Vitola: Toro
Size: 6” x 50 ring gauge
Price $9.50
Provided by Puros de Ballard
Background
My first encounter with this uniquely packaged cigars was at the 2013 Chattanooga Tweet-Up. I believe it was Island Jim, proprietor of Leaf and Bean Cigars in the Pittsburgh area who handed me one. At the time it was called the “Leaf & Bean by Oscar.” Then I got an email from Kevin Ballard, representing Puros de Ballard, the company that was distributing the cigars from Oscar Valladares Tobacco & Co. The cigar was now referred to as “LEAF by Oscar” and comes in 3 wrapper varieties.
Kevin was good enough to send me samples of each for reviewing purposes, so I will be tackling one of them each for 3 weeks in a row, starting today. We start with the Connecticut version. This is what is listed on the company’s website for this cigar:
Amazing sweetness from the rich Honduran tobaccos bring this beautifully Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapped cigar to the forefront of our medium flavored product line. The aromatic creaminess flavors exhibited by this cigar make it the perfect cigar with a strong coffee or espresso.
From everything I’ve read, LEAF by Oscar all contain Honduran filler and binder. This particular cigar uses an Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper leaf. They are available in one size only (Toro) and carry a suggested retail price of $9.50. While I’ve had one “Leaf & Bean” before, I cannot remember if it was a Connecticut or Corojo, so let’s just assume this review is based on my first experience with this blend.
Prelight
One thing I love…how this cigar is presented. Instead of being encased in a cellophane tube for protection and presentation, this line of cigars is wrapped in another tobacco leaf. Very fitting for a cigar named “LEAF.” They also appear to be leaves of the same basic varietal that is used for the wrapper, although I would guess they are leaves that didn’t pass inspection for one reason or another and could not be used as wrapper…otherwise it would be an extravagant waste of tobacco and contribute mightily to inflation of the price. When I unwrapped the cigar from the outer leaf, I found several holes in that leaf, although surely a couple of them were made by me in the unwrapping process.
The cigar inside the leaf is what you get to smoke. The band is low-tech and very basic in appearance, but to be honest, going with something very splashy or ornate would fight with the rustic nature of the rest of the presentation, so I don’t mind it. The printing is simple and somewhat…well..simplistic! But the paper for the bands is higher end, giving a touch of class. I probably would have gone with something different but equally as rustic…I can’t fault this approach. The appearance of the wrapper, from its even-colored gold to its small veins to its expert construction, all made me think of a much, much more expensive cigar. The aroma from the Shade leaf was grassy, sweet and clean, while the foot had some earthiness mixed grassiness. Once I clipped the head, the draw was excellent, tasting of sweet hay with a touch of dry earth and pepper spice.
Flavor
The Leaf Connecticut took some doing to get fired up. I try to use my same single-flame Xikar for every cigar I review so there is some context to it; a standard 50 ring gauge stick is usually pretty easy to get toasted and fully lit within 30 seconds. I felt like it took twice that time to get this cigar lit, simply because the filler did not all seem to want to combust. Higher moisture content? I guess, although I couldn’t tell you why. Once it was lit, I got more earthiness right off the bat than I would have expected from the prelight experience. It was peppery, too, with creamy espresso notes, and very little of the grassy, mild flavors I was expecting from a Honduran cigar wrapped in a Connecticut Shade wrapper. So far, I have to say this cigar is a pleasant surprise, exhibiting close to medium body with a very nice flavor profile.
Through the first third, I have to say I was still pleased and surprised with the amount of flavor I got from the Leaf Connecticut. Honduran leaf often leaves me flat (it would be a mistake to say “always”…there are exceptions) and I wouldn’t peg Connecticut Shade as a leaf that would bring a lot more to the party, but this blend was very good, quite interesting and the flavors were not muted (my biggest complaint against Honduran leaf). During the second third, the cigar displayed more creamy coffee notes and an increase in grassiness, along with a decrease in pepper.
In the final third, I found more earth in the mix and an resurgence of pepper spice.
Construction
I had a solid ash up to almost an inch, a consistently great draw and a very even burn line with little need for touching up.
Value
Falling under the somewhat “magical” mark of $10 a stick, this Toro is a good value for the amount of flavor it provides.
Conclusions
As I’ve stated, Honduran tobacco generally doesn’t do much for me in terms of flavor. While there are exceptions, I find the more Honduran leaf, the less I like a cigar. In the case of the Leaf Connecticut, however, I found the flavor profile to be very good and the balance and complexity to be excellent. This would definitely rate as one of my top 10 medium-bodied Connecticut cigars out there and I would definitely put it on the “buy” list.
By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9.5/10
