JC Newman

March 13, 2021

Trinidad Espiritu No.2 Toro (6 x 54)






Video review HERE.


(Description taken from Cigar-coop.com website)

Altadis USA has announced the Trinidad Espiritu Series No. 2, a second installment of the Trinidad Espiritu series that was introduced last year. The theme of Trinidad Series No. 2 pays homage to Brazil. The line will make its debut in January 2020.

The blend is highlighted by a Brazilian Arapiraca leaf over binder from Nicaragua and fillers from Nicaragua and Brazil. The cigar is positioned as a collaboration between Tabacalera USA Head of Product Capability Rafael Nodal and AJ Fernandez.

The first installment of the series, Trinidad Espiritu Series No. 1 was a Nicaraguan puro produced by Fernandez.

I reviewed Series 1 back on October 26, 2019 and that cigar received a 91.33 rating.

“With Trinidad Espiritu Series No. 1, we took you on a journey to the ‘golden years’ of the Caribbean,” explains Nodal, who is Head of Product Development at Tabacalera USA. “With Trinidad Espiritu Series No. 2 we are taking you to the heart and soul of the exotic, flavorful country of Brazil!”

Nodal added, “This fantastic cigar, featuring Brazilian Arapiraca leaf as the wrapper, will deliver an experience that AJ Fernandez and I are extremely proud of.”


Blend info:

Wrapper: Brazilian Arapiraca 

Binder: Nicaragua

Filler: Nicaragua and Brazil


Vitolas:

Robusto (50 x 5, SRP $9.90)

Toro (54 x 6, SRP $10.15) REVIEWED TODAY

Belicoso (52 x 6 1/8, SRP $10.40)

Magnum (60 x 6, SRP $10.65)

Fundador (40 x 7 1/2, SRP $10.90)


The cigar is very dark and well made. The wrapper is flawless. The cigar has a nice feel in the hand.




The test draw after cutting the cap was very good. The initial flavors at light up were sweet dark chocolate, espresso, and a handful of orange citrus. There was nice black pepper which reminded me of peppercorns. I rated the black pepper at 8. The start is nice. Very dark with some nice sweetness from the dark chocolate and citrus notes.



At the first third (32 minutes) the cigar has settled down and developed more flavors. Now there are orange citrus notes that have decreased, orange peel, nutmeg, plenty of sweet dark chocolate and espresso. The cigar is medium to full bodied. The finish is light nutmeg, dark chocolate, espresso, and just a splash of orange citrus. The lingering black pepper is rather light. A very dark noted cigar with some sweetness. I rated the first third 93.




As I moved through the second third (1 hour) the orange citrus notes increased slightly. The orange peel seemed to pull back. The other notes remained about the same. The nutmeg is not as noticeable. The cigar is now full bodied. The finish has nutmeg, dark chocolate, and espresso but I no longer had light citrus notes. The changes did not affect the scoring. I maintained the score of 93 for the second third. 




The cigar lasted 1 hour 27 minutes. In the final third the orange citrus really decreased. I still had the orange peel, nutmeg, dark chocolate but not as sweet, and espresso. The cigar is still full bodied. The finish is unchanged. For me, the cigar took a little turn downward. It lost some of it's nice sweetness to go along with the massive darker notes. I rated the final third 91. This is still a good cigar and of the two, Series 1 and Series 2, I prefer Series 2.




Overall Score: 92.33

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