Vanadium by Foundry Tobacco Co. | Cigar Review

By Cigar Reviews by the Katman on October 29, 2013 • ( 1 )

Leaf Stats are a Secret but able to get this much: Nicaraguan, Mexican, Brazilian
Size: 6.125 x 54 “Perfecto”
Body: Medium
Price: $5.00 by the box

Under the heading of Foundry Tobacco Co., is the sub heading of: Foundry’s Compounds, Elements, and Musings.

From the Foundry Tobacco Co. website:
“Inspired by the periodic table, Compounds, Elements, and Musings are a study in contrasts and complexities. Here, chemical elements are represented by 18 exotic blends, each exhibited in arresting packaging. Multitudes of tobacco, handpicked from obscurity, compose the common thread among them.”

First, I should explain why there are no leaf stats. General Cigar’s Creative Director, Michael Giannini, designed this entire line of cigars. Which contains 12 new brands and within those 12, 18 different blends. And he decided that no one should know what went in to each cigar.

This is not a limited run…such as more are being manufactured at a later date…Once they are gone, they’re gone. And the batches are small.

As it so happens, my patron, Jason Harding at BestCigarPrices.com have 5 of the brands.
They carry the Argon, Europium, Vanadium, Gold, and Xenon. Click on Compounds, Elements and Musings for the link to BCP.

Foundry Tobacco’s booth at the 2013 trade show in July was such a hit, that they sold everything they brought to the show.

There are so many brands and blends that not one single store carries the whole line, but rather; each will carry a few brands.

Giannini used his creativity in not only the design and blend of the cigars, but the packaging, as well. The most popular packaging is the Plutonium line which has four different blends and is offered in a box that resembles dynamite as seen in old western movies. Pull the release cord and it becomes four different boxes containing each blend of the Plutonium.

The Vanadium box is a giant “V.”

While the shape does fall within the parameters of being a perfecto, it seems more like a Salomon. The cigar has two bands. The top one is 2” long and the foot band is 1”…leaving only 3” of visible tobacco. The stick is extremely well constructed…it’s not as hard as a rock and it is not soft. It has the right amount of solid vs. the right amount of give. The dark chocolate colored wrapper gives off a nice oily sheen and I can feel a lot of tooth.

The foot band must come off before lighting. I clip the foot so that there is a bigger surface so the burn starts off more uniformly.

I clip the cap and find aromas of very strong cinnamon; like those cinnamon rolls at the mall. There is a wonderful floral scent. Sweet Hawaiian bread. And lastly, anise and nutmeg.
Time to light up.

The first puffs are very toasty. Lots of earthiness. Wood and new leather are abundant. And a bit of black pepper in the background.
Sweetness appears at the ½” mark. And a very exotic taste that is all tobacco. This blend, whatever it is, was made by some journeymen blenders. If I tasted nothing but the tobacco, it would be OK with me.

The pepper makes its move. It goes from black, to red pepper and slowly builds. A dose of red wine appears. The draw is perfect although not much of a smoke chimney. The char line is respectable.

As I end the first third, creaminess moves up and makes a nice addition to an interesting mixture of flavors.

There is also a fruity essence I am trying to get a hold on. The cigar has a very long finish and allows me to discover different flavors. The body started out just shy of medium but as I begin the second third, it hits classic medium on the button.

This is a very unique cigar and the price point sort of staggers me. My last few reviews had cigars with price tags of $7-$10. While they were good, they were not unique like the Vanadium.

This is a cigar you want to smoke alone while watching football or reading a book. The flavor profile is so subtle that if smoked with your buddies, you are going to miss half the goodies this cigar provides.

This is a perfect Wally Guse cigar. And the price is right, Wally. Call Jason at BCP and tell him the Katman sent you. Jason will automatically add another dollar to the price of each cigar.

I hit the halfway point and while I don’t consider this cigar to be a flavor bomb; it does bear some very sophisticated flavors. I find myself so caught up in enjoying the smoke that I stop typing.

The flavors are; in descending order: Creaminess, earthiness, leather, spices, red pepper, red wine, fruit, and toast.

I enter the last third and there is an unexpected flavor of root beer. And with all that creaminess and red wine, it is like an adult root beer float.

The last third marks no changes. The profile, except for the addition of root beer, is exactly the same, in the same exact order of appearance.
None of the different brands are expensive. The five that BCP carries range from $5-$6 by the box.

It is in the last third that the flavors go monkey wild. Subtlety is long gone now. The leather is very strong. It tastes like I’m sipping an excellent glass of red wine. It tastes like I am eating a buttery piece of toast. And it tastes like a root beer float.

And then, in one puff, the cigar finds its complexity. The circle of flavors is becoming a singular unit and creates a new profile. This is really delicious. The body has remained at dead center medium and the flavors are bursting at the seams and there is no nicotine buzz.

I have to buy a box of these cigars. I must tell Jason that he has no choice but to put a box away for me, for a bit, and these will be my Hanukkah/Christmas gift to myself.

You can check out my review of the Plutonium here.

Now I want to try the other four blends that BCP carries. This Michael Giannini knows how to blend cigars. And so many at once that it boggles the mind. It must have taken him years in prep time and then he makes only one batch. This means that when they are sold out, cigar smokers will be collecting them.

The cigar finishes out perfectly without harshness, bitterness, or getting too hot.
I recommend that you go get yourself some because one moment they are there, and the next, they are all gone. At this price point, that won’t take long.