Cigar Review: Esteban Carrerras 5150

Toro 6" x 50 ring gauge / $7.99

I found this cigar a few weeks ago at my local shop so I decided to pick one up to try. The 5150 by Esteban Carreras is a medium bodied smoke that is said to be part of their value line. The cigar is made up of Nicaraguan fillers and binders all wrapped in an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper. I wasn't able to find much more information that that online. This cigar isn't even listed on Esteban Carreras' website. With my wife's nephews just going back to my in-laws right before I smoked this cigar I felt the name was appropriate. If you aren't aware 5150 is the code the police use to note someone being crazy. After having them over to our house I felt a little frazzled and a little crazy. This was my first experience with this cigar.

As I was looking over this cigar I noticed that the wrapper was of a medium light brown with a small amount of mottling. I also noticed a few gaps in the wrapper along some of the seams, where it looks like it wasn't pulled completely tight. There were some medium sized veins, thought nothing that really detracted from the cigar. As I squeezed the cigar I noticed that it was slightly squishy along with one soft spot near the head of the cigar. The band was fairly simple looking with a black background with the name of the cigar in gold The brand name wasn't mentioned anywhere on the band. There were however some pictures of their symbol, a lion, on the band. It took me a few minutes to remember the brand of the cigar. Maybe I should have written it on a label and stuck it to the cello. The wrapper gave off the scent of leather, and the foot nuts when smelled. The cap clipped off easily and the cold draw gave me a taste of nuts.

As soon as I lit it up I got a definite bitterness on the tongue and some spice on the retrohale. I was hoping that the bitterness would go away and luckily it did after a few puffs. The flavors of cocoa & nuts started to come through after the bitterness went away. After smoking it for a bit the sides of my tongue started to tingle with a slight bit of red pepper spiciness. The cigar had a great draw and produced a large volume of smoke. So much so I had to blow it away at times to be able to see to write notes about it. The burn was slightly wavy at first. The ash was almost a pure white and held on for about an inch. As I got to the end of the first third a leather and woody taste were added to the ones already there. The spice did tone down a bit.

As I started the second third the cigar hadn't changed much. I did get some creaminess that felt like it was coating my throat. The burn did even out and the draw stayed great. The cigar was definitely in the medium bodied range.

As I progressed into the final third the flavors hadn't changed at all. There was still cocoa, nuts, leather, & wood all mixed together. The spice did ramp up a bit on the tongue and in the retrohale.

This was a very enjoyable medium bodied cigar. It has the tastes I like without being harsh. I also really liked the draw and the amount of smoke the cigar produced. The one downside is the price. While $8 isn't that high there are a lot of other great cigars in this price range. I don't think I see myself buy a box of these, but I do see keeping a few on hand to enjoy some afternoon or give out to a someone looking for a medium bodied smoke.

Body: 6/10

Strength: 7/10

Complexity: 5/10

AFP Scale

Pre-light: 1.5/2

Construction: 2/2

Flavor: 4/5

Value: .5/1

Total: 8/10

Agree, disagree or have your own thoughts you would like to share on this cigar? Please leave a comment and speak your mind!