JC Newman

January 01, 2017

Nomad Martial Law (6 x 50) with epilogue





Video review HERE.

(See end of post for epilogue)


(Description taken from Cigar-Coop.com website)
 

The Nomad Martial Law is the tenth regular production blend launched by Fred Rewey’s Nomad Cigar Company. Rewey has incorporated a slogan for his company called “Be Nomad Be Anywhere”. This slogan very much applies to his approach with Nomad Cigar Company as he has produced cigars in two different countries (Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic) with several different factories. With Martial Law, Rewey turns to his fourth different factory, James Brown’s Fabrica Oveja Negra located in Esteli, Nicaragua. Working with Brown is a logical step as Rewey’s Nomad brand along with Brown’s Black Label Trading Company and Black Works Studio are both distributed by Boutiques Unified.

According to Rewey, The genesis for the Martial Law blend came as a result of blending a bolder version using the profile of the Nomad Esteli Lot 8613 as a starting point. “The Esteli Lot 8613 has been one of my most popular blends. I love the rustic nature of it but also wanted something with a bit more punch or complexity. Basically the Martial Law blend started as my wanting a double ligero version of the Lot 8613 and kind of grew from there,” commented Rewey.


The cigar incorporates tobaccos from the four major growing regions of Nicaragua: Jalapa, Condega, Esteli, and Ometepe. The cigar also features a Habano wrapper.


Wrapper: Habano

Binder: Jalapa
Filler: Nicaraguan
Country of Origin: Nicaragua (Fabrica Oveja Negra)

Nomad Martial Law comes in one size – a 6 x 50. The cigars are packaged in 12 count boxes.



The cigar is well made and has a dark brown wrapper. Here is a shot of the foot.






The test draw after cutting the cap was very good. The initial flavors were cinnamon and brown sugar mixed with what appears to be a tangerine citrus. There is a ton of black pepper which I rate at an 8. There is a black coffee base. 


About one inch in there seems to be a dark, sweet flavor of molasses. The cigar is medium to full bodied at this point. The finish is a cream with some brown sugar aspects. There is quite a bit of lingering black pepper. 



At the midpoint there is a smoothness to the cigar. There seems to be a buttery flavor in the mix now. The tangerine flavor is the lesser of the flavors due to the heavy cinnamon and brown sugar. Now, the buttery notes make the cigar much smoother. The molasses flavor and coffee make a nice base. The cigar is still medium to full bodied. 



The molasses notes tapered off after the midpoint but the buttery notes remained. They were not overblown but noticeable. The brown sugar and cinnamon continued to be the lead flavors with the tangerine giving a minor amount of support. Again, I'll say the cigar was very smooth. The cigar remained medium to full bodied. The black pepper is very good in this cigar, on both ends. This was a very good new addition to the Nomad line. This cigar is fuller bodied than their others and is very much in my "must try" list.


Score: 92 (original score)

EPILOGUE
1/26/17

Re-review video HERE.

After reviewing this cigar I thought it may need to be revisited. I was just getting over a slight head cold and thought my taste buds may have been affected. No one asked me to re-review it and to be honest, if they had I would have been a little offended. I always give my honest opinion in all my reviews. But, I felt this cigar deserved a second try. So, tonight I had another cigar and compared it to my original review. Here are my thoughts.


I agreed with the majority of initial flavors with the exception of the citrus notes. They actually appear to be an orange citrus. Also, the black pepper rating should be an 8.5 and it could possibly be a 9. There is a metric ton of black pepper in this cigar.


At the one inch point there was an added flavor of caramel. I decided it was not actually molasses but in deed, caramel. It's quite sweet. There is a nice caramel finish also. Heavy coffee notes hold the base along with the thick black pepper. The cigar is medium to full bodied but moving up quickly.


The midpoint had the introduction of buttery notes, just like the original review. The citrus notes did not decrease but kept a very steady intense pace. The other notes of cinnamon and brown sugar are still very good. Of the two the cinnamon notes are the lead. The caramel notes add a nice smoothness to the cigar. I would not call the cigar "smooth" per say but the caramel notes are very smooth. The black pepper remains at a massive 8.5. As a black pepper fan I am absolutely loving this massive amount of pepper. The cigar is full bodied now.


Not much changed to the end, which was just fine with me. The combination of citrus, cinnamon, brown sugar, and caramel were amazing. The cigar was very sweet and the cinnamon notes were very intense. The caramel gave a smoothness to the cigar and the coffee gave it depth. The black pepper was in a word, amazing. It did not detract from the flavors and added an intensity that was welcomed. The cigar was full bodied and it fit well with these flavors. Overall I found this to be an even better cigar the second time around. After this second review I must increase my final score. It was the right thing to do. I absolutely loved this cigar. To say it is a must-try is an understatement. Great cigar.

REVISED SCORE: 94





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