Photo courtesy of Crux Cigars

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: 6 x 54 Short Salomone
Strength: Mild-Medium
Price: $14.00

Purchased yet again from my local smoke shop/cigar bar, kept in a well-maintained humidor. Likely aged for about a year per the friendly neighborhood bartender. I trust him because he made me a hell of a whiskey sour-type concoction. Happy belated birthday to me. $11 smackeroos, which seems reasonable for this tasty item as you’ll see.

First thing is that this is a beautiful cigar. A perfect milk chocolate brown that leaves my mouth watering for a Mr. Goodbar. The closed ends of the Salomone are applied perfectly on both the cap and the foot, which is a very fine thing whether you are talking about a stogie or your local haberdashery.

Second, this is about the best-constructed cigar I’ve ever encountered. I have a confession, dear reader: despite many years of puffing away, I remain a suboptimal user. Lighting, drawing, canoeing, kayaking: I’ve encountered more issues than I should over the years and the finger can’t always be pointed at the guy who rolled the thing up. Conventional wisdom says these problems are likelier to occur with the Torpedo or Salomone vitolas, and this convention is indeed wise. Nevertheless, one chop from a cheap cutter and one light from a cedar spill was all it took for the burn line to be razor-sharp all the way to the nub. Smoking a cigar is intended to be a relaxed experience, but if you are fighting the wily beast for 90 minutes you’ve defeated the purpose and yourself. No risk of that with this creature.

The Whole Megillah:
This is a truly scrumptious dessert cigar and an elegant experience from beginning to end. First puffs give me brown sugar, caramel, almond, and a smidge of sweet cream. These flavors blend seamlessly together as a cohesive whole, rather than walloping you one after another. This fundamental profile continues throughout the stick, but peppery chocolate and a bit of nutmeg make a welcome appearance at the party to balance things off. This is one of the few cigars I want to take all the way down to the nub, so I soldier fearlessly on.

The final third picks up some strength and a nicotine jolt without pretending to be a Nicaraguan puro. The pepper transmogrifies into something else and better, a dusky clove, or maybe a cloven hoof. I put this bad boy out 90 minutes in as a state of sheer joy envelops me.

Connecticut shade smokers like yours truly will have an exceedingly difficult time finding a better cigar. I can, and have, paid twice as much for a medium-bodied cigar half as good. This is a cigar where you can sit back and relax into an experience that is both restful and engaging.

Katman here…You can purchase the Crux Epicure line from sponsor Small Batch Cigar. 15% off through Dec. 31, 2024, with promo code KATMAN.

RATING: 98

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Categories: CIGAR REVIEWS

Tags: cigar reviews, cigar reviews by the katman, cigars, crux cigars, Crux Epicure Short Salomone ~ Guest Review by Dr. Alex Wu (Our Man in Madison) | Cigar Reviews by the Katman, katman, phil kohn