Vitola: Robusto- 5” x 50 ring gauge
- MSRP $9.50
- Samples provided by Miami Cigar & Company
Background
Late last year, La Aurora released a cigar to commemorate the 115th anniversary of the oldest continuously operating cigar company in the Dominican Republic. Following on the previous La Aurora releases 100 Años and 107, it was not surprising that they called this limited edition release the 115. That release came in Belicoso and Gran Toro sizes. This is not a review of that blend.
Instead, at the 2019 IPCPR show, La Aurora introduced the 115th Anniversary Edition in 4 sizes that feature a different blend than the previous limited edition. While the LE was all Dominican except for some Brazilian in the filler, the regular release version has Dominican, Nicaraguan and Brazilian fillers, a Brazilian binder, and an Ecuadorian wrapper. Along with the Robusto I’m reviewing today, they are available in Toro, Belicoso and Gran Toro formats.
I was sent two samples of the blend by Miami Cigar & Company, La Aurora’s US distributor. This review is based on the second one I smoked. Some background information was taken from Cigar-Coop’s news story on this release. Leaf Enthusiast sponsor, Small Batch Cigar, has both regular and limited versions of the 115 available.
Prelight
The boxes for the 115th are sharp and classy, black with red and gold trim, a look that is echoed in the bands. Interestingly, both eschew a large presence of the traditional La Aurora lion imagery. The lion is there, but it’s small and rendered only in gold foil rather than the full-color picture seen on most of their releases in the last decade or more.
The wrapper leaf was a medium-brown color with some darker mottling with a look that makes me think it’s Ecuadorian Sumatra (the varietal is not specified anywhere I looked, although couple places indicated it could be Ecuadorian Corojo). The wrapper leaf had a fairly dry feel to it and an aroma of earth and leather. The foot of the stick had a richer earthiness to it.
After clipping the stick with my Xikar Xi, I got a very good draw that had flavors of hay, citrus and white chocolate.
Flavor
The La Aurora 115 started off with cedar and grassiness up front, along with touches of earth and citrus coming in right behind. There was some spicy cinnamon in the mix, fading to a black pepper heat on the finish. The retrohale was leathery and citrusy, with a moderate amount of heat. As I burned through the first third, citrus came up in the mix along with the cinnamon spice.
In the second third, the La Aurora 115 took on even more citrus note, with a distinctly lemon zing. That was backed up by cinnamon spice and lesser leather notes, while the retrohale had roasted nuts and red pepper spice.
The last third burned fairly quickly and had more leather, while the citrus and sweetness took a back seat. Cinnamon spice held on steady throughout.
Construction
I had a good draw the whole way. The ash was extraordinarily flaky and the burn line was wavy as I’ve ever seen, causing more than one fairly large touch-up. This probably isn’t a cigar you want to smoke while you’re wearing nice clothes you don’t want to ash on. I’m not calling it a “problem,” so to speak, because it didn’t cause any diminishment of the experience, but it is something you might want to be aware of.
Value
The 115th Anniversary Edition continues La Aurora’s run of producing very good cigars at prices that are quite affordable.
Conclusions
The La Aurora 115th Anniversary Edition (regular release) is a very nice cigar, medium-plus in body, and complex enough to keep my interest from end to end. It fits in nicely in flavor profile and price with the rest of the La Aurora portfolio, while not repeating anything they’ve done before. La Aurora has worked hard in the past decade or more to produce some Dominican blends that break away from the traditional mild smokes from that country and this one works very well in that category.
By-The-Numbers
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9/10