Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano 2000
Binder: Dominican Criollo
Filler: Dominican Pilot Cubana
Size: 7 x 54 “Dos Horas-Churchill”
Body: Mild/Medium
Price: $15.00 (From Switzerland)

The quote below comes from Stephane Aprile, Sales Director of El Sueno:
“El Sueño debuted in 2005 by aficionado, Mirko Giotto. His idea was to offer a medium bodied cigar for enthusiasts and especially for people that wanted to discover the cigar’s ability to bring you a world of flavors.”
“He decided to create a special blend with the finest Cuban tobacco plants and the most exceptional soil of the Dominican Republic. Actually El Sueño Cigars offer 5 classic vitolas : Short Robusto named “Treintas”, a Robusto, A Corona, A Belicoso, and a Churchill named “Dos Horas”. All the 5 vitolas have the same blend. Due the different sizes, different flavors are experienced in every kind of cigar.”

From what I’ve read, this is giving Davidoff, and the Cuban market, a run for their money in the European market. In Spanish, El Sueno translates as “The Dream.”

Construction is beautiful. The light tan/creamy wrapper looks like Bambi. Very few veins. Very solid. A bit toothy with a matte finish. The cap is impeccable.

I do the snifferoo and detect soft buttery notes. A creamy aroma mixed with nuts.
The dry draw produces almost nothing except a bit of spice and nuts.

I light up.

Man, this is a big cigar! The first few puffs are creamy and nutty; like its aromas. It tastes buttery. It is extremely mild. A bit of spice lies in the background. The draw is a breeze and the char line is good.
For me, this is kind of cool….smoking a European cigar and finding out what Europeans like in their sticks. Now from what I’ve read, and I have no confirmation from Stephane, these sticks are not cheap. Mine arrived in a box full of custom stamps from Switzerland.

And while I am concerned that the cigar may be too bland for my tastes, it arrives. The black pepper gets bolder. The creaminess and buttery smooth components are very nice. The char line becomes perfect. A raw almond flavor appears.

Since this stick will take me two hours to smoke, I’m sure Stephane won’t mind me adding one of my rock n roll stories at the end.

The cigar is very mild but it is becoming very flavorful. I actually don’t mind that the body is close to nonexistent. The aforementioned flavors keep getting bigger and bolder as the cigar burns. The spice level fools the brain into thinking that the cigar is really stronger than it is.

The flavors even out and become very pleasant. The stick is burning very slowly. I will be making dinner before this thing burns down. Stephane sent me some coronas and I want to review them as well because methinks the flavor profile will be more intense.

Creaminess and nuttiness and butter are driving the bus with the black pepper adding a note of balance.

I am at the end of the first third and the cigar has some toast notes. Adding the butter component, the only thing missing is the scrambled eggs. The toast flavor is very strong. And it is not toasty flavored, it tastes like toast. With a bolder component of Brazil nuts.

The second third begins with a ramping up of the spiciness that turns from black to red pepper. Personally, I enjoy smaller cigars. The biggies usually take their time and tease you with what is to come. While smaller cigars get right to the point.

But this cigar is proving to be a journey. Albeit, a slow one. It is a gorgeous Wisconsin day..for a change. I am sitting at the dining room table staring out the window at all the foliage and large trees in the back yard. This is the kind of cigar that would go great with the right beer or couple fingers of Scotch.

The flavor profile sustains the mildness of the cigar.

I hit the halfway point and the flavors get serious. The body is a bit stronger than at the beginning but still at the shy side of medium. And I don’t believe it will get any stronger as it is labeled as a mild cigar.
The draw continues to be perfect and the char line, ditto.

I am really digging this stick now as the flavors embolden themselves. Mild…Schmild…it tastes great.

I begin the last third and the cigar becomes a nice little flavor bomb. Creamy, buttery, toast, nuts, wood, spice and a nice balance. The stick now has a long finish.

I think El Sueno is trying to tap into a special market in the U.S. The Macanudo or Davidoff crowd. Guys with dough that like mild, but flavorful cigars.

From my research, the cigars are in the $15 range. So it’s a status cigar. I would say that it would also be aimed at the huge amount of smokers that prefer mild cigars but at this price, it has its limitations due to the price.

This is the first outing of blends from El Sueno. I wonder if they plan to make a stronger cigar to entice the aficionado that enjoys a stronger bodied cigar.

The last couple of inches are very flavorful. I am definitely enjoying it. These cigars are available in the U.S. id you email Stephane at info@el-sueno.net. Stephane has a Face Book page that can update you on their progress: https://www.facebook.com/el.sueno.cigars?fref=ts.

The FB page says you can buy their cigars at: http://www.el-sueno.net/en/welcome.html But I don’t see any ordering page. So if you are interested, you should contact Stephane at info@el-sueno.net or contact him on his FB page: https://www.facebook.com/aprile.stefano

And now for something completely different:

The band was touring Switzerland and management screwed up and put us up in the most luxurious hotels in the country.

We played Zurich for two nights and we stayed at a hotel right on Lake Zurich with a gorgeous view. For that matter, all of Switzerland looks unreal. It was made for post cards and photos due to the perfection of the landscape. We drove through the country with our jaws dropped the whole time. If I were bucks up, I would love to live there. But it is expensive and like living at Disney World.

I was lying on the bed in my hotel room when I decided to call home and speak to my dad. The bed was like something a royal would sleep in. It was the size of a Buick. I struggled to get off of it. Sort of like mountain climbing sideways.

I make the short $50 call and the first thing that happens is my father is screaming at me. He didn’t like the idea of me going to Europe with one way tickets but changed his stripes once I ended up playing in a newsworthy band.
When I sold my 1965 VW Camper Bus, the moron did not change the registration. Two weeks later he caused an accident and two weeks after that; my father got served that he was being sued for $250,000 as the registered owner of the VW. It was in his name because I was a bum for a while.

So I listened to him carp at me while I heard, “Ka-ching, Ka-ching, etc.” Back in the early/mid 70’s phone calls outside of the States were outrageously expensive. No eight cents per minute.

I listened for almost half an hour while he ranted about me being so careless. And then I told him, I’d had enough. And hung up.

Of course, he resolved the issue with the help of his lawyer but whatever he spent on the lawyer, he never let me forget. Now that I have hindsight, I should have called collect.

Categories: CIGAR REVIEWS