Vitola: Toro- 6” x 52 ring gauge
- $30
- Purchased from Small Batch Cigar
Background
So I have a two-part explanation to give before launching into this next series of reviews. First, it’s been a bit of a pain to find new products to review in the last year or so. I haven’t gotten far outside my Chattanooga bubble and my local shop hasn’t gotten a bunch of new releases…partly because in the era of COVID no reps were showing up at the shop…and the shop has always been a fan of the reps showing up in person and selling them on the new stuff. So I had to go outside my normal channels to find new products, but even then, I haven’t had a tremendous amount of money to spend on cigars because of how my work situation has changed in the past few months.
Which brings us to the second thing: I decided to order a sampler from Small Batch Cigars, a Leaf Enthusiast sponsor. I found a sampler that had mostly stuff I haven’t had before and decided to go back to what I used to do, at least for a little while: cigars get one shot at impressing me.
I used to do “single stick reviews” all the time. The reasoning being that most average consumers evaluate cigars the same way: you get one shot to impress me. I slowly went away from the practice and almost all my reviews over the past 3 or 4 years have involved smoking 2 or 3…or even 5…cigars during a review cycle. I’m not going to buy several copies of a particular sampler, though in order to do that. So for the next few weeks, I’m publishing a series of “One Shot Reviews.” I’m going to fully evaluate a blend based on the one sample I received in this sampler. Is it fair? As I’ve said, it’s the way most consumers evaluate cigars…so it really doesn’t matter if it’s “fair.” Life’s not fair. Deal with it!
Today I’m starting out with the Cohiba Serie M. This is the General Cigar-owned Cohiba Brand, which is typically made in the Dominican Republic. This time around they contracted with Titan de Bronze in Miami, Florida, to produce the first Cohiba made in the United States (Serie M is for “Miami”). It features Nicaraguan (Jalapa and Esteli) and Dominican (Piloto Cubano) fillers, a Nicaraguan binder, and a Nicaraguan Corojo wrapper leaf.
Cohiba Serie M is sold in 10-count boxes and there were a total of 5,000 boxes made…for a total of 50,000 cigars. Many places are already sold out, but our sponsor, Small Batch Cigar, does still have them available. Since this series started out with the need to buy a cigar sampler, I would be remiss in not directing you to the page on their website where Small Batch features all their samplers. Check it out…and try something you haven’t had before!
Prelight
The packaging for the Cohiba Serie M is really something. And honestly when you’re going to sell a cigar for $30 a stick, you really need to present it as something special. The black box has plenty of ornate gold foil and just an overall beautiful look to it. The main band is dark green and gold mostly with some black around red involving the “Cohiba” name. The secondary band is gold with “Miami, USA” in white lettering. The whole thing is just rich and elegant looking, without aping other brands that are known for the “rich and elegant” category.
The wrapper leaf of the Serie M was a peanut butter medium-brown color with a slightly oily feel to it and an aroma that mixed clean earth, hay, and cedar. The foot was closed, with the wrapper leaf wrapped around it, so it wasn’t surprising that I couldn’t smell anything more there. The cap had a short “fantail” finish that many people might recognize from the La Palina Goldie series that comes from the same factory. And since I’m reminded that the Goldie comes from Titan de Bronze, I am also reminded of just how great blends coming from that facility can be. Expectations just got ramped up.
Once I clipped the head, I got an excellent draw featuring flavors of sweet hay, bell pepper, cedar, and natural tobacco.
Flavor
I fired up the Cohiba Serie M and got it burning evenly in short order. I picked up notes of hay and cedar right at the beginning, followed by earth and leather, along with a finish of black and red pepper. The retrohale was very nutty with a slight sweetness. Right off the bat, this really just didn’t “feel” like something from the General Cohiba line…or at least not from the “classic” entries in the line—Red Dot, Black, XV, or even Nicaragua. It did, however, fit right in with some of the other things that have happened since Sean Williams took over as brand ambassador—Connecticut, Weller, Silencio, for example. This was rich and complex and just a complete departure from the classic lines’ feel…and really not replicating the newer releases, either. It is hard to deny that this was a pretty special blend right from the outset.
As I got into the second third, I noted that the sweetness in the mix was amplified a bit, mostly a sweet hay note, but a little citrus crept into the profile, as well. There was still cedar and pepper in there, but the earth and leather subsided somewhat.
The final third of the Cohiba Serie M had a resurgence of earthy notes along with citrus zing and enough sweetness to provide excellent balance to the proceedings. Pepper spice increased as well, providing a nice red pepper burn on the palate.
Construction
I had a great draw, very even burn line, and solid ash.
Value
Except for the Spectre series, the Serie M is the most expensive General-produced Cohiba I’ve had…but it was truly remarkable and worthy of paying as much as you would for a Davidoff or Padron Family Reserve. Yes…it really is that good.
Conclusions
I’ve read others say it and I’ll repeat it…the Cohiba Serie M is the best General Cigar-produced Cohiba blend yet. It was rich and complex, keeping my interest all the way from beginning to end. While it’s a limited edition, I’m hoping this becomes an annual release, even if it’s in different sizes each year…after all, it’s been done before with the Cohiba line (Spectre) and from Titan de Bronze (Goldie). If it’s not given an annual release, they will definitely be missing a golden opportunity.
P.S. After I wrote this review, I did hear a rumor (this review site is NOT rumor-free) that the Serie M will become a “regular limited” or “annual” release. Let’s hope it’s true!
By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9.5/10
