Cigar Review: Xikar HC Series Criollo

Lonsdale, 6" x 46 ring gauge, $8.50
If you are a Prince fan, you might refer to this one as "The Cigar Formerly Known as Defiance" or TCFKAD, for short. When Xikar dipped their big toe into the cigar pool, they produced one medium-bodied stick called the Defiance, gave part of the proceeds to pro-cigar PACs, and created a quality smoking experience...eventually. The truth is that many people who tried the initial Defiance release were unimpressed and even refer to it as "terrible." I was lucky enough to not actually smoke one until around six months after initial release so my first experience was very good. When they expanded the line, one of the decisions they made was to jettison the baggage unfortunately associated with the Defiance name. I personally still think it sounds too much like the alphabetical melange of the luxury auto world: "Hey, have you seen the new Acura HC? At least it's not as ugly as the ZDX! That thing was a total turdbucket!" So...Defiance is now the HC Criollo, but is supposed to have the exact same blend: Honduran and Nicaraguan filler, Nicaraguan Criollo sun-grown binder, and a Nicaraguan Criollo shade-grown leaf that is aged 4 years for the wrapper.

Like the Connecticut, this cigar is a little lumpy, although not as much so. The color is dark tan with a reddish tinge. There was a just a little oil to the touch and no large veins. The wrapper gave off a barnyard aroma, while the foot had a mixture of manure and chocolate. After cutting the draw was free and there were pleasant flavors of hay, caramel, and just a hint of pepper spice.

After lighting, initial puffs had a little pepper, but that increased quite a bit after 4 or 5 draws. It was from the start creamy, nutty and woody. The black pepper started off fairly mild, but really kicked in and became the major flavor component. The smoke seemed creamy, but did not seem terrible thick--but it was a little hard to tell as I was smoking this on a windy day. It started to canoe shortly into the first third but I let it have a chance to correct itself...and it did. The ash held on for up to an inch, which I considered another remarkable accomplishment on a windy day.

In the second third the pepper diminished somewhat at the beginning and flavors of cedar and roasted nuts came to the forefront. So far is was a very good flavor profile, although it did not strike me the same as the Defiance I reviewed some time ago. That had more caramel, coffee and chocolate notes, which I did not pick up so much in this cigar. Of course, part of that could have to do with the different vitola and different environmental conditions at the time of rating.

The final third had more cedar and some sweet spice from time-to-time. Eight months or so ago, I declared the Defiance to be "one of my favorite cigars introduced in the last year." I am very happy that it lives on in the HC Criollo. This stick had plenty of pepper spice on top of a solid cedar and roasted nut base. The construction was especially rock-solid, with the cigar maintaining an even burn line and long ash through winds that were easily the equivalent of smoking while driving a car with the windows down. Love live the Defiance! Er, I mean...long live the HC Criollo!

Body: 5/10
Strength: 6/10
Complexity: 8/10

AFP Scale:
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 4.5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 9.5/10