Espinosa Las 6 Provincias LHB (6 x 54)

Video review HERE.

(Description taken from Halfwheel.com website)

The LHB is the first of six limited editions that Espinosa Premium Cigars calls its “reminiscent tribute to Cuba, before its post-revolution decline.” Each of the lines will pay tribute to Cuba’s six original provinces, with La Habana being the first (thus the LHB on the band). The debut installment is being released in two formats, 10-count dress boxes and a limited edition 20-count swing box, which Erik Espinosa Jr. said was an attempt to do something different but that wasn’t simply a traditional jar release.

 It’s being produced by A.J. Fernandez in Nicaragua. (I found this odd and wondered why La Zona, Espinosa's factory, did not make the cigar. I wonder if AJ will make the other 5 in the series.)

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano 2000

Binder: Nicaragua

Filler: Nicaragua

Espinosa Las 6 Provincias LHB (6 x 54) — $16.50 (Boxes of 20, $330; Boxes of 10, $165)

The cigar is a beautiful sharp box press. It has a very dense feel in the hand.

The test draw after cutting the cap was good. The cold draw had lots of sweet notes. The initial flavors at light up were a prominent, sweet pink grapefruit, brown sugar, cinnamon, leather, nutmeg, and black coffee. There was black pepper which I rated at a 7 1/2. The nutmeg is not intrusive and the leather is clean and new. Nice start.

In the first third (32 minutes) the flavors of the LHB are the same but the intensity of each flavor has changed a bit. The sweet flavors are about 45% of the total flavor and the nutmeg/leather are about 55%. The coffee makes a nice base. The cigar's flavors give a taste of power although the actual strength of the cigar is medium to full bodied. The finish is a nutmeg and cream combination with a touch of brown sugar and a modest amount of lingering black pepper. The front end flavors are very good. The percentage breakdown lend to a very tasty cigar. My score for the first third is a 94.

The second third (1 hour) had the brown sugar rising and cloaking the pink grapefruit. The cinnamon notes are still there. The nutmeg and leather are a little more elevated. The coffee is unchanged at the base. There is more lingering black pepper on the finish. There are also some citrus notes on the finish. The cigar is full bodied. With the slight lowering of sweetness and elevation of nutmeg and leather I lowered the second third score to a 93.

The LHB lasted 1 hour 28 minutes. The nutmeg notes became more and more elevated causing the pink grapefruit to taste like a generic citrus. They also muffled the brown sugar a bit but the cinnamon still came through. The leather was light. The coffee was manageable. The cigar is very full bodied. The finish is unchanged. I love nutmeg in the proper amounts but they exceeded my optimum range a bit in the final third. For that reason I lowered the final third score to a 92. This is, however, a very good cigar that should be on your must-try list. You can purchase these cigars HERE.

Overall Score: 93