Camacho Vintage Liberty 2007 | Cigar Review

By Cigar Reviews by the Katman on April 22, 2014

Wrapper: Honduran Corojo/PA Broadleaf (Barber Pole)
Binder: Honduran
Filler: Honduran & Pre-Embargo Cuban Tobacco
Size: 6 x 48/54/48 “11/18 Perfecto”
Body: Medium/Full
Price: $16.50 (Or purchase two in a sampler of 10 limited edition “real” Camachos at Atlantic Cigar for $99. ($80 Now on Sale)

From Atlantic Cigars:
“We just purchased the last remaining boxes of the Limited Edition Camacho Vintage Sampler, which includes ten cigars in Camacho’s signature 11/18 Figurado shape. These boxes were released in 2012 with cigars from 2007, giving them 5 years aging time. Here we are a couple years later and these blends from Camacho are incredibly smooth and aged to perfection. Two cigars each of five different signature blends are represented in the sampler. Very limited quantities left so jump on these while they’re still available.”

Camacho Vintage 2012 Sampler Includes:

2 – Triple Maduro 11/18 2007
2 – LE 2007 (New – First Time Release)
2 – Camacho Liberty 2007
2 – Diploma 11/18 2007
2 – 10th Anniversary 11/18 2007

This cigar is very difficult to find and purchase. You probably have the best luck at a B & M. But you get two of them in this fine sampling of Camacho’s best blends.

The sticks have some pretty decent aging but still require humidor time. As most Camachos do; at least the original blends. I haven’t found the “New” blends to match Christian Eiroa’s blends. Davidoff tried some smoke and mirrors by jazzing up the presentation of tweaked old blends that aren’t the old blends. I have reviewed them all, right here, and the only ones I found to be very good cigars are the Diploma and the Triple Maduro. I didn’t care for either of the Ditka blends either. More of a PR move than serious cigar blending.

The Liberty 2007 was only a 20,000 cigar release in the barber pole version. So there can’t be many left. In 2008, Davidoff took the reins. Eiroa stayed with Camacho until 2011. And I’m sure you are familiar with his new company and new cigars.

This is one gorgeous cigar. It is virtually seamless. There are some pretty large tree trunk sized veins but very few small ones. I love the Figurado or Perfecto shape. A snake with a moose in its stomach.

This is not a very oily cigar. It has more of a matte finish that is both toothy and sandy. The triple cap is perfect and looks like a little bald headed man is trying to break free. The dual colored double caps are elegant and classy. Blue and gold.

I clip the cap and find aromas of spice, sweetness, and cocoa.
Time to light up.

The first puffs are full of cocoa, spiciness, wood and some nuttiness. Then, some lovely sweetness follows. I can taste the aging in this cigar. The char line starts off on the money.

The sweetness moves to the front of the line. Creaminess appears within the first half inch. It is about to become a flavor bomb before it hits the one inch mark.

Cedar joins the group. Aging is very important when it comes to purchasing the “real” Camacho cigars. They are old school and need lots of humidor time. But Atlantic Cigars has taken most of that responsibility on themselves by selling this compilation. I’ve had the sampler for over a month or so and they are good to go.

None of the new Davidoff/Camacho blends taste like this cigar. Not even close.

The cigar has mellowed from its original inception. It is not Camacho Strong. And while I consider it a flavor bomb, it is a gentle and nuanced flavor bomb. Complexity sinks in almost at the beginning of the stick.

I would never pay $16.50 for this stick, but the $10 I paid is reasonable for this quality. And since I belong to the Atlantic Cigar VIP Club, I paid less. But I can’t tell you how much.

There will be a point, in the near future, that this sampler will go away. Your Uncle Katman urges you to grab one of these before they are all gone.

Note: I just checked the Atlantic web site and these boxes are on sale for the VIP Club price of $79.95. That’s a steal for this. This also means they want to get rid of the rest of the stock and the end is near.

The second third begins with a little more oomph. The spiciness of the red pepper is much stronger.

Here are the flavors, in order: Spice, creaminess, cedar, cocoa, sweetness, something fruity (Like me), and toast.

The char line is dead nuts perfect. I’ve had such little luck lately with burn issues on reviewed cigars that I was beginning to worry it was me; regardless of my humidification vigilance.

I think I can taste moose as I move into the bulging part of the cigar. I have 4 more blends to review but now with the sale going on at Atlantic Cigars, it might be for naught.

Just trust your Uncle Katman on this….I have smoked the duplicate cigars in this sampler and they are all kick ass blends. Worth the dough.

The flavor bomb status makes a huge surge as I near the halfway point. Other flavors join the troupe. Such as graham cracker, a bit of cinnamon, and espresso.

The strength jumps to medium/full. No nicotine yet.

The second half is pure nirvana. I want to chant. Man oh man…what a fantastically delicious cigar. Jesus Alou. Manny Mota. And Ha Cha Cha.

The better Camacho cigars of yesteryear were just like the modern boutique blends of today. The same attention to detail and character. As well as perfect construction. It just puts to shame some of the cigars I’ve reviewed recently that had me as angry as the Mad Hatter because of construction issues. Just laziness and, that, I cannot abide.

The last third begins. The stick is so complex with bundles of nuance and balance. A long finish and so chewy.

In order to meet the deadline of the sampler on sale, I may just have to review the other four cigars over the next four days. Normally, I don’t review two cigars in the same day. One reason is the light for my photos and the second is that a review tends to take 3 hours and my back is shot for the rest of the day. I am just too uncomfortable to sit through another 3 hours.

Let’s discuss the barber pole wrapper. There is most definitely subtle changes when the two different wrappers are burning. The Corojo is spicier. And the Broadleaf is sweeter.

I can’t tell how much of the flavor comes from the pre-embargo Cuban tobacco. They don’t say how much is used in each cigar. If I had to guess, I’d say very little. So, impact must be very little. Probably, mostly a PR tactic.

The deep aging of the cigar is tasted in every puff.

I near the end of the cigar and I can’t think of anything in my humidors that will match this morning’s smoke. And I have some very nice cigars.

The strength settles at medium/full. The nicotine is very low. The cigar is buttery smooth without a hint of harshness or heat. And absolutely no bitterness as I read in some reviews of this cigar.

Once again, I urge you to grab this sampler while it is available. $8.00 a stick is a steal for this quality.

P.S.
I normally post a link to my reviews on my FB page but not this one. I only want my readers to have a chance to grab this deal.