Joya De Nicaragua Cabinetta
I purchased this cigar at a local shop. The double wrapper is what caught my attention. The light wrapper is Ecuadorian. Added on top of it, towards the cap, is a darker Nicaraguan wrapper. So without further ado, I paired up with water and bring you my review.
Wrapper: Ecuador & Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: Robusto No.4 5 x 52
Price: Around $5.40
Pre-Smoke & Construction:
The light Ecuadorian wrapper had a dull sheen to it and had a few bumps. The dark Nicaraguan portion had an almost velvety look, with no real flaws. The light wrapper had a cedary odor, and the darker wrapper was more earthy smelling. The foot had a mild wood and sweet smell to it. Overall, the cigar pretty tightly packed. Around the head seemed to be rolled tighter then the rest. This probably explained the tight draw. While it wasn’t over the top tight, it was a little too snug for my liking. The pre-light draw had a generic sweet flavor.
The burn required no corrections, and the ash held for over an inch. The draw opened up a bit in the second third, making things more enjoyable.
Flavor:
The first third opened up with cedar and mild pepper through the nose. After about an inch, a somewhat creamy earthiness joined in. The earthiness became more of a background note and the creaminess stood out. The strange things was the smoke feel was dry yet creamy at the same time.
As I got into the second third, the tight draw opened up a bit, allowing me to enjoy the cigar more. The same core woody flavor remained. I picked up that bitterness you associate with black coffee, which isn’t a bad thing. While the smoke had creamy qualities, somehow it was crisp and dry at the same time. Through the nose, a nice pepper with a sweet cinnamon type of spice.
During the last third, I hit the Nicaraguan secondary wrapper. It contributed a heavier smoke feel that stuck to the mouth. Coffee was dominant, along with a sweet tingling spice. The other core flavors I mentioned in the previous third fell to the background as soon as I got into the second wrapper. This is a good example of how a wrapper effects the flavor profile.
Conclusion:
This was a good medium bodied cigar. The flavor profile was somewhat one dimensional for most of the cigar. I think I would have preferred more of the secondary Nicaraguan wrapper. It seemed to add that little extra to make things more enjoyable. It’s too bad that it is only present in the last third. All in all, I think this cigar is worth trying.
This entry was posted on Friday, April 15th, 2011 at 12:00 am and is filed under Cigar Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
jjo April 23rd, 2011 at 11:45 pm
Did you feel that this is a legit smoke, or did the double wrapper seem gimmicky to you? It seems a little hard to tell when they come out with stuff like this. They always bring to mind the Sol Cubano Artisan L.E., where the maduro stripe is just pasted on for visual effect. It sounds like a barber pole design would have been more effective, although that can seem gimmicky as well. Always worth trying, though, I guess. It does look cool. Don’t know where I’d be without these reviews, other than in a perpetual head scratching state.
CigarCraig, that must have been a blast! I’ve yet to have my first JdN, but I’m aspiring!