Vitola: Toro- 6” x 50 ring gauge
- MSRP $10
- Samples provided by Emilio Cigars
Background
It was almost 7 years ago to the day that I published my first review of a cigar called “Grimalkin.” That cigar was produced by the “old” Emilio Cigars, headed up by Gary Griffiths. I couldn’t say everything I knew about the blend at the time, but I did find out at some point that it was basically a Nicaraguan puro, made from Habano leaves from three different farms and assembled at the My Father factory in Estelí. The band art was pretty terrible and I said so…and in direct response to my criticism (and others’, I would guess), the cigar was soon renamed “La Musa.” It stayed in production a couple more years before Emilio fell on some hard times and most people assumed they closed up shop.
Not quite, though…I was given an early sample of a new version of Grimalkin in 2017. Apparently it took some extra time to get exactly what they wanted because I heard nothing else until a few sticks showed up in the mail in June of 2018, along with a press release stating:
“Grimalkin was always a cigar that stood out in the Emilio portfolio…I like the theme and style of the cigar, it just needed an update and so we put our Oveja Negra spin on it. Since the cigar is a Nicaraguan Puro, my goal was to highlight the qualities I love about Nicaraguan tobacco. The blend is very spice forward with a lot of complexity and depth, balanced by a rich creamy finish,” said James Brown, owner of Fabrica Oveja Negra.
So, like the original, the 2018 Grimalkin is a Nicaraguan puro…though that doesn’t really mean anything in terms of similarities in flavor profile. This version if made in the Oveja Negra factory, the same place that makes Black Label Trading Company (BLTC) cigars. The blend is available in 25-count boxes in either Toro or Robusto size and it began shipping nationally in May 2018, distributed by Boutiques Unified.
I have smoked two of the samples they sent before this review sample. Despite the silly banding of the original, it scored very well and was in the running for my Cigar of the Year in 2011 (back when these pages were still called “Tiki Bar Online”).
Prelight
In case you didn’t know, “Grimalkin” is a very old word that basically means “gray cat,” but could also mean “a spiteful old woman” or a “low class woman” depending on whose definitions you read. BLTC’s influences in felt right away on the banding. BLTC uses a lot of human skulls on their artwork, so it’s no big surprise that here we have a cat’s skull in gold foil. That is surrounded by a larger black silhouette of an intact cat’s head, while off to the left and right there is a dark green metallic looking background with gold trim stripes and black paintbrush swashes. In one of these swashes are the words “Grimalkin” and “Emilio.” It is minimal and it may take people a minute to figure out what they are looking at…but it’s definitely an improvement on the original band.
The wrapper leaf was a dark-medium brown color with a good amount of red in it. It had a slightly oily, slightly velvety feel to it and smelled like cedar, peppers and earth. The foot of the cigar was very earthy, with touches of cocoa powder and coffee.
I clipped the end and got a good test draw on it. The flavors on the cold draw were of cedar, hay, coffee bean and earth.
Flavor
The Grimalkin started with strong flavors of cedar and red pepper up front, along with mellower notes of espresso bean, earth, and semi-sweet chocolate. The retrohale was extremely peppery, almost perfectly exhibiting the “spice forward” trait that James Brown spoke of above. As I moved through the first third the flavor evened out to just cedar and earth, with a little pepper and cinnamon in the background. I also got a bit of a rabbit hole down the center of the bunch, which is the third time in three sticks this happened. This one was not as severe and I got through it within just a few minutes.
The second third of the Grimalkin had the return of cocoa powder and coffee bean flavors, while earth moved to a supporting role and pepper spice almost disappeared completely.
The last third had stronger earth notes, the return of cedar and a slight return of pepper spice. Cocoa powder and coffee flavors had taken a back seat.
Construction
The draw was good except when I had the issue with the rabbit hole, the burn line was wavy most of the way necessitating several touch-ups, and the ash was pretty solid up to half an inch or so. The fact that I got rabbit hole (or tunnels) on all three of the samples I received is a little alarming and makes me wonder about the consistency of rolling at Oveja Negra. I understand that it happens sometimes, but this was more than “sometimes.”
Value
The price tag on these was good for a small factory, small distribution company.
Conclusions
If you were in love with the original Grimalkin—like I was—you should know that this is most definitely NOT a return of that blend. While this one was definitely a good example of Nicaraguan tobacco, it just did not excite my palate like the original did. To me, it definitely had a “family resemblance” to other BLTC cigars, so if you are a fan of those, you should probably seek out this cigar. If you are a Nicaraguan leaf fan, you should likewise give this one a try. Just don’t expect to be taken back to 2011.
By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 1.5/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 8.5/10
