Wrapper: Undisclosed
Binder: Undisclosed
Filler: Undisclosed
Size: 6 x 54 Soft Press Toro ~ El Fundador
Strength: Medium/Full
Price: $24.50
Date Released: 2018
Quantity Released: Regular Production
Factory: Fábrica de Tabacos Joya de Nicaragua S.A.
This was Halfwheel’s #8 cigar of 2020.
This is my review from 2018. I’ve edited it to protect smokers from a manifesto of rambling.
BACKGROUND:
Release Date: August 2018
From the press release:
“Cinco Decadas is a Nicaraguan cigar of unparalleled elegance. This cigar is intended to celebrate a special moment in our company’s history and offer an opportunity to pause, reflect, give thanks – and look to the future,” said Dr. Alejandro Martínez Cuenca, owner and chairman of Joya de Nicaragua.
“It is our most memorable milestone yet and the most memorable of celebrations always require that you rise to the occasion. That’s what Cinco Decadas represents. We want consumers to know that in Cinco Decadas, they will find a cigar so premium that the fact that there’s one in the humidor, will be enough to celebrate,” said Dr. Martínez Cuenca.
SMELL THE GLOVE:
Mostly milk chocolate but has a nice background layer of floral notes with lovely fresh baking spices. Ginger and hazelnut make nice. Creamy with overtones of caramel. Raisins. Black pepper, malt, and fresh berries.
The cold draw is smitten with strong black pepper, mustiness, barnyard, chocolate, malt, ginger, more baking spice, and cedar.
FIRST THIRD:
First up is a big blast of black pepper that makes my eyes water like I got punched in the schnoz.
The long months of humi sleep kick the blend into high gear immediately. An array of sweet nuttiness, fresh berries, espresso, malt, rye, caramel, wheel barrels of cedar, and a smoky meatiness.
Strength wastes no time in making its presence unavoidable. It’s potent. I read other reviews that stated it started out smack dab in middle territory.
Not this baby. It has attained medium/full status within the first inch.
Complexity grabs my palate by the nuts and won’t let go. Transitions begin their trek. The finish, though, is short.
I get a blast of cinnamon. Spicy cinnamon.
This early on and the Joya de Nicaragua Cinco Décadas is giving me all the signs that the blend is going to kick my arse with nicotine and strength by the halfway point.
It’s going to take til last Wednesday for me to finish it.
This is a good time to discuss the price. Experts say you shouldn’t judge a cigar by its price point. We all know that’s complete bullshit. It’s all about the price. For $20, I want a blow job, I want you to get a blow job, and I want multiple orgasms.
It’s gotten very good reviews but, goddam it, it better for $20 a stick.
Mustiness appears but so far it is not intrusive. The sweetness is on the borderline now. It recedes and allows the more savory aspects of the blend to excel.
There is a strong complexity at play. Transitions begin to be put into motion. The finish is improving.
A shift occurs as the mysterious tobacco used in this blend moves upfront and pushes the ancillary flavors aside. A super savory element vanquishes the sweetness. The black pepper is still making my eyes water.
SECOND THIRD:
My palate is being enveloped by a quiet determination from this blend. It approaches the quality of a Bespoke.
One reviewer presented this blend with a 97. Yikes. Others stood by this blend with equally high ratings. A $20 stick should get a 97.
I believe this is an old school blend requiring serious humidor time. The early reviews confuse me. Clearly, they didn’t get months of rest. And yet everyone is singing its praises like it’s a gift from God.
Sweetness returns to balance the smoke. The spiciness is tamed. The hidden flavors return. Much better. But I’m halfway through.
The redeeming quality of this blend is a subtle uniqueness that hints, with enough time, this could be a stunning cigar.
The second half of the Joya de Nicaragua Cinco Décadas is the hidden jewel. The complexity is at full tilt. I’m impressed.
The cigar morphed using the elements of great tobacco taste, full flavors, balance..
The char line has behaved nicely.
LAST THIRD:
I get spanked all the time because I can find so many flavors in a cigar blend.
And then creaminess shows up smoothing out the experience to a better place. Creaminess can really bring out the shy flavors and improve the complexity.
JDN is a catalog brand. Not the experienced smoker’s first choice. This baby is their voyage into something very special.
Strength has been medium/full since the first third. Now we are at full Indian.
Consistency has returned. Flavors excel. Sweetness is now more of a factor. But the savory quality still rules the day. Spiciness is in the background.
If I were you, I’d read the other reviews of this cigar. Notice the differences in the reviewers’ experiences. Don’t use me as your single source for this blend.
The cigar’s last third is exceptional.
The finish is spectacular. Transitions are a bullet train. The complexity is through the roof.
RATING: 95
In keeping with the weekly Friday Krazy Katman’s Bargain Basement, Cigar Page has stepped up and divebombed the price on three sizes:
El Cumiche 5.5 x 52 Instead of $21.50: $14.00
El Fundador 6 x 54 Instead of $24.50: $14.20
Diadema (Figurado) 6 x 54 Instead of $25.50: $15.00
GO TO KRAZY KATMAN’S BARGAIN BASEMENT HERE.
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Categories: CIGAR REVIEWS
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