Cigar Review: Something Special by Felix Assouline

Originally published at Tiki Bar Online

Sublime (Robusto), 5” x 52 ring gauge / MSRP $4.50

You know that old joke about the bar named “The Office”?

Wife calls…man answers…”Yeah, Honey, sorry I’m not home yet…I’m staying late at The Office.”

He’s not lying because that’s where he is…just not the office she’s thinking of. The last in the series of cigars I’ve been reviewing for Felix Assouline Cigars is kind of like that…

Charlie: ”What are you smoking today?”

Fred: “Something Special.”

Charlie: “Cool, must be a special occasion, what cigar is it?”

Fred: “Something Special.”

Charlie: “Oh…so you don’t want to tell me?”

Yes, this cigar is literally Something Special, made with very familiar ingredients to the rest of the Felix Assouline lines: Nicaraguan and Honduran filler and binder, Indonesian binder, and a Habano 98 wrapper (all the descriptions for makeup of cigars are the same for their blends, but they all have different outcomes, so I’m guessing percentages of filler leaves changes quite a bit and I believe there may be differences in growing locations and primings of certain tobaccos). These are available in 6 sizes, in boxes of 50.

To be totally fair, this cigar is priced at the low end of the Felix Assouline catalog of cigars…not quite bundle territory, but not far off, either. The band is nice, although not quite as nice as some of their other cigar art, relying here on just two regular colors along with some metallic gold ink and light embossing (rather than the foil that we saw on the EGO). The feel of the wrapper was very nice…an oily, almost velvety smoothness under the fingers. Like almost all of their other cigars, this one was box-pressed, albeit quite softly. The wrapper was a dark tan color with some slightly darker mottling and a few veins showing up, although they seemed to have been flattened out in the rolling process. Giving thåe cigar I sniff, I picked up mostly just a fresh hay and natural tobacco aroma from the wrapper and a bit of wood and earthiness on the foot. The prelight draw was good and had a mix of cedar, hay and citrus flavors.

At the outset, Something Special was the mildest of the Felix Assouline cigars, displaying primarily notes of hay and sweet citrus, while hints of earth and wood could be detected underneath. There was very little in the way of pepper spice on the nose and practically none on the palate. The retrohale was more nutty than anything. The rest of the way through the first third, the SS was mellow, smooth, and sweet. It really didn’t stand out to me as the name suggested it should, but it was not bad, either.

The second third went along mostly the same. It was sweet with notes of hay and cedar, but so far it wasn’t showing a lot of complexity. The construction was very good; I had a fine draw and solid ash, while the burn line only needed a couple minor touch-ups so far.

In the last third, Something Special continued to be a mellow and enjoyable smoke that, despite its name, just didn’t blow me away. Without a doubt, it is a good smoke, but I just didn’t find anything all that special about it, which is disappointing when served up a cigar that promises more than “good.” I got more hay and subtle sweetness, along with just a hint of pepper spice creeping in. Maybe the “special” part was the fact that it is a solid smoke without breaking the bank or emptying your wallet. The body was right around medium and the strength was the same. With the name I wish I had enjoyed this one more, but maybe this cigar just needs a different name.

Body: 4/10

Strength: 5/10

Complexity: 5/10

AFP Scale

Prelight: 2/2

Construction: 2/2

Flavor: 3.5/5

Value: 1/1

Total: 8.5/10