Four Kicks by Crowned Heads | Cigar Review

By Cigar Reviews by the Katman on February 5, 2014

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: 5 x 50 “Robusto”
Body: Medium
Price: $7.00

This cigar dates back to 2011 when a company based in Nashville brought E.P. Carrillo in to blend them a cigar. This was the first for Carrillo. And he hasn’t blended anything outside his own brand since.

Originally, the cigar came in four sizes. It now comes in six. Those sizes are: Selección No.5 6.5 x 44 @ $8.00, Piramide 6.5 x 52 @ $6.25, Sublime 6 x 54 @ $7.00, Robusto 5 x 50 @ $7.00, Robusto Extra 5.5 x 56 @ $8.00, and Corona Gorda 5 5/8 x 46 @ $7.00.

This is from the Crowned Heads’ web site:
“These are the words that were the inspiration behind Crowned Headsʼ first cigar brand release, “Four Kicks.”
“It was towards the end of 2010, and my colleagues and I were in the midst of a tumultuous period of uncertainty, transition and change. The company that we held dear to our hearts, CAO International, Inc., was caught in the middle of a corporate merger between Swedish Match and ST Group (CAOʼs parent company at the time). The very foundation that CAO had been built upon–people, relationships, integrity, and loyalty–were being stripped away. The end result would be that many people whom we considered as ʻfamilyʼ would soon be unemployed and CAO would find itself being taken away from its hometown of Nashville, TN, and relocated to Richmond, VA.

“When you see some 15 years of your lifeʼs work–your heart, passion, and joy–coming to an end, youʼre filled with many emotions. The song, “Four Kicks,” really spoke to me. It was filled with anger, rebellion, confidence, and determination. These were the feelings that inspired us to forge together and create what would later become “Crowned Heads, LLC.”
“Four Kicks is a brand that was born as a rebellious child, evolved into an angry adolescent, and finally matured into an adult whoʼs personality centered around excellence, confidence, and determination. In a way, the final blend we selected smokes in this same manner. It opens big, bold, and in your face. It then takes you on a ride of complexity, richness, and finesse. It finishes bright and clean and leaves its fingerprints on your palate to remind you that it was there.

“Four Kicks is about sticking to your guns, and remaining loyal to those whom you love, and the hometown that brought you to the dance.

“Four Kicks is about turning your back on the corporate machine, and making your own rules.”

Construction of the cigar is a little rustic. A beautiful double or triple cap. Nearly invisible seams. Lots of veins. A matte finish medium brown wrapper. And it feels fairly smooth.

I clip the cap and find subtle aromas of barnyard, cocoa, spice, earthiness, and a nice floral note.
Time to light up.

The first puffs are cedar and leather. And then quickly comes a blast of pepper. The draw is perfect. And smoke fills the room.

Some creaminess shows up in the background.

I’ve reviewed this cigar a couple times on different blogs but never here so even though the cigar has been around for a while, I thought I’d add it to this blog’s catalog.

The cigar becomes very nutty and sweet. There is a shortbread cookie flavor as well. The leather goes for the gold by moving up front.

This is a very meaty cigar. Lots of earthiness, leather, cedar, and spiciness.

This is a fast burning cigar. It only took me 10 minutes to get through the first inch. It also required a touch up that if left on its own would have canoed. But so far, so good.

There is a new flavor…a slightly sour citrus element. Almost like lemonade. The pepper recedes to the background.

I begin the second third and there is no complexity yet. I am writing this review right after I wrote one about the Fernando León Family Reserve Cigars by La Aurora. This was about as perfect a cigar as they come. So it doesn’t seem fair to this stick.

I’m having some wrapper issues. I smoked one last night and the same thing happened. I have a lot of cigars in my humidors and they are all behaving nicely as the weather improves in Wisconsin. So I don’t know what to think. I’m afraid that when I remove the cigar band everything might come crashing down.

I’m forced to use my Kingpin glue to correct the wrapper. It is going to leave a white discoloration.

At the halfway mark, I get some clove. The black pepper returns in force. The creaminess has moved far into the background and the base flavors of earthiness, leather, cedar and spice still dominate the flavor profile.

I don’t remember this blend being old school and needing months to age. I check around with other reviewers I admire and they seem to experience the same thing I am…as far as dominant flavors. I remember this being a better cigar.

I can’t control the wrapper issues. This is disconcerting. Under normal circumstances, I would have put this cigar down.
The last third begins with the most subtle flavors becoming stronger. The creaminess moves a few steps towards the front. But the nuttiness and sweetness disappear. The citrus flavor is also gone.

The last third begins with a sense of disappointment. Flavors are wobbly. The strength is classic medium bodied.

Fortunately, the flavors return in some sort or another. Sweetness, creaminess, spice, cedar, leather, and earthiness are working together.

It’s been a long time since I’ve smoked this brand. I am beginning to realize why. It must need months of humidor time. I gave it three weeks.

It is time for the cigar band to come off and my knees are shaking.

There is too much glue and I am forced to cut it off worsening the wrapper. The cigar looks terrible now. Cracks in the wrapper everywhere.

With almost an entire third to go, I put the cigar down.