Originally published at Tiki Bar Online
Left-Right-Left-Right (Corona Gorda, Box-Pressed), 5.625″ x 46 ring gauge
I got to take a look at both releases from the Dissident Cigars catalog back in August, finding both worthy additions to the cigar world, but preferring Bloc over Soap Box. Soon after that article was published, I heard from one of the principals in Dissident Cigars thanking me for the press and asking if I’d like to try more for a full review. “Sure!” I thought I might see some more of each blend, but instead I got one of each size from the brand that proclaims, “I [heart] the ’80s!”…Bloc. I have tried each size, unsurprisingly finding that most of the ones I like best are the smaller ring gauge vitolas. Today I’ll be looking at a cigar that goes by an inscrutable name defined by arrows, so I just called it “left-right-left-right,” and in fact all the vitolas seem to be named after button combinations from an old video game console. There is more info on the Dissident website now, so I can tell you that the filler is Mexican and Nicaraguan (Estelí), they used a double-binder from Jalapa (Nicaragua), and a Habano wrapper from Jalapa.
As stated in my previous piece, the band artwork speaks to me. It’s fun, it’s playful, it doesn’t take itself too seriously. Nothing wrong with being serious, but not every company needs to do so…the trick is to be fun and playful without looking foolish and I think these guys do the job well. The reddish brown wrapper felt oily and smelled woody and sweet, while the foot was earthy with a touch of cedar. The cold draw was easy and had notes of earth, wood, and coffee, along with a touch of something mildly sweet.
Lighting up was easy with just my single-flame torch and soon I was enjoying the flavors of cedar and earth, sweet hay and raisins, along with nuts and a touch of pepper spice on the nose. Soon the Bloc settled into a nice place for the flavor profile; I got more sweetness in the form of the dried fruit but also a touch of chocolate. The pepper spice mellowed out a bit, but there was plenty of cedar and coffee on the palate.
Cruising into the second third, the Bloc was sweet and easy on the palate. To be honest, I reviewed this at the end of a couple rough days of “the real job” and it really hit the spot. Construction was spot-on; the draw was perfect, the burn line was straight enough to not need touching up by the halfway mark, and the ash was not in the least bit flaky.
In the final third, I got more nice, smooth sweetness from the Bloc, as well as an increase in earthiness and a return of the pepper spice. The part of the cap left after clipping started to unravel, but I was able to lick-and-stick it back on with no further issues. In all, this was a great smoke. It delivered a consistent goodness with a decent complexity that combined to create a solid hour-plus of smoking enjoyment. Body was medium to full and strength was medium-plus, making it an easy cigar to recommend for all but novice smokers. Thank you to Dissident for letting me try all the sizes; I think I was right in saving this size for the review as it was my favorite.
Body: 7/10
Strength: 6/10
Complexity: 7/10
AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9.5/10
