Toro, 6" x 50 ring gauge, approx. $5
Amazing to think that a year ago I did not even know Savinelli made cigars. Then I discovered the Liga Especial; it is a remarkably full-flavored, medium-bodied smoke that became one of my favorites. In my search for the other cigars with the Savinelli name on them, I found this Nicaragua Reserve. As the name hints, this cigar is a Nicaraguan puro with a Habano 2000 Corojo wrapper. It has a mild box pressed shape, noted on the box as "Cuban Box Press." It was introduced in 2002.
This was not a pretty cigar. The wrapper was very mottled and had several veins that looked more like Frankenstein monster keloid scars than leaf veins. The band was attractive, though--simple without being dull or amateurish. The aroma from the wrapper was barnyard; from the foot I got hints of cocoa and coffee along with more barnyard. There did not appear to be any soft or hard spots when feeling the length of the stick. The leaf was soft and velvety but with a considerable amount of oil. The prelight draw had plenty of chocolaty flavor along with just a little coffee and some anise--excellent cold draw flavor that promised great things to come.
On light-up, initial flavors were of cocoa powder and creamy coffee along with a little hay or grass. There was also a slight nutty flavor when blown through the nose. Surprisingly for a Nicaraguan puro, there was no pepper or spice of any kind. That was not the last surprise, either. The Nicaragua Reserve turned out to be a barely medium-bodied cigar with some nice, although not terribly strong, flavor. During the first third I got distinct cocoa notes along with muted coffee and roasted nuts, but the finish seemed very short and the flavor was gone almost as soon as I took the cigar out of my mouth. After experiencing so many Nicaraguan puros with bold flavors and full bodies, this one was very different.
In the second third, the flavor of coffee got a little more intense and there were hints of a pepper spice as well, although neither was very strong. The burn line was very straight but the draw was sort of weak--it was not tight, it just did not produce much smoke unless I dragged on it 2 or 3 times in a row.
There were no surprises in the last third--no sudden jump in body or radical change in flavor profile. I got more cocoa, coffee and roasted nuts. The small amount of pepper spice that seemed to be building in the second third went away and all that was left was a cigar that was just pretty...average. It is cheap enough and mild enough that you could give it to an occasional smoker and he would probably really enjoy it, but I felt there was not enough in the Nicaragua Reserve to excite a seasoned enthusiast's palate.
Body: 4/10
Strength: 4/10
Complexity: 5/10
AFP Scale
Prelight: 1.5/2
Construction: 1.5/2
Flavor: 3/5
Value: .5/1
Total: 6.5/10
That is not at all what I experienced with this cigar. The stick I smoked was strong, (ended in a head rush.) The flavors were readily recognized, and their profile was different. I would describe the first half as a "standard" cigar taste with nothing special, a solid medium, and the second half like having my entire palate smothered in a wonderful cinnamon candy flavor with a nice mild spice.
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