Cigar Review: Quesada Keg 2016

Cigar: Quesada Keg 2016
Size: Toro (6 x 50)
Wrapper: Pennsylvania Broadleaf
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Price: $39.75 for a five pack ($7.95 per stick) from Smoke Inn

Making a few purchases recently specifically for reviewing cigars, I came upon the familiar Quesada brand. I have to say that I don’t have a lot of experience with the brand, as the only time I have smoked them was from the gift pack at the 2014 Tweet Up and remembering being blown away by their Oktoberfest. This key point about the cigar more or less secured the purchase of the cigar (from Smoke Inn):

“…the Keg has been carefully blended to suit the darker, chocolate and malt characteristics of an Irish stout.”

Yes please.

No construction issues or irregularly packed spots were found on the Quesada Keg I used for the review. I did notice that the Pennsylvania Broadleaf wrapper used for the cigar had areas of varying color. Interesting as I don’t see that in cigars very often. The pre-light aromas I found were primarily cocoa and tilled soil, to a much lesser extent. The cold draw gave me a single flavor: more cocoa. The lighting gave me a even, balanced draw with opening notes of coca, mild coffee and a hints of leather. I would say the strength on the Quesada Keg is somewhere between medium to medium-to-full bodied but incredibly smooth and easy on the palette. One of the first things out of my mouth while smoking this was “I really need a Guinness or some sort of milk stout because it would pair perfectly.” The strength and flavor profile more or less stayed the same throughout. The halfway point gave me more cocoa with a modest addition of spice, with the last third of the cigar increasing slightly in strength to finish out the 1:45 smoking time.

The only dig I can make at this cigar is minor but while I enjoyed the flavor profile, it doesn’t really go anywhere. That’s not always a bad thing but I think it would be considered truly exceptional if it were a little bit more complex and grew further in strength as the cigar smoked onward. Barring a minor burn correction and a relight near the end of the cigar, the Quesada Keg 2016 gave me no real problems and was a joy to smoke.

By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10

To recap the Quesada Keg 2016:

• Here is the perfect companion to a stout beer. This would also fit the bill if you are looking for a rich tasting cigar that isn’t going to put you on your back.
• The flavor and strength profile of the Quesada is one that can be enjoyed by all levels of cigar smokers.
• Fantastic value for the five pack at just under $8 per cigar.
• I can almost guarantee another five pack will find its way to my humidor before the end of April.

As always, thank you very much for reading and I look forward to the next time I can share my thoughts with you.