Originally published at Tiki Bar Online
Player, 6.25” x 42 – 54 ring gauge / $9.45, Burns Tobacconist
Matt mentioned to me that he had seen Mike Ditka at the retail show last year…I think that was the story anyway. It didn’t really make much of an impression on me because I’m not a huge fan of professional football and never have been. I watch a few games a year usually, but I’d rather watch college ball any day. I knew who Ditka was, though…at least I had heard of him. Ditka played with 3 teams in his NFL career, the Bears, the Eagles and the Cowboys. I remember him as the coach of the Chicago Bears during the 1980s, when The Fridge was a player and they always seemed to be a Super Bowl threat (they one once). Late last year, Ditka teams up with Camacho to produce the “Mike Ditka ‘Kickoff Series’” of cigars. Highlighting milestones in his career, the cigars are named “The Player,” “The Coach,” and “The Hall of Famer.” By the time I had the cash on hand to get buy anything, unfortunately, all that was left was “The Player.” Hopefully they will be produced again, or I can find more, and bring you reviews of the other two. According to what I could find online, the Player has Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers, a Honduran binder, and an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper.
The Player comes in an individual coffin, similar to the way Camacho presents the Liberty series. Just that alone made me think these would be $15 to $20 a stick when I first heard about them. I was pretty shocked when they came in at less than $10. Cracking open the little box, I found the band of the Ditka to be a very nice depiction of Mike as a player in 1963 when the Bears won the NFL Championship. The wrapper was smooth and slightly oily and the color was a nice golden shade with just a hint of red in it. Giving it a sniff, I got notes of hay from the wrapper, as well as a bit of cedar from the box the cigar was stored in. The foot had a bit of earth, along with more cedar and hay. After cutting the draw was excellent and had a dry, semi-sweet grassy flavor more than anything else.
The Ditka Player lit up fairly easily and started off as you might expect if you’ve had a lot of experience with the tobaccos that make up the blend. It was mild bodied, creamy, smooth, slightly sweet and had a lot of hay in the profile. I detected lesser notes of earth and cedar and even a little hint of pepper spice, but so far, it seems to be just a nice mild cigar. As I burned through the first third, the flavor profile didn’t change much. I got a little more sweetness and just a touch of maple, but mostly it was hay and cedar in a very mild smoke.
In the second third, the maple sweetness increased just a bit, but so far the body hadn’t increased to the medium range as indicated by pre-release promotions. The construction was excellent; the burn line was very even without needing a touch up, the draw was flawless and the ash for solid.
In the last third, the Ditka Player did start to pick up a little more earthiness, but I have to say I wasn’t totally impressed with the flavor. It was good, but definitely not great for my palate. I am still interested in trying the other blends, but there are quite a few other Ecuadorian Connecticuts out there I would buy first before another of these. The body flirted with the low end of the medium range, but never really got there for me; there was no nicotine strength to speak of in this cigar. As far as “who I would recommend this to” I think it’s pretty simple: if you are a fan of Mike Ditka, but are not a frequent cigar smoker…this very well could be the stick for you. It has good flavor and won’t turn nasty along with a mild body and strength profile that won’t overwhelm the occasional smoker. The price isn’t “cheap” but neither is it all that expensive, especially if for that theoretical “occasional smoker.”
Body: 3/10
Strength: 3/10
Complexity: 4/10
AFP Scale
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 3/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 8/10
