Cigar Review: Davidoff Especiales 7 (LE 2019)

• 

  image courtesy Davidoff

  Vitola: Robusto Real

• 5.5” x 48 ring gauge 
• ~$30
• Purchased at Burns Tobacconist

Background

This is apparently the “Star Trek” of cigars…because on the marketing materials for it, it says “Where No Cigar Has Been Before.” Whether it’s more “Wrath of Khan” or “The Final Frontier” is what we have to decide here.

Since I’ve already referenced the marketing materials once, I’ll just let those same materials say what needs to be said:

The Robusto Real crosses new boundaries of craftsmanship. In search of new sensations, the cigar gathers tobaccos from seven different regions, blended in perfect harmony to create a truly unique cigar experience. 

Some said ‘more than four filler leaves makes rolling cigars with consistent draws more challenging’. Davidoff wanted to challenge those norms, and did so when the cigar first launched in 2004 with a blend beautifully filled with five filler tobaccos. 

Exceptional, pioneering blending is found in all our Davidoff white label cigars. In the Robusto Real Especiales 7 you will find the same Dominican origin ingredients which are featured in our iconic Signature, Grand Cru, Aniversario and Millennium lines. 

To be specific, the filler of the Especiales 7 is 5 different types of Dominican leaf: San Vicente Ligero, San Vicente Visus, Piloto Seco, Piloto Visus, and Olor Seco. The binder if another leaf of Olor Seco and the wrapper is Ecuadorian Habano.

Only 4,000 boxes of 10 sticks of the Robusto Real Especiales 7 were made. This is a “reproduction” of the “Vintage Blend” originally released in 2004. That being said, it cannot be considered to be exactly the same since every crop year of tobacco has at least minor variations. I bought 2 from Burns Tobacconist, where I work, and this is the second one I have smoked.

This cigar is at different times referenced as “LE 2019,” “Robusto Real,” or “Especiales 7.” I will go with the third option during this review. It’s also worth noting that this cigar got an almost perfect score from another cigar review website and that fact has been trumpeted loudly in the marketing material. The specific cigar that received that review was an original release (2004) reviewed in 2016, so it had approximately 12 years of age before smoking.

They are available at Davidoff Appointed Merchants around the country, including Small Batch Cigar, a Leaf Enthusiast sponsor.

Prelight

Image courtesy Davidoff

The packaging and banding for this release are in line with other Davidoff products, which is to say “understated and extraordinarily elegant.” The boxes have visible wood grain on the lid while the bottom is black. The inside is a mirror image of that and the box is held shut with a magnet, which is a nice trick.

The wrapper leaf was a medium brown color, almost the color of milk chocolate, with very little variation. It had a slight oiliness, a couple prominent veins and an aroma of hay with a touch of leather. The foot of the cigar had a mix of light earthiness, hay, cedar and a slight vegetal note.

The prelight draw was excellent, showing off the superior skills of Davidoff’s rollers to be able to cram 5 leaves of filler into a bunch only 48 ring in diameter and still have a more-than-adequate draw. The cold flavors were of hay and bell pepper, earth and mushroomy funk.

Flavor

After lighting, I immediately got strong cedar flavor, along with funk and hay, bell and white peppers. It was definitely a complex and rich start to a cigar with a mild-to-medium body. Toward the finish I picked up on some citrus sweetness, while the retrohale was woody and nutty with a black pepper heat. The rest of the first third was like a Millennium Blend on steroids…sweet hay, citrus, cedar, increasing pepper and ever-present Davidoff funk, riding on a medium-plus-bodied smoke.

The second third presented some more leathery notes along with the cedar and citrus. The pepper rode along very steadily, while the hay diminished quite a bit and the funk ebbed slightly.

Pepper spice increased somewhat in the final third, where I also got more of an earthy note and a bit of chocolate in the sweeter notes.

Construction

I had an excellent draw, very even burn line and solid ash for over half an inch.

Value

I struggle with the price point of this cigar. It’s undoubtedly a great blend, but I felt like it made an incredible $20 cigar, a good $25 cigar, but a disappointing $30 cigar.

Conclusions

The Davidoff LE 2019 Especiales 7 was a very good cigar with plenty of complexity. After the first one I smoked, I felt very disappointed, but less so as I got toward the end of this review sample. In the end, I still feel like there’s something missing, though. Davidoff has released an unprecedented number of $30+ cigars in the last couple years and some have definitely justified the price tag with a big “Wow” factor. This one was missing the “Wow.” If you love their Millennium Blend, I am confident you will enjoy this cigar, although you might still feel like you’ve paid too much.

By-The-Numbers

Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: .5/1
Total: 9/10