Vitola: Lancero- 7.5” x 38 ring gauge
- MSRP ~$10
- Purchased at Burns Tobacconist
Background
This cigar was a little unexpected. After all, Crowned Heads had already shipped the 2018 version of the Mule Kick, which was based on the Four Kicks Maduro, and they have never before shipped two Limited Edition cigars based on the same blend during the same year. But it showed up at Burns in mid-June.
Turns out it was an early release for TAA store members who ordered it during the annual TAA convention earlier in the year. Crowned Heads made 1,500 boxes of 10 sticks and sold over 500 of them to the 80 (or so) TAA stores around the country. The remaining boxes will be offered on a first-come-first-served basis at the IPCPR show (which is happening as I write this review).
For those who need a reminder, the Four Kicks Maduro blend uses Nicaraguan filler and binder, along with a Connecticut Habano Maduro wrapper. It is made at EP Carrillo’s La Alianza factory in the Dominican Republic. I used halfwheel’s article on this release for some background information. I have smoked two or three of these before this review stick; all of them were purchased at Burns.
Prelight
The box for this release is pretty much the same as the regular Four Kicks Maduro release: deep red with gold type and art. The banding is the same as we saw on the 2018 Mule Kick: Four Kicks main band along with “Limited Edition 2018” secondary band. The wrapper leaf was a dark roast coffee bean brown with about as much oiliness as you would see on dark roast coffee beans, too.
The aroma from the leaf was leathery with touches of earth and anise. The foot was even stronger with anise notes. When I rolled the cigar on my desk, I noted that it wasn’t perfectly round and straight, being slightly bent. Hopefully it wouldn’t have a big impact on the burn of the cigar.
After clipping the head, I tested the draw and found it to be very good. I got licorice, mild pepper and a slight dried fruit sweetness on the cold draw.
Flavor
I lit up the Four Kicks Maduro Lancero and got immediate flavors of wet earth, leather and red pepper. Surprisingly, the anise that was so strong in pre-light was very subtle after fire was applied. There was also a subtle sweetness like dried berries and the retrohale had a huge peppery kick that was not at all unpleasant. Body was on the shallow end of the “full” part of the spectrum right from the start.
By the time I got to the second third, the body had already ramped up into a “full” full-bodied spot. I got more leather and anise, while the earthiness had toned down a bit. Espresso bean notes came into the mix and the sweetness faded to almost nothing.
The last third had strong espresso bean flavor along with leather and pepper spice. The sweetness you might expect from a Maduro was there, but held down by the other strong flavors that dominated.
Construction
Despite the slight bend in the cigar, the draw was pretty much as good as you get in a Lancero. The ash was solid and burn line was very even.
Value
I found the price tag to be reasonable for a limited edition size.
Conclusions
In case you didn’t know it, this is pretty much the same leaf as used on the Liga Privada T52. The T52 isn’t described as a Maduro, but it does share some of the same flavor characteristics as this blend, with tons of leather, coffee and anise notes in the mix. Surprise, though…I think I prefer the Four Kicks Maduro, especially in this Lancero vitola. It’s really a great cigar that is almost completely unlike the medium-bodied original Four Kicks. If you can get your hands on this Lancero version…do it!
TAA shops got these early, but unfortunately neither of our sponsor shops are TAA members, so they don’t have them at the moment…but they should soon. Keep an eye on CigarandPipes and Small Batch Crowned Heads pages
By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9.5/10
