Wrapper: Nicaraguan Jalapa Corojo ‘99
Binder: Nicaraguan Jalapa Corojo 2012
Filler: Nicaraguan Estelí Criollo & Corojo (1996, 1998, 2006)
Size: 7.25 x 54 Double Corona
Strength: Full
Price: $14.00-$20.00
My cigars have had 4 months of naked humidor time. Plus, the cigar received another 8 months of box time as the release date was July 2022.
BACKGROUND:
Collaboration between Hoyo de Monterrey and Illusione Cigars.
Factory: AGANORSA Agricola Ganadera Norteña S.A.
Released July 2022
Release Numbers: 4,960 boxes of 10 cigars
According to Halfwheel.com (8-23-22):
“The blend is the creation of Dion Giolito and Justin Andrews, business development manager of Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG), and the result of more than a year of development.”
THE WHOLE MEGILLAH:
Aromas are very mild and hard for my nose to find…brown sugar, rye bread with caraway seeds, black pepper, cedar, and caramel.
The cigar is plugged. Not a whit of air is moving through this cigar. My PerfecDraw cigar adjustment tool comes to the rescue. I find a major plug near the cigar band and it helps…but still not the draw I like. Long cigars are a bitch.
Very heavy cigar. Hangs from my mouth like a road flare while I type.
The cigar saw reviews a year ago and reactions were mixed. But then reviewing a cigar only a month or two after release can be incongruous with its potential. Especially when the cigar is a Gigantor like this baby. Large cigars always need extra time in your humidor to flourish.
The start of the cigar is very pleasant. The upfront flavors are the onslaught of Corojo and Criollo. It packs a punch even after a year of box time along with naked humi time.
I sense complexity immediately. Richness lurks beneath the surface depth of the Black Lagoon.
The thing about mammoth sized cigars is that they need time to breathe once lit. I’ve never experienced a punch in the face when the curtain is initially lifted with a big cigar. If lucky, it will grow on me as the flavors develop. This is why I prefer smaller cigars. I’m a Robusto, Corona Gorda, and Lancero guy.
And the cigar goes out. The draw is still tight. Damn. I use the PerfecDraw once again and it makes a major difference this time. I’ll get there.
Flavors: Spicy peppers, an embracing creaminess begins to appear, brown sugar, some clove and cinnamon, aged cedar, and buttered rye toast.
Listening to The Allman Brothers Station on Amazon Music this morning. Nice variety of tunes from artists that find kinship to the 70’s roots sound. Years ago, a nice reader sent me bootlegs of Allman Brothers shows and albums. Still have them. Here in Milwaukee, I played bass in a band that could do serious justice to their songs. It was fun. Not many bands can duplicate the Allmans’ sound. We did.
1-1/2” burned. 20 minutes.
The cigar lurches forward with serious intent. Real depth of character ensues. Yeah, I was hoping this cigar would find its place in the world after a year of rest. I’ve not been let down like so many other cigars I’ve reviewed with the same amount of sleep.
Good cigar. Big smile. Now I just need to hang in there for a possible 2-1/2 hour smoke.
The blender’s intent is shining. This is going to be a monumental experience. Damn.
Highclere Castle gifted me with a bottle of their new barrel aged gin. $100 a pop for a bottle. Never in my life have I tasted anything like it. The gin had a few years of sitting in 50-year-old French whisky barrels and sure enough…the subtle notes of the gin berries and the whisky barrels provide an incredible flavor that is unique and tasty. If you are interested, go to the Highclere Castle website. Only 2000 boxes were produced and then that’s it.
The cigar is yummy. But oh, so slow.
First sip of water and the flavor threshold expands like an Olivia Neutron Bomb.
The rye bread is eventful. Even Cigar Aficionado makes it the first flavor on their list.
The year-old reviews hovered at an 89 rating. This cigar is much better than that.
The Doobie Brothers. In 1984, I was in Santa Cruz California at a bar on the beach. The Doobies’ bassist Tiran Porter put together a 3-piece band that just shredded several genres of music. He sat with us during the break. And the venom for the band just spewed from the man…mostly about what an ass Michael McDonald was. Doesn’t matter if you play in a club band or you’re touring stadiums…band members just don’t get along. He asked if I’d like to play a tune with them. I politely declined. I was totally intimidated.
Ooh, ooh baby. The cigar is fucking great.
Strength is medium/full and will shortly become full tilt with 5-1/2” to go. Sparkling stars and birds above my head are my short-term future.
Not a cigar for newbies. Even stalwart experienced smokers will find this a difficult stick to complete in one sitting. I have the swoons. But per Rule A-33.a-1 in the Union Cigar Reviewers’ Handbook, once you start a good cigar, you must finish it. Damn.
The burn is impeccable just like my nutsack was 25 years ago.
This is not a flavor bomb. Very tight flavor profile. The genius of the choices of tobacco is the star of this vendetta. A manly cigar. One you can proudly smoke at the restricted country club you belong to.
A limited edition still on the market. This is good for you. The online stores did all the hard work by keeping them in stock because they sold poorly. And yes, all my sponsors carry them. Yeah, baby.
“Rocky Mountain Way.” Joe Walsh. This song had a huge impact on me when it came out in 1973. I saw the band play live on TV and the bassist was the coolest guy in the group. He played fretless and just grooved in a symbiotic manner that pulled me in. It took me 7 years before I procured my 1980 fretless Shecter bass…designed to mimic the Fender Jazz bass but used 100% Brazilian Rosewood. Even the neck. It is the bass of my lifetime. I paid nearly $4000 in today’s dollars for it. Worth every nickel. The serial number is 008. Nice. It was made by the original Schecter brothers. The company has changed hands a dozen times since then.
I’m hanging in. Strength is full tilt times two. Seat belts are fastened, and I don my old football helmet in case of consciousness loss.
I will take a break from typing otherwise this will be the longest katman ramble causing comas across the cigar smoking population.
Illusione’s Dion Giolito influence is impactful. This ain’t your daddy’s Hoyo de Monterrey.
Heavily complex. Transitions fly by like a desert wind. The finish is pure delight. Depth of character is palpable. Superb cigar. So much better than what the reviewers experienced a year ago.
You need balls of steel for this blend experience. It is an evening’s worth of cigar. It is a real man killer. And I love it.
Construction is perfect. A slow roll of epic proportions. Only seasoned smokers need apply.
Absolutely delicious.
The halfway point. Almost two hours. The sweet spot explodes. Intensity is off the chart. There are multi levels of rich tobacco goodness. A brilliant blend. And I’m totally blind. I’m typing from memory.
You can purchase this cigar, put it away for another year, and it will find another echelon of spectacular. Giolito really topped himself. Damn.
This is a cigar you will put down and come back to repeatedly during the course of its cigar life. There is no way you can smoke this log straight through unless you are immune to nuclear strength.
It takes me 3 hours to finish this cigar over a period of 5 hours.
You’re nuts if you don’t try one. A monumental achievement.
This is the best Illusione blend I’ve smoked. Wow.
By a higher falutin’ brand, this could have been a $50 stick.
All my lovely sponsors carry this cigar: Small Batch Cigar (10% off with promo code ‘katman’), Luxury Cigar Club (15% off with promo code ‘katman), and Cigar Page (no promo code).
RATING: 92
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Categories: CIGAR REVIEWS
