Cigar Review: Avion 13 Reserva by Tatuaje

Double Perfecto, 6.875” x 52 ring gauge / $11.55, Burns Tobacconist

Avion by Tatuaje is already an interesting story. It goes back to 2009 with the release of the limited edition T110, perhaps the world’s first “thermonuclear” cigar. This was a popular cigar that made the rounds with Tatuaje fans…or at least those that could find them. At the time, I wasn’t keeping my ear to the ground to hear rumblings about Tatuaje limited editions…but I still heard about the T110…I even had one, thanks to a friend. In 2011, the blend was used as the basis for the Fausto, a regular release cigar under the Tatuaje banner, and the Fausto was used in turn as the basis for the Avion. In this case “based on” turned out to be “exactly the same” except that the Avion would be a series of box-pressed perfectos, 3 years, 3 different vitolas, all destined to stay in regular production. And so it went for 2011 and 2012…the Avion 11 and Avion 12 had the same Nicaraguan filler and binder and the same Habano Ecuador wrapper as the Fausto. In 2013, it seems like Broadleaf took over…there were some Avion 13s rolled using the Habano Ecuador wrapper, but they became the true limited edition in this series and the regular Avion 13 showed up with a “Reserva” secondary band, which in this day and age, means “Broadleaf” for Tatuaje. I bought one for this review…and if I end up loving it, a box may well be in my near future.

If you like the way the Avion looked in previous years, you’ll like this…the same fairly inscrutable cigar-shaped airplane with a propeller and flying-fish wings…but at least it’s not likely to be confused with any other cigar in the humidor. Rendered in red, gold and black (especially with the “Reserva” band), it’s a good, if strange, look. The wrapper the band is glued around is another thing altogether; this is one of the most beautiful examples of Connecticut Broadleaf I can remember seeing. As a normal rule of thumb, Broadleaf isn’t supposed to be beautiful to look at…it’s rough, dark, mottled and veiny. This appears to have been flattened a bit before rolling to even out the veins, giving the cigar a wonderfully oily feel and appearance. The cap was a still a bit rough, but overall a great presentation. Lifting it to my nose, I got notes of dry cocoa powder and rich earth on the wrapper, along with a ripe earth and woodiness on the foot. Clipping the head and giving it a test draw provided a huge earthy, chocolatey flavor. The prelight tasted so good I almost stopped and gave the cigar a 10/10 at this point…hey, if some magazines can rate a cigar based on an inch or so of burn, why can’t I rate one based on the cold draw?

Eventually I did light the Avion 13…you can only enjoy the cold draw so long. It lit quickly and came to life with a deep earthiness right up front, along with semi-sweet chocolate, black coffee and cedar in supporting roles. I got a big of red pepper on the palate, but a load of it on the nose at the beginning of a retrohale; unlike some cigars, the pepper on the nose didn’t linger. Toward the end of the first third, I started getting hints of anise and dried fruit mixed in with the earth and coffee, while the cedar started to fade just a bit.

The Avion 13 did not waste time hitting its stride right at the beginning, but it continued to throw great flavors at my palate deep into the second third, changing up to how more cocoa powder, then a little more coffee, then a bit more cedar. All the while, the construction proved to be excellent, with just a couple minor touch-ups needed to the burn line, along with a perfect draw and an ash that held for over an inch.

Through the final third, the Avion 13 kept serving up Broadleaf goodness. Plenty of earth, plenty of chocolatey semi-sweetness, along with fleeting hints of anise, cedar and pepper spice. Truly a phenomenal smoke with tons of complexity. I like the Fausto blend with the Habano wrapper, but it truly shines with this Connecticut Broadleaf and this may just be my new favorite Tatuaje…alongside the Jason and Noellas Reserva, two other Broadleaf beauties from the company this year. The body was medium to full and the strength was about the same. The price is a little higher than I would prefer, but their is always a cost for a perfecto shape and a lower production run, so it’s justified.

Body: 8/10
Strength: 7/10
Complexity: 9/10

AFP Scale

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

Originally published at Tiki Bar Online