JC Newman

November 30, 2019

Viaje 10 + 2 1/2 Anniversary Gold (6 x 54)










Video review HERE.


(Description taken from Cigar-Coop.com website)
As Viaje Cigars founder Andre Farkas said, nobody seems to celebrate half-year anniversaries in the cigar industry, so why not start now? At this year’s IPCPR Trade Show, Farkas unveiled a series of cigars to commemorate the company’s 12 1/2 years known as Viaje Ten Plus Two And A Half Anniversary.

There are three blends that are a part of the series; Gold, Silver, and Red.

The Viaje Ten Plus Two And A Half Anniversary Gold features a Criollo ’98 wrapper over Aganorsa farm-grown tobaccos for the binder and filler; the same as the Silver but in a different blend. The cigars are 6 x 54 Toros and packaged in 25-count boxes. The total production of the Viaje Ten Plus Two And A Half Anniversary Gold are 350 boxes per.


Blend info:
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Criollo ’98
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: Tabacos Valle de Jalapa S.A. (TABSA)
Toro: 6 x 54



The cigar is nice looking and has a dense feel in the hand.





The test draw after cutting the cap was very good. The initial flavors at light up were a citrus with dry cedar, brown sugar, cinnamon, caramel, a wisp of marshmallow cream, leathery nutmeg, and a black coffee base. Initially there was a nice amount of black pepper rated at 8 to 8 1/2. 




At the first third (40 minutes) this cigar is shaping up to be a more leathery cigar than the silver. The little wisp of marshmallow or whipping cream is still there. The flavors are cedar, brown sugar, cinnamon, caramel, leathery nutmeg, and black coffee. The pepper is down to about 7 1/2 now. The finish is long and one of caramel and nutmeg with a nice amount of lingering black pepper. The cigar is medium to full bodied. I rated the first third at 93.




Moving through the second third (1 hour 21 minutes) I lost the whipping cream notes. I also lost the caramel notes. So the notes are now cedar, brown sugar, cinnamon, leathery nutmeg, and black coffee. The cigar is a high grade medium to full bodied. Very close to full bodied. The finish is the same notes of caramel and nutmeg but now there is much more nutmeg. The lingering black pepper remains very good. I maintained the score of 93 but feel the cigar can go either way at this point. Losing the whipping cream and caramel notes did not hurt the cigar since there are plenty of brown sugar notes.




The cigar lasted a very nice 1 hour 57 minutes. In the final third the coffee notes rose considerably. The same flavor notes are in play but the black coffee was elevated. And with it the sweetness slightly decreased. The cigar is full bodied. The finish is unchanged. I dropped the final third score to 92. This has been a good cigar that had some changes along the way but by and large I enjoyed it from start to finish.



Overall Score: 92.67

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