Robusto, 5" x 54 ring gauge, approx. $7
This cigar is part of Perdomo's 10th Anniversary triumvirate: the Reserve 10th Anniversary is available in Connecticut and Criollo wrappers in addition to today's Maduro. The Reserve 10th is a natural progression of their Reserve line which debuted in 1998. The 2008 version is handmade in Esteli, Nicaragua, and features all Nicaraguan tobaccos.
This cigar practically knocked me over with aroma when I freed it from its cellophane. It was a rich, chocolatey aroma that was extremely pleasant. The wrapper had some barnyard aroma, too, but the foot was that rich chocolate and coffee aroma. The wrapper was fairly oily, but rather rough to the touch due to its toothiness and medium-to-large veins; the dark color hit these attributes well, though, unless you closely scrutinzed it. The cold draw was very good--there was just a bit of resistance and it would probably be "just right." The prelight flavors were of coffee and dark chocolate and it left a spicy tingle on my lips.
On initial light, this cigar was rich and full with flavors of coffee and cocoa. It had a very nice amount of sweetness from the maduro leaf, too. Dark, strong coffee ended up dominating the first third, with bitter cocoa powder and maduro sweetness rounding out the flavors nicely. A peppery spice gradually grew throughout as well, contributing a nice mouth burn. The body started off at the low end of the full range and started to build from there. The burn line canoed slightly in the middle of the first third, but had corrected itself before the second third got underway.
When I removed the enormous band, I once again had a chunk of wrapper come off with it, signaling that I would need to be cautious with this one during the second third. Shortly into it, the pepper spice went away fairly quickly, but the coffee flavor got more intense--almost an espresso expression of the bean.
The coffee continued in the last third and was joined by a nuttiness and a return of black pepper. All along the way there was just enough sweetness to balance out the bitter flavors, making for an overall wonderful cigar. The hole left by the overglued band cause no unraveling or burn issues; the construction was otherwise excellent, requiring no touch-ups along the way. I found the Reserve 10th Maduro to be a truly great cigar that should satisfy the maduro fanatics out there. For myself, I enjoyed this more than any maduro in quite a long time. This would be excellent at any price point, but at Perdomo's rates, it's a steal.
Body: 9/10
Strength: 7/10
Complexity: 7/10
AFP Scale:
Prelight: 2/2
Construction: 2/2
Flavor: 5/5
Value: 1/1
Total: 10/10
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