Cigar Review: Camacho Corojo

Vitola: Robusto
Size: 5” x 50 ring gauge
MSRP $6.75
Purchased at Burns Tobacconist

Background

A few weeks back, I saw another blogger post somewhere a question about how often people pre-post their reviews. Most don’t seem to get very far ahead…hey, if that works for you, I can’t criticize. I’ve always been a planner, though, and like to get ahead of the game just in case of too much work, illness, general lethargy, or other unexpected commitments. So how far ahead am I in writing this review? The day I write this is the same day that the review for the Maduro version of the Camacho Corojo posted. I’m not even going to link to that article…I’ll let you figure out when that posted!

Anyway, if you’ve been paying attention, you know by now that Camacho was bought by the Davidoff company several years ago and in 2013 they underwent a dramatic transformation that included new bands and boxes, new taglines, new philosophies, and some new blends for old lines. One of the most important lines in the Camacho catalog is the Corojo. Corojo seeds are originally from Cuba and Camacho maintains that their expression of Corojo from outside the island prison is the closest to “vintage Cuban cigars in their heyday.”

From the website:

In the 1960’s, we received a handful of smuggled Authentic Corojo seeds and began growing them in the Jamastran Valley of Honduras. A rugged area of the country with a similar microclimate to that of Cuba’s famed, Vuelta Abajo region. Over the course of four decades, we learned and perfected growing the original Corojo strain outside of Cuba. Making us the last in the world preserving and in possession of this critical element that made Cuban cigars and Cuban tobacco famous.

The integrity and nostalgia of Cuba’s famed Corojo tobacco lives on. We make it available without the need of a time machine.

Available in 6 vitolas, the Camacho Corojo is a true Honduran Corojo puro, using 3 primings of “Authentic Corojo” for the filler, and Authentic Corojo binder, and a 5th Priming Authentic Corojo wrapper. Authentic (TM). Several years ago, I had my very first Camacho Corojo from the original blend; at the time it stood out to me as a fantastic cigar, so I was eager to give this new expression a try. I honestly cannot remember if I had this new blend before this review sample, but I think I did smoke one.

Prelight

I briefly discussed the band and box issue the last time I reviewed new Camachos. You like it or you don’t. I personally like the “color-coding” although I’ll admit the colors could be a little less…primary…and the bands could be about 30 percent smaller. The only other quibble I have with the re-packaging is that the blend name is very, very small…making it hard to read from any distance (and, yes, I have pretty good eyesight); hell, with the Diploma band in dark blue, it’s hard to read the small type when you hold it up in front of your face in good lighting! So…make the bands slightly small and the blend name slightly larger…and we’re good.

How nice was the “5th Priming Authentic Corojo wrapper” on this cigar? It was beautiful and oily and smelled like a ripe barnyard on a hot day. Probably not surprisingly, the foot smelled about the same. Not a surprise because ostensibly this is all Honduran Corojo grown in the Jamastran Valley…how different could it be in aroma? Don’t answer that.

After the cut, the draw was great. The cold flavors were of cedar and earth and red pepper. And the more I took cold sips of the stogie, the more pepper I got. Preview of things to come?

Flavor

The Camacho Corojo was aggressively spicy and boldly full-bodied right out of the gate. There was definitely a heavy cedar flavor component, as well, along with a milder earthiness. The overall profile of this cigar, though, was defined early on by the pepper spice. On the palate it was subtle, mixing with the other flavors, but quietly setting your tongue on fire. The retrohale made me–a very experienced retrohaler–just about start crying. Lots of pepper. If you want to have some fun, teach people to blow smoke through their nose using this cigar…they’ll cry, you’ll laugh…good times!

As I edged toward the second third, the pepper spice did back down just a little, allowing some natural sweetness to come through, creating a very nice balance of flavors. The burn on the nasal passages really came to a halt by the time the final third was in full swing, replaced by a nutty, cedary note. On the palate, though, the pepper kept growing the entire time.

Construction

I experienced solid construction for the Camacho Corojo: perfect draw, very even burn line and no flakiness in the ash.

Value

At this point, I’m prepared to say that the regular Camacho lines are among the best values in any store’s humidor. Well blended, well constructed, fairly priced.

Conclusions

This full-bodied cigar is a spice bomb. If you don’t like your cigars with lots of pepper…just stay away! If that’s up your alley, though, the Camacho Corojo is sure to please. There was lots of earth, cedar, and citrus sweetness in there with all that pepper, too, so it’s definitely not a one-note stick. Tremendous value overall, but for the most part my palate would demand the extra sweetness of the Maduro version.

By-The-Numbers

Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10