Review Fonseca Maduro Cigar

Hey all! We have had a good run of weather in this last week! Was even able to get into the pool, even if it was to just vacuum it out!

Looking ahead, I will be reviewing a new cutter on loan from Turk, called the Shuriken Cigar cutter.

Today though, I will be reviewing a Fonseca Maduro Cigar.

Originally this cigar hailed from Cuba, but today is manufactured in the Dominican Republic at the MATASA Factory, from Master Blender Manuel "Manolo" Quesada. It is said that it rivals and even outperforms its Cuban original!  Wrapped in a Maduro Connecticut Shade wrapper, it has well aged Dominican long-fillers and a Mexican Binder. 

I'm guessing the size to be 5 x 50. Oils can easily be seen on the body, and especially on the cap. The cap seems to have spots that are slightly lifted, looking to be sloppy work of the roller. The wrapper has slight veins and has a musty smell to the body. The foot smells of sweet chocolate and raisins. 

Prelight draw is good, but I am getting a slight bitterness to the lips from the wrapper. 

Upon light I am getting that Tang I so dislike from Cuban style cigars. At first glance I am not to enthused about smoking the whole cigar, but i decide to give it a chance.

About an inch in I start getting earthy tastes. The tang is starting to subside, a relief to me. The cigar is producing a a dense dark grey ash. At first this cigar had a slightly uneven burn, but has now evened out.

The cigar is producing a good volume of smoke and now bringing chocolate to my palate. This cigar is really getting better and I am glad I gave it a second chance as I was tempted to throw it out in the beginning.

I had a 3 inch ash and as usual, it fell off just as I was reaching for the camera! 

The strength of this cigar is medium and its taste is slightly less than medium.

The cigar was clean to the mouth and had a long lingering finish.

Buzz Rating on this cigar I give a 4 out of 10. Definitely not over powering but very enjoyable.

Overall I give this cigar a 3 out of 5. This by no means says that this is a bad cigar. It was rather enjoyable to smoke. At first I didn't think so but it surprised me with a total turn around in taste. This cigar would be good for handing out to your buddies around the campfire or any kind of gathering. 

Like it?: Yes

Buy it again?: Maybe, but not my first choice over other cigars.

Recommend it?: Yes, This would be a good cigar for newbies wanting to move up from milder cigars.

So thats That! Keep checking back for new posts and reviews or plug in your email address in the appropriate place in the right column to be notified of new posts.

Enjoy the good summer weather!

Till next post..........................Peace!

New Reviews Coming This Week

Hey all! Just a heads up that some new reviews will be showing up in the next week.

So stay tuned and check back!

Good weather returning to the Adirondacks will bring more opportunities to get out by a campfire and smoke some good sticks with friends!

Hoping to get together with some of my Posse in the next few days.

Till next post.................................Peace!

Review CU Avana Maduro

Hey all! Finally got a minute to myself to flip through the pages of my ever valuable cigar diary!

This summer looks pretty promising with cigar reviews featuring another beauty from the humidor of Paul Joyal of Ocean State Cigars. His new line in the J Grotto Series entitled "Silk" has got us here at Cigar Moose excited with anticipation!

Also Meatloaf has got a couple premium cigars lurking in his humidor for us to review. Looking forward to it Pal! You'll have to wait and see what we got!

 As promised I am here with another review of a great affordable cigar!  The Cu Avana Maduro!

The Cu Avana Maduro is made by a Master Blender, Manuel Quesada. He is the man behind Fonseca, Casa Manga, and the creator behind the original Dominican Romeo y Julieta. 

The Cu Avana Maduro is made with a naturally fermented Connecticut Broadleaf  Maduro Wrapper that  is oily to the touch, which also contributes to a slow burn. 

It is described by Cigars International as having spicy notes and layers of complexity that mellow suddenly into a mild, very pleasant sweet cigar. Using the same Dominican Longfiller as the Cu Avana Natural, It is described as being mild, smooth, and pleasant.

Lets Get Started!

First thing I notice is the gorgeous dark oily veiny wrapper with it's generous cap. The body is firm and smells of sweet tobacco. The foot takes on notes of sweet raisins. The band came off easily and not marring the wrapper. And that is a plus in my book, as there is nothing I hate more than ripping the wrapper while taking the band off, because some employee was too generous with the glue putting the band on. 

Prelight draw was good with sweet nuances to the taste. Upon light I get a blast of toasted nuts, very mild in body, and really good sweet Maduro flavors coming through.

As the cigar progresses, it produces a dense grey ash with an even burn. And believe me when I say this is a slow burner! There are no real pronounced flavors that I could pick out at first. Mild through the nose. Not alot of spice so far. 

Just before the halfway point I start getting some woody notes, with a bit of chocolate. A really nice combo!  

It's at this point the wrapper starts to unravel at the foot partway up the body. This may be due to some humidor issues I had at he beginning of the new year. My humidor decided it didn't want to keep humidity at optimum levels. Further investigation revealed that although the two humidification squares I had in the humidor were fully saturated, for some reason they weren't expending the humidity from them. I didn't even know they could go bad, and have yet to find any info to prove such.  So at this point I have to pull out my trusty chapstick and put a small dallop under the separated leaf to adhere it back to the body, preventing it from further unraveling. And in case you were wondering, I fixed the problem in the humidor by removing the squares and replacing them with a jar of gel beads soaked in the Humidor solution. No Worries!

I must say that this cigar produces a good volume of smoke, which smells just like a Sancho Panza Double Maduro. Very pleasant unique aroma!

With a third left of cigar, I get more wood and chocolate coming through. The strength is picking up also to a bolder profile. Tastes are becoming a bit bolder, and progressing into a much better cigar in my opinion. I really am a fan of the Sancho Panza Double Maduro, so the aroma of this cigar really peaks my likability as it is so much like that line. 

I know they tout this cigar as being mild, but i must say as this cigar progressed it picked up in strength as it progressed right to the end, with a bold ending layered in spice. I guess my terminology is a bit confused.

What I learned from this cigar in terms of terminology was that a cigar can be mild in the sense of buzz, but its flavor profiles can be spicy and bold. I guess you can learn something new everyday! So when I said earlier that it was picking up in strength, what i was meaning was bolder tastes and not the buzz.

So with this knowledge, I ca be happy to say I thoroughly enjoyed this cigar!

This cigar can be had From Cigars International ( www.cigarsinternational.com ) in bundles of 20 ranging at present time from $30 to $40 based on your size preference.

Buzz rating on this cigar I give a 4 out of 10. Not a lot of buzz but this in no way detracts or negates this cigar.

Overall I give this cigar a 4 out of 5. Very pleased with this one. Lots of smoke with a unique aroma. Mild yet bold on tastes. And a great value for the price.............Hands down, everyone should have some of these in their humidor.

Till next Post................................Peace!

Still Here!!!!!

Hey all! Just checking in to let you all know I am still here! Been a busy Spring here with outdoor clean ups and all. Getting the property in good shape before the wife yells!

More reviews on the way in the next couple days, so check back! More good reviews to come!

Stay Tuned!

Till next Post........................................Peace!