Cigar Review: EO Cubao Maduro

No. 5, 6.125" x 50 ring gauge, approx. $8.50
The Cubao has been around for a couple years or so--I cannot tell you an exact time as that information is difficult to find online. I was introduced to the original stick by my friend, Keith, in the middle of last year and I was very impressed. I smoked a few of these and rated them a 9 out of 10, so I was thrilled to hear that EO was adding a maduro variety to their line-up. As before, this stogie was blended by Don Pepin Garcia and manufactured in his factory in Esteli, Nicaragua. It has Nicaraguan filler and uses as Ecuadorian broadleaf maduro leaf for the wrapper.

The Cubao Maduro was dark, evenly colored and somewhat oily. There were some fairly large veins and a bit of toothiness, but you really had to look hard as the darkness of the wrapper hides these things very well. The stick was not too firm to the touch. The aroma from the body was sweet tobacco and barnyard and from the foot there was compost, wet earth, and chocolate. The cold draw was excellent and I got prelight flavors of cocoa, coffee, and dried fruit.

There was an immediacy to the fullness of this cigar--three puffs in and the smoke was thick and strong. Initially, I got flavors of black pepper and leather, with undercurrents of cocoa and coffee. The remainder of the first third was earthy and full with smoky black coffee, leather, and beefy flavors along with some pepper hits every now and then.

The second third continued much the same: earthy and meaty with some maduro sweetness mixed in there to balance it out. The construction was very good--the burn line did go crooked, but burned evenly nonetheless: evenly crooked! The draw was nothing short of fantastic.

Calling a cigar "smoky" may seem redundant, however the final third definitely was that: smoky in the way that a dark roast coffee or a single-malt scotch might be described as smoky. There was still a deep earthiness and the body was full with coffee notes a'plenty. Bottom line for me: this was a great smoke and I enjoyed it more than the regular version. This puts me in the minority for this stick: most reviews that I have seen have expressed disappointment with the maduro variety after enjoying the regular version. To me, though, the Cubao Maduro is full-bodied and full-flavored, with a great deal of complexity. It is also a fairly strong cigar that should not be smoked on an empty stomach or by the novice or occasional smoker. I declare this one another home run for the team of Espinoza, Ortega, and Garcia.

Body: 9/10
Strength: 8/10
Complexity: 8/10

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