Robusto, 5" x 50 ring gauge, approx. $8La Aurora debuted the 1495 Series in 2005, and it is made at the oldest factory in the Dominican Republic. The filler is Nicaraguan and Peruvian ligero along with a Dominican Piloto Cubana leaf for balance. The binder is Nicaraguan Corojo and the wrapper is an Ecuadorian sun-grown Sumatra leaf. The 1495 commemorate the year Columbus landed in the Dominican Republic, founding the city of Santiago de los Caballeros.
The wrapper is very nice-looking except for a dark area that looks like a tear just below the band. The aroma from the body is earthy with just a hint of cocoa. From the foot, the chocolate aroma is much richer. This cigar seemed to be well-packed, exhibiting no soft spots, but no rock-hard spots, either.
The prelight draw was fairly easy, just a little resistance and the flavors were primarily chocolate and a little coffee and leather. This cigar took a serious amount of effort to get lit--more than an LFD Double Ligero or Oliva V! Once going, though, the smoke was smooth and fairly full-bodied with the chocolate flavors coming to the fore, supported by a very creamy aspect. The rest of the first third was very much the same: chocolately, creamy with a little coffee and occasional touches of cinnamon and nutmeg. To put it mildly, I really was enjoying this cigar--more than many I had smoked recently.
During the second third there were also occasional hints of black pepper. The only flaw I could find so far was construction: the draw was tight enough for the stick to almost go out if I left it un-puffed for 30 seconds and the ash was crumbly and tended to split apart after a quarter-inch or so.
By the time the last third started, the flavor of coffee dominated and the chocolate had become more of a bitter cocoa. The burn was less-than-perfectly straight and had to be touched up a couple times. The draw continued to be a bit of a drag--literally!
Final thoughts: this cigar was great tasting but the construction issues prevented me from enjoying it to the fullest extent. I would like to try it again and see if the construction problems were just an anomaly--I would love for this to go in my regular rotation.
Body: 8/10
Strength: 7/10
Complexity: 8/10
AFP Scale:
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 1/1
Flavor: 4/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 8/10
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