Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Sungrown H2000
Binder: San Andrés Negro
Filler: Nicaraguan Jalapa & Pueblo Nuevo, Costa Rican Morron Ligero
Size: 5 x 48 Robusto
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $15.86
Date Released: 2026
Quantity Released: Undisclosed
Factory: Nicaragua Undisclosed
BACKGROUND:
From Smoke Inn:
“Born during the 2021 The Great Smoke Digital Experience Broadcast, the Experimental Series was never intended to become a movement. What began as a one-time experimental project from Steve Saka quickly became one of the most hunted, talked about, and obsessively collected series in the cigar world. The first release, the EX-38. Crafted from an experimental liga Saka had been quietly developing since 2016, EX-38 introduced smokers to the rare and unusual Costa Rican Morron ligero — a tobacco almost no American cigar smoker had ever experienced. The response was immediate. Intense. Relentless. Demand exploded. What followed became an annual tradition exclusive to Great Smoke ticket holders: a new Experimental Series blend released each year with a different vitola, different blend, and different numerical suffix. Each release was a fleeting moment in time — highly coveted, impossible to replace, and never produced again. Until now.
“Smoke Inn has commissioned Steve Saka to officially reincarnate the Experimental Series as a permanent line of exclusive Smoke Inn house cigars — properly boxed, beautifully banded, and presented under the new Experimental Series artwork.
“Presented in a stunning 14-count box, the reborn DTT-EX-38 stays true to its roots — a sophisticated and deeply nuanced 5 x 46 parejo finished with an elegant pigtail cap. This is not your typical powerhouse liga. This is refinement through experimentation. “The blend centers around the rare Costa Rican Morron ligero — a unique derivative of Negro seed tobacco traditionally grown as wrapper leaf. Saka’s vision was to utilize the smaller corona leaves within the tripa to unlock a flavor profile unlike anything else on the market.
“The result is a cigar layered with rich chocolate, dark raisins, subtle natural sweetness, and an incredibly refined soft red pepper finish. Beneath it all lies an unusual mustiness — peculiar, captivating, and utterly memorable.”
THE WHOLE MEGILLAH:
That’s a lotta hoopla for a small cigar. But it’s Saka so we indulge him because his laying it on thick is also a delivery vehicle for a lot of delicious blends. I’ve had my tongue so far up his ass for so long that it’s hard to believe we’re not pals. Like everyone else in the cigar industry, he doesn’t return my calls. At this point in my short career, it means that I’ve hit a nerve. The bloggers that get access to industry folks are so vanilla that it makes me gag like watching simian porn. Why couldn’t I just get along? Because I’d hate myself.
“Njmk[gggggg’]g” That was the result of Sammy the Cat walking on my keyboard.
This is a decent looking cigar. There is a patina of oil, seams are nearly invisible, it’s solid, and I like the pigtail on the cap.
Aromas are dark chocolate, dried fruit, peat, and salted caramel.
The 8mm punch on my PerfecPunch and the cap’s pigtail are a marriage made in heaven.
Cold draw is standard stuff: dark chocolate, mint, dark earthiness, and dried fruit.
As I ponder how to start my review, I quietly suck on the stick like a hungry actress at an audition. The chocolate gets darker and lusher until it becomes a fudge brownie with walnuts. Reviewing before breakfast has its downfalls.
First hits are finer than goldfish mustache hair. Smoke pukes from the cherry like a Pittsburgh chimney in winter.
The blend starts with complex notes of chocolate, walnuts, baking spices, and yes, “dark raisins.” Consistency is a joy. Flailing is not.
Sizes are not chosen by accident or the farm telling the blender that they need to break in new forms. There is purpose. The EX-38 is the same size as the original Bronzeback. Coincidence or a plot to assassinate Generalissimo Francisco Franco?
I’ve only had these cigars for a month. Yeah, I smoked a couple during the first week. I regret it as I always do. Maybe 10% of cigars show and tell beautifully in that early period and yet we do it anyway. This is why I bought a box because if it says Dunbarton on it, I’m going to smoke a couple too early. But with only 30 days of rest, the cigar tells a different story.
Truthfully, cigars don’t speak to me except in my dreams and while I’m sizzling during electroshock therapy.
Half an inch in and the char line is as sharp as Biden in 1934. I’m pretty sure we can blame that guy for everything for the next 6 Republican presidents.
The fudge brownie and natural sweetness continue unabated. Smooth as a duck’s ass in a pot of boiling Maalox.
This is becoming an excellent cigar for my untreated palate so early in the day. I’m working on a palate cleanser with Dr. Fauci that will be ready for sale in 2020. If you’d like to make inquiries, send me a credit card number, your social, and your AOL passwords.
Strength is medium. But I know where it’s going. I dare review a medium/full strength cigar with only a flagon of coffee in me because Saka can make a strong cigar seem tame until the wife finds you face planted in your favorite cantaloupe.
The richness becomes plusher. The depth began at just 2’-0 below where I buried my rectal thermometers in the back yard.
I’m so relaxed that I remove my penile catheter and replace it with a THC vape. Why can’t bladders be happy? And why can’t I focus on the cigar? Dunno. Having a good time, I guess…so I wander like Moses in the desert looking for an In N Out Burger.
I am pleasantly shocked by the slowness of the burn. I was able to expunge 2500 words while seeing only an inch dissolve into dust.
Zero changes in the flavor profile. It’s ok with me. Complexity is in mid form, perfectly smooth, and transitions are evolving in the richness of the blend.
I gotta pee.
I’m back.
Of all the people in the world I thought I’d never reconnect with…it’s violinist Darryl Way. And yet, it happened two days ago. Know how he remembers me? “Are you still whizzing up and down the fretboard, Phil?” Translation: Too Many Notes. That’s right. I was hired for being a funky bass player who played with carefree abandon. And then the band wanted to move away from its newly developed “American” sound because it made Sonja unhappy. So, I’m a whizzer. I’ve been called worse.
I don’t remember a similar vitola smoking this slow. While the smallish size might put you off, it behaves like its big brother, the Toro. Whoda’ thunk?
I finish the first half in 45 minutes. Even this time frame is longer compared to my early ‘oops’ cigars at a week in. Time doesn’t lie. And neither will the second half.
I took a 5 minute break to bring an Amazon package in. It is my monthly Subscribe and Save item of Purina Ferret Food. I like to sprinkle it on my ice cream. Keeps me in touch with the wild. And the EX-38 didn’t go out. Nice construction.
I skip ahead. In public, I sashay. I’m into the last third and so far, I’m very happy with the purchase of a box instead of a fiver. Flavors were canonized early. The blend sells itself based on its consistency of flavors, no sudden jerks, and its reproductive charm in keeping things rolling in the right direction.
I could go on and on…but I won’t. This is a wonderful cigar. I am pleasantly surprised at how rich and substantial the blend became with only a month of home detention. Its balance is perfect. The strength was totally devoid of nicotine, and I’d happily smoke this cigar again for my first of the day.
If I had Dr. Rod’s money, I’d buy a bunch of boxes.
You can purchase these cigars from non-sponsor Smoke Inn. Try these promo codes: WELCOME10 and DOJO15. The price, before promo codes, is $14.27 per cigar in a 14-count box. Before promo codes, the price per cigar in a fiver is $15.05. Discounts should get them down to $12.13 in a box and $12.79 in a fiver.
I don’t make a dime on your purchase.
RATING: 96
Discover more from
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Categories: CIGAR REVIEWS
Katman at your disposal...I'd love to know what you think.