Vitola: Short Churchill- 4.75” x 47 ring gauge
- ~$12
- Purchased at Burns Tobacconist
Background
While putting together a Tatuaje event order a couple months ago, I saw something I hadn’t noticed before: Reserva sw Short. I did a double-take and then checked the box next to this one…sure, we’ll do a short version of one of the better-selling classic Tatuaje lines! Turns out it was publicly announced…I just don’t read the sites that obsess over every bit of news all that religiously…who has time?
So this cigar uses the same blend as the original Reserva sw: Nicaraguan filler and binder, along with an Ecuadorian Habano Rosado Claro wrapper. For the longest time I figured “sw” stood for “South West” and it was originally some kind of regional release…but, no…it’s a nod to “Sir Winston”…as in Churchill. The Reserva sw is a Churchill sized cigar with a lighter-colored “rosado claro” wrapper, but still part of the “brown label” range. Yes, it uses almost the same secondary band as the “Reserva Broadleaf” series from Tatuaje, but look closely and you’ll see that “Broadleaf” is not on this secondary band…it doesn’t stop customers from being confused.
I have smoked several of these since we got them at the shop, all of which I purchased. You can get your hands on your own at your local authorized Tatuaje retailer. At the time of this writing, our sponsors—Small Batch Cigar and Cigar and Pipes—were either sold out or hadn’t listed this size on their site. But that can change on an almost daily basis, so maybe as you look at this, they do have them…you should click and find out.
Prelight
There are several divisions in the “Brown Label” range from Tatuaje, one of which is those made in Miami versus those made in Nicaragua. The Reserva sw Short is made in Miami, so it has the accompanying price tag…and I think it should look nicer, too…hey, I’m paying more money for it! Thankfully, it does…under the standard Brown Label and Reserva secondary band, the wrapper was a light-to-medium brown color with a slight reddish tinge in some lighting. It had a slightly oily appearance and left just a little oil on my fingers after touching it. It had aromas of sweet hay and molasses, with just a touch of a vegetal note. The foot of the cigar was earthy and cedary, with a bit of a coffee overtone.
The cold draw was very good, tasting of wood, hay and a little syrupy sweetness.
Flavor
The Reserva sw Short fired up with vegetal and earthy notes up front. Sweet hay, a touch of molasses and red pepper followed behind. The retrohale was intensely peppery with notes of roasted peanuts coming through as well. Before long the cigar settled into a very nice medium-plus bodied mix of sweet and spicy flavors, that reminded me just how good the regular Reserva sw is…and how much I enjoyed the 15th Anniversary Rosado Claro (which is pretty much the same blend, I believe).
As I got into the second third, I noted that the flavor was trending slightly toward a more earth and woody profile, as sweet and spicy notes took a back seat, not dissipating fully, but just helping everything to balance well.
The final third was sweet, woody and a little earth, while the pepper spice notes made a slight comeback.
Construction
I had a great draw, very even burn line and solid ash.
Value
Great cigar with most of the flavor of the 15th Anniversary Rosado Claro, but $7-8 less? Yes, please!
Conclusions
It took me years to try the Reserva sw for the first time…it’s a slightly higher-priced stick than most of the other Tatuaje Brown Label offerings. When I did, though, I discovered that the extra price is worth it. When I heard about this Short sw version, I was all over it the minute it landed in the shop. This is a great stick with plenty of complexity for a price that isn’t too high most of the time. I hope they keep this size around for a very long time.
By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9.5/10