Cigar Review: Viva Republica Limited Edition Culebra

Cigar: Viva Republica Limited Edition Culebra
Size: 5 3/4 x 39 bound and tied as one (Culebra)
Price: $18.00 MSRP
Sample provided by Gabriel Pineras

Like the hundreds of other cigar bloggers among the Internet, I regularly get news announcements from among the cigar industry. New cigar announcements are always exciting to me, especially if it is something that interests me enough to look into or I know will end up at one of my B&Ms nearby. So when I received an email announcing a new Viva Republica Culebra-sized cigar, I got excited. If you remember my article in the fall of last year, I extolled the joys of discovering the En Fuego Cigars and Lounge Culebra and even named it as one of my favorite cigars of 2014. As one of my favorite vitolas, I am very happy today to be giving my thoughts on it to whomever would like to read about it. What is interesting about this Culebra is that each cigar in the three is different from the other. For review purposes, I will list each cigar, their tobacco blends, and my thoughts on each separately.

Rapture Natural
Wrapper: Ecuadorian HVA
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Brazilian, Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Peruvian
Strength: Medium to Medium-to-Full Bodied

I started with the lightest of the three. This was the only one that the wrapper was ever so slightly pulling away from itself; however, because of the size and how it is made, I’ll let it go (very minor anyway). Grass and herbs greeted me on the pre-light and as I lit it up, the first flavor notes I got was straight spice. After a few minutes of that, the flavor notes meld into leather, cut grass, citrus and more spice (playing the pre-dominant flavor). For those who don’t care for spicy notes, it only lasted around 15 minutes. At the 20 minute mark, mocha notes started to creep into the flavor profile with the leathery notes while the citrus and cut grass faded. The cigar stayed this way until the last third where it mellowed out. Total smoke time was 55 minutes with no issues.

Guerilla Warfare
Wrapper: Ecudorian Sumatra
Binder: Dominican and Mexican
Filler: Brazilian, Dominican and Nicaraguan
Strength: Medium-to-Full Bodied

The Guerilla Warfare was similar to the Rapture Natural in that the flavor profiles were similar. Specifically, the pre-dominant flavors of this cigar were leather and mocha with very little spice. Those flavors stayed exactly there for the entirety of the cigar, coming in at 45 minutes with no issues. This was also incredibly smooth for being ever-so-slightly stronger. While it didn’t have a depth of change, it was a very pleasant smoke.

Rapture Maduro
Wrapper: Mexican San Andrés
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Brazilian, Dominican, Nicaraguan, and Peruvian
Strength: Full Bodied

To finish off the final third of the Culebra, the Rapture Maduro steps the strength up to full bodied. The flavor profile gives more mocha flavors and combines it with something akin to a dark roast coffee and a touch of spice. And like the Guerilla Warfare, it stayed strong all the way through without backing down. And for me, this one was unique in that it smoked the fastest at 30 minutes with no issues.

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

To recap the Viva Republica Limited Edition Culebra:

• This is a unique cigar that from a flavor profile can offer a depth of different flavors that would appeal to an array of cigar smokers.
• I wouldn’t recommend this for new smokers mostly because of the vitola and price as they may not ‘get it’ but for the cigar lovers in your life, they would appreciate something like this.
• Considering that the last Culebra I bought was in the low $20 range, as a limited edition, I think this is a great value for what you get (essentially three cigars).
• If I were to see these out at my local B&Ms or at the online stores I visit, I will be inclined to buy a couple: a few to enjoy and one to hold onto.

And a special thank you once again to Gabriel Pineras for this sample.

One More Thing…

Sorry, I couldn’t help quoting one of the more famous lines in the last fifteen or so years. I have an announcement to make: My wife and I are expecting our second child. To help celebrate the upcoming birth (and to quote a favorite movie series of mine):

“I Want To Play A Game.”

The contest is simple: All you have to do is guess the date of the upcoming child’s birth. And should you get the date correct, you win cigars. For the full set of rules and how to participate,  click on this link that will take you to the contest posting (Do not post any guesses in the comments here – they will not count). I encourage all our readers to participate to not only win free cigars but to celebrate a new life with your fellow brother and sister of the leaf.

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