Video review HERE.
(Description taken from Halfwheel.com website)
Black Star Line Cigars is celebrating its fifth anniversary with a new cigar called Marun, which gets its name from the word for five in the Yoruba language spoken by an indigenous tribe in Nigeria.
The cigar, which uses an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper over a Nicaraguan binder and filler, was created with the Espinosa Premium Cigars team and produced at the La Zona Cigars Factory in Estelí, Nicaragua. Aric Bey, owner of Black Star Line Cigars, says that the opportunity for the two companies to work together came together through Richie “Riot” Otero, who works with Espinosa’s key accounts and other projects.
“It was great working with Hector Alfonso, the master blender at La Zona,” Bey said in a press release. “He is a wealth of knowledge and taught me and my team some new things.”
The cigar is being released in two sizes, one of which will be available to all of Black Star Line Cigars’ accounts, while the other is an exclusive for Oak Glen Tobacconist in Yucaipa, Calif. The size getting a wider release is a 6 x 50 toro that is priced at $12.99 and offered in both boxes and bundles of 20 cigars. Bey is producing 5,000 cigars for the first run of Marun, with 125 boxes and 125 bundles of 20 cigars each, though he said that the line is a regular production and not a limited edition.
The size going to Oak Glen Tobacconist is a 6 1/2 x 48 corona extra that gets both a box press and a closed foot, which the toro size does not have. Production for this version is limited to 1,400 cigars, with Bey saying he expects it to have an MSRP of around $12.99.
“Oak Glen Tobacconist is one of my favorite retail partners, and I felt like honoring our relationship by giving them a special size of Marun,” Bey said.
The cigar is well made and has a nice feel in the hand.
The test draw after cutting the cap was tight so I used the Perfecdraw tool to open the draw. The initial flavors at light up were peach, touch of citrus peel, brown sugar, light cinnamon, and earthy leather. There was black pepper rated at 7. Not a bad start but the earthiness concerns me.
At the first third (30 minutes) the earthiness is making it's presence known. All the notes are still there but the earthiness has increased. The cigar is medium bodied. The finish is leather with good lingering black pepper. The cigar isn't bad but I want to keep an eye on the earthiness. I rated the first third 93.
As I moved through the second third (1 hour 3 minutes) the earthiness really took off. The sweet notes of peach and brown sugar cannot keep up. They are much lighter due to the increased earthiness. The cigar is still medium bodied and the finish is unchanged. I rated the second third 90.
The cigar lasted 1 hour 28 minutes. It improved a little in the final third with the earthiness pulling back a little and the sweet notes coming out more. The cigar is medium to full bodied. The finish is still leather but now the lingering black pepper is very good. I rated the final third 91. I wanted the cigar to be good for their 5th anniversary celebration but it fell short. It's not bad but not what I hoped it would be.
No comments:
Post a Comment