Vitola: Elegante en Cedro- Size: 7” x 50 ring gauge
- ~$14.00
- Purchased at Burns Tobacconist
Background
I have lots to say about the Sobremesa from Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust…after all, I named it Cigar of the Year for 2015, specifically in the Cervantes Fino vitola. That size, to me, had the best balance for a blend that has a fantastic flavor profile, no matter what size you smoke it in. Early this year, Dunbarton owner, Steve Saka, was traveling through Chattanooga. He stopped at Burns and gave me a pre-release sample of one of the new vitolas he was working on: Elegante en Cedro. It came out at the 2016 IPCPR show in July and arrived at the store a few weeks later.
To review, Sobremesa is a 4-country blend using seven different types of tobacco. There are four types of Nicaraguan leaf, plus some Pennsylvania Broadleaf, in the filler; a Mexican binder; and an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper. The combination of everything creates a complex and rewarding smoking experience, even though the different sizes don’t generally get over medium in body.
This is the first of the full production, shipping version of Elegante en Cedro that I’ve had and I bought it at Burns. Since I have already published a full review of the blend (as well as a follow-up or two), I decided to do this as a “cigar extra” entry just taking some notes on how this blend performs as compared to the others.
Notes
This is practically a Churchill size. Not a “legal” Churchill, if there ever was such a thing…actually no set standard really exists or is enforced for cigar sizes, which is a real frustration some days. If I’m not mistaken, the “traditional” Churchill size is a 7 x 47, but since almost no one seems to possess a 47 ring gauge cigar mold, most of them these days that try for “traditional” are 48 ring gauge…and quite a few on the market that are called “Churchill” are actually 50 ring. So, I’m actually glad Steve Saka didn’t call this a Churchill, but gave it a different name.
With the majority of the cigar sheathed in cedar, the wrapper definitely had a cedar aroma to it when the sheath was removed. Up near the head where there was no sheath, the aroma was more earthy. The foot was a mix of earth, cedar and natural tobacco. Cold draw had hay and earth above notes of wood.
Once lit, the Sobremesa Elegante en Cedro produced a pleasing blend of cedar, earth, cinnamon and pepper spice notes. The pepper on the tongue was mild, like white pepper, while on the nose, it had a slightly harsher bite. Overall, though, the thick, creamy smoke definitely tended to be…um…”Elegant.”
The cigar burned slowly through the first third and into the second, serving up the familiar and pleasing mix of earth, wood and spices that I’ve experienced time and again with other vitolas of Sobremesa. In this ring gauge, it didn’t quite hit my palate as well as the Cervantes Fino normally does, but I have to say it’s a close second.
When I reach for a Sobremesa, I almost always choose the Cervantes Fino, but sometimes it would be nice to have a little longer smoke without sacrificing so much of the flavor and complexity as I feel is done with the Americano or Torpedo Tiempo. The Elegante en Cedro gives me an excellent new option, blended to be very similar to the Cervantes, but in a size that guarantees an hour and a half or more of smoking time. The price is steep, but this is one that’s worth it.
