the same road trip. It was a very good pairing, both the whiskey and cigar being medium or so in body. The whiskey provided some additional sweetness and spice to the proceedings.
As I got into the second third, the citrus sweetness had died down and the cigar was more savory, like slightly charred meat, with the attendant saltiness still hanging around, plenty of mushroom funk and cedar.
This was an outstanding smoking experience and one that I’d definitely do again. That being said, I’m not sure if this was better or worse…or really any different…than the Tour Gastronomique I had late last year. It’s sort of like the Chefs Edition 2016 release versus the 2017 release…those two are exactly the same blend, with perhaps a little variation because of harvest years of tobacco…but some people insist they are different. Maybe so, but probably not enough to really matter. Whatever…I’m recommending buying the Tour Gastronomique in whatever form you find it.
