Cigar Review: CroMagnon EMH

Originally published at Tiki Bar Online

For this month’s cigar review, I wanted to review something that I have smoked many times. Looking through my almost-bare humidor, the choices were slim. A couple of “Cubans” (gifts from family who visited the Dominican), a few real Cubans and a handful of single cigars that I keep around for guests. Tucked away in the bottom corner of the humidor I found what I was looking for: two un-banded, dark-wrappered, short and stocky cigars. The CroMagnon EMH.

I’ll be right up front about this cigar: If I were stranded on a desert island and could only smoke a couple brands of cigars for the rest of my days, these would be one of my choices. Skip Martin and Michael Rosales have done great work in building their cigar brand. But while I have enjoyed a couple boxes and a bunch of sampler packs of these cigars, I have yet to put words to my enjoyment. Let’s fix that, shall we?

I didn’t detect any imperfections in the wrapper or in the packing of the cigar. I also didn’t detect anything resembling pre-light notes. Giving the cigar a punch and lighting the end of the cigar with a match, I was met with nice draw with just a little bit of resistance. Unlike the last couple of cigars I have reviewed, this is a true full-bodied cigar. Even then, the thick maduro flavor coupled with touches of pepper and spice does not overpower you. I did find the flavor intensity jumped up after the first third of the cigar but mellowed out after the halfway point and stayed subdued for the rest of its life.

The burn stayed even throughout the smoking time of the cigar. I did notice a small part of the wrapper unraveling itself close to the midway point but it did not pull apart anymore than what is shown on the photo below. No problems other than that.

My final thoughts on the CroMagnon are thus:

• This is a wonderful cigar that will make anyone looking for a full-bodied smoke very happy.
• While it does offer those thick, maduro flavors, you will not be feeling this cigar a day later.
• $7–8 range depending on the quantity you buy, which in my mind is a steal for the quality of cigar you are getting.

As always, thank you very much for reading and I look forward to the next time I can share my thoughts with you.