It seems that there is always a lull prior to the IPCPR Trade Show in terms of new releases for the couple months before it. I can barely wait for the months following the trade show when all those new cigars hit the market. There will be plenty to write about.

The Leccia cigars and the La Jugada were a big deal, but not much else has been going on so, for the last couple months, I have been digging into my humidor and digging up some well-aged good ol’ cigars that were released one to two years ago. Only to discover that I never reviewed them on this particular blog.

I am a huge fan of AJ Fernandez. This guy has got a pair of vision goggles that he sold his soul to the devil for. Every blend he manufactures is a gem. And is instantly accepted with open arms by cigar smokers everywhere.

So, today, I tackle the San Lotano Maduro. Outside of the “Oval” blends, this is my favorite.
The Maduro line received a 92 rating in Cigar Aficionado. Deservedly, so.

The box press is a sight to see. A near perfect rectangle. With very tight seams and only a few veins, it appears to have a double cap that is flawless. The wrapper is very oily and feels smooth to the touch

I clip the cap as part of my ritual of smelling the smells. Oh my…deep, dark cocoa, strong cedar, tobacco sweetness, eye watering spice, some cream, and cinnamon. That newly opened cap really spews out aromas that are fresh and potent.

The original SL comes in three wrappers: Maduro, Habano, and Connecticut.
I light up.

I get a Garcia type blast of pepper. The following puffs see delicious foodstuffs like cocoa, coffee, and sweet caramel. The draw is perfect and the char line is a tad wavy. In my old age, my steady lighting hand seems to be off.

Creaminess appears quickly. Now I’m smoking an ice cream cone. The body hits medium from the get go.

The cigar is very sweet. Typically, the flavors I am receiving would come from a Nicaraguan puro. But then I have only hit the first inch mark. But then so many newer cigars are using that too hip for the room wrapper: Mexican San Andres that it has become part of the Nicaraguan lexicon in determining flavor. In other words, it enhances that Nic flavor profile. I expect at some point in the cigar, I will see what the Honduran leaves brings to the table.
Halfway through the first third, the stick hits the complex mode like a marksman. While the beginning of the cigar saw an explosion of flavors, now they have ratcheted back and are attempting to become one giant flavor that intertwines with itself. Like riding a carousel and trying to pull the ring as your horse passes it. They don’t do that anymore because of liability issues, but I remember as a kid going to the Long Beach CA Nu-Pike in downtown. A big, trashy amusement park on the ocean with all the low life carny crap. They had a carousel with rings you could pull and redeem for prizes. They also had an Olympic sized pool where Olympian swimmer, Greta Anderson, tried to drown me in order to teach me to swim.

The second third begins. The flavors are the same. No changes. The complexity continues. All is well. The spiciness has moved to the background. A complete turnaround from the beginning.

It’s a nice sunny day in SE Wisconsin and I should get some nice photos today.

The sweetness, the creaminess, and the cocoa lead the pack..although, just barely.

The strong cedar seen at the beginning has wavered and softened. I believe that the Honduran influence has put its two cents in. It is giving the cigar balance.

The halfway point sees a renewal of flavors. What was once muted is now explosive. The cocoa, creaminess, sweetness, caramel, cedar, and even the cinnamon are now in my face. A flavor bomb. Something I’ve always wanted to do…and probably most cigar smokers as well, is to spend a couple months at the side of a master blender like AJ and be that fly on the wall watching and listening to how he does things…how he picks the leaves…and seeking out his vision of what he wants to impart with his cigar statement. I have no idea how a bunch of leaves, grown in the right place, provide these wonderful flavors that anyone in their right mind would say, “Impossible.” How, possibly, could you make tobacco leaves creamy or taste like cocoa?

This cigar is going nuts with flavor. Even the spiciness is back and tingling the tip of my tongue.

The last third begins with the flavor bomb moving to neutron status. The nice thing about most of AJ’s blends is that they don’t fool around. They go for the gold from the start of the cigar. No waiting for the last third to develop. It’s a roller coaster ride from the beginning. And as it burns down, you raise your hands above your head and scream your bloody head off. The strength of the cigar hits the full body point now. The laptop screen is wavy and I am just short of hallucinating. LOL.

The end is near. And it’s been a wonderful treat for over 90 minutes. The last portion is cool and not a trace of harshness. The price point is ridiculously sane. There are those mystical, expensive, hard to get cigars that don’t come close to this flavor profile.

AJ comes as close as possible to making the perfect cigars. Clearly, this man is a tobacco genius.
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