Vitola: Robusto- 5” x 50 ring gauge
- $7.99
- Purchased from Burns Tobacconist
Background
In 2016, the EP Carrillo Cigar Company introduced Dusk, reportedly named after the time of day when Ernesto Perez-Carrillo likes to sit outside and enjoy a cigar. I got to try it on a trip to California not too long afterwards, but it wasn’t until more recently that we got back a large portion of the EPC line into the shop I work at. Dusk was one of the ones I insisted we get…and most people who have tried the cigar agree that it was well worth bringing in.
Dusk is composed of Nicaraguan fillers, an Ecuadorian binder (unspecified, but I believe it’s Ecuadorian Sumatra), and a Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro wrapper. It is available in 4 sizes that come in boxes of 20 cigars.
I have smoked several of this blend, including about 4 or 5 Robustos and at least one each of the Toro and Churchill sizes. I bought this Robusto for review at Burns Tobacconist.
The EPC Dusk is available from Cigar and Pipes and Small Batch Cigar, both of whom are Leaf Enthusiast sponsors.
Prelight
The EPC rebranding effort over the last few years has been very successful. While the original look of the EPC cigars was good, they got to a point of overusing it. Every blends would have an almost identical main band with just a few tweaks to it or a secondary band. Now the main logo has been revamped, each band is an individual work of art that works to better effect, and they sometimes get footbands to help classify them into different categories (this one is apparently part of “The Classics”). The dark blue “night falling” background of this band perfectly connotes “dusk” and goes well with the bright gold foil and red of the logo.
The wrapper leaf was a dark chocolate brown and slightly oily to the touch, although there was very little oil visible to the eye. It had a slightly rough look and feel, typical of Broadleaf and smelled strongly of earth and wood. The foot of the stick had more wood, along with a mineral note and some earthiness.
Once cut, I got a good draw from the Dusk. There were cold flavors of wood and hay, earth and copper.
Flavor
Initial puffs on the Dusk gave me flavors of high-cacao-content dark chocolate, espresso bean, cedar, and earth, along with a peppery finish and retrohale. From the beginning, body seemed to hover around the medium range. As the first third continued to burn, I got notes of charred wood and deeper coffee flavor. Unsweetened cocoa powder was definitely in the mix while pepper faded a bit.
In the second third, the coffee flavor got a little more refined and there was more sweetness in the chocolatey notes, which was a welcome addition. The retrohale was woody with a bit of coffee bean and roasted nuts, but very little pepper.
In the last third, the Dusk is a little sweeter still with coffee notes ebbing a little and earthier flavors increasing. The pepper spice increased slightly to a nice burn on the finish.
Construction
From what I can recall, all samples I’ve had of the Dusk have had a great draw, even burn line and solid ash.
Value
The price tag on these is excellent, especially for such a good stick.
Conclusions
Not having ready access to EPC blends for some time, I missed out on some key new things they introduced. The Dusk is a great blend that I have been enjoying on a regular basis and recommending to a lot of customers. It’s medium-to-full with plenty of complexity, including a nice progressive bitter-to-sweet chocolate flavor, dark roast coffee, pepper and earth. I would call this a definite “must try” for fans of Connecticut Broadleaf.
By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10
