Vitola: Corona- 5.5 x 46 ring gauge
- ~$7.75
- Purchased from Small Batch Cigar
Background
Esteban Disla is not an everyday name in the cigar business yet, but if the folks he’s working with have anything to say about it, some day you will think of him the way people think now about Don Pepin Garcia or Willy Herrera. Those who know of him probably became aware of him as the head blender for Fabrica de Tobacos Nica Sueña, the factory where RoMa Craft cigars are made. In the past decade he has done some work for other people, too, but in 2016 he released his own brand—Guaimaro.
Guaimaro gets its name from a city in Cuba where the country’s first constitution was approved. The box lid art depicts a stylized version of Esteban and his brother, Raul, as boys working with tobacco, which is what their mother had them doing before and after school to keep them from getting into trouble. The blend is made of Nicaraguan and Dominican Criollos fillers, a Brazilian Arapiraca Castano binder, and a Mexican San Andres wrapper.
It is available in several sizes, most of which I have smoked at least once since I bought a sampler of Guaimaro cigars from Small Batch Cigar, a sponsor of Leaf Enthusiast. Although made in Nica Sueña, it is not distributed by RoMa Craft; this brand is handled by Pospiech Cigars, owned by Mike and Gregg Szczepankiewicz, who also own Cigar Hustler in Deltona, Florida. Pospiech also owns the Powstanie brand, also made in Nica Sueña…and I’ll get to them at another time. I used Cigar-Coop for reference material for this review.
Prelight
The box is a plain wood with black cliche art that is abstract and stylized. It is nice, though. The cigar band itself is plain…almost too plain, really. It uses plain white paper, with black type and a little color inside the “O.” Really, there’s nothing about the band or box that is going to say to a customer “you really need to try me.” That means they will easily get lost in a crowded humidor without someone frequently suggesting them. With a single line of cigars, only 4 or 5 possible facings, and minimalist marketing, this cigar will rise or fall in a store because of word of mouth only. That’s going to make it a non-starter for a lot of larger stores.
The wrapper of the Guaimaro was a rugged medium-dark brown. It wasn’t terribly oily, but there was almost a velvety touch to it, which I haven’t felt in a while on a cigar. The aroma from it was ripe earth and hay. There was very little smell coming from the foot of the cigar, just a tiny bit of cedar and light earth.
After clipping, the cold draw was very good and had flavors of hay, cocoa powder and earth.
Flavor
Once I got the Guaimaro fired up, I got notes of leather, almonds, earth, and dry cocoa powder. The retrohale was woody and very peppery, with the whole flavor profile coming off as medium-to-full-bodied and full-flavored right from the outset. After a few minutes, I noted a sweetness coming into the mix that wasn’t your typical “Nicaraguan Maduro Chocolate.” I took it as more of a hint of black cherry. The peppery notes continued on the nose and grew on the palate.
The pepper continued to grow on the palate during the second third, a solid black pepper that wasn’t “hot” but had a considerable time span. I had more leather and earth and black cherry sweetness, as well.
The peppery heat toned down a little in the last third, mixing with an increase in cedar to give a more cinnamon note. The sweetness backed off a little, too, leaving more earthiness with just a touch of bitterness in the form of espresso bean.
Construction
All the samples of Guaimaro I’ve smoked have been consistently good in terms of construction, with a great draw, solid ash, and even-enough burn line.
Value
For a small factory like Nica Sueña to have small production and limited distribution, yet still keep the prices low is amazing. This is a great value.
Conclusions
The Guaimaro Corona was a very good cigar that didn’t shy away from the Mexican wrapper earthiness, but balanced it very well with notes of wood and black cherry sweetness. While not the most peppery cigar I’ve had, the ramping up and down of that was nice in the complexity it brought to the party. Having tasted some of the other blends that Esteban Disla has made, I am convinced that he is someone to watch out for…all cigar smokers will know and appreciate his work at some point.
By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10
