Cigar Review: Accomplice by Principle Cigars

If you were a follower of this blog’s predecessor The Tiki Bar, then you probably read the year-in-review round up a few months back.  In it, I mentioned a new company that was preparing to launch based in Nashville, TN.  That company is Principle Cigar, and indeed it has launched.  The company is small and as of right now, has only been doing certain events in town to get its name out before it launches its website (www.principlecigars.com).  It does, however,  have a Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/principlecigars) and it is pretty active.  I would visit them there for more info and inquiries about purchasing cigars.   When I was initially shown this Accomplice line a few months ago, I inquired about what the MSRP would be and was told would be around the$8 mark.

Before I get into the review, I’d like to give a brief overview of the company.  Principle Cigars was founded by Darren Cioffi, an international businessman with a flair for antiques and the unique.  Throughout his travels, he has met several people in the cigar industry.  Being an avid cigar enthusiast himself, he recently decided to go ahead and start his own line of cigars and partnered with close friend and Principle Cigars master blender, Hendrik Kelner***.  And if you need to know Kelner’s pedigree, then all you need to know is one name: Davidoff.  Everything else, as they say, is gravy.  His Tobacos Dominicanos, S.A. has produced cigars for everyone from Davidoff to Avo to The Griffin since 1984, and in the middle of last year, started working with Cioffi’s newest adventure.  But enough of the history, let’s move on to the review.

Principle Cigars Accomplice

Principle Cigars Accomplice

The cigar I was given, by Cioffi himself,  was a Dominican puro lancero.   It had one of the sweetest pre-light smells I’ve probably every had.  Not a sweetness like molasses, but more like a light, sweet, tobacco/floral scent.  The cigar had a delicious looking chocolate-y wrapper that was well-constructed, embellished with a purple satin band with gold printing.  The cap even had a little pig tail.

Principle Cigars Accomplice

Principle Cigars Accomplice

Cutting the cap and lighting up, the first notes I detected were the sweetness lingering from the initial aroma I noticed earlier.  Then I found partnered alongside was a mix of chocolate and muddled with a hint of leather.  There was a nice bit of smoke but the draw was a little tight for my preference.

Principle Cigars Accomplice

Moving into the middle part of the stick, the sweetness transformed into a spiciness with an undertone of graham cracker. The burn stayed solid and even, with lots of nice billowy smoke.

Principle Cigars Accomplice

Principle Cigars Accomplice

Rounding out the cigar, the flavors morphed into a blend of the initial and middle tastes.  The spice became a bit more prevalent while losing the cracker taste, yet picking up more of the subtle leather notes introduced at the beginning.  It was a nice harmonious finish to a lovely cigar.  The flavors ebbed and flowed without having abrupt starts and finishes.  It was a nice, natural, organic feeling as opposed to something that was forced.     And the cigar had depth without being too complex.  For me, this is a great medium bodied cigar that doesn’t have to have a great marketing campaign to sell itself, the cigar does that nicely on its own.

Principle Cigars Accomplice

Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 1.5/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10

***For more information on Hendrik Kelner, check out these articles.
http://www.cigaraficionado.com/webfeatures/show/id/TobaccoMan_6121/p/1
http://www.cigaraficionado.com/webfeatures/show/id/17048