Video review HERE.
(Description taken from Cigar-coop.com website)
At the 2023 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) Trade Show, Warped Cigars made available its third production run of its Black Honey line. Warped Cigars returned to the PCA Trade Show after a one year absence.
Black Honey is essentially a mashup between the company’s first two blends out of El Titan de Bronze, El Oso and La Colmena. Black Honey would take the Habano Oscuro wrapper found on El Oso and place it on a tweaked blend of La Colmena. The cigar was first released in 2015 and was limited to 60 bundles of ten cigars (600 cigars total). A second production run would take place in 2017. The 2023 marks the first time in six years Black Honey has been released.
In addition to the Ecuadorian Oscuro wrapper, the cigar features dual Ecuadorian binders and a combination of fillers from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. As in the past, Black Honey is only being produced in a 5 x 48 Belicoso. It will be available in ten-count boxes. Pricing for Warped Black Honey is set at $22.00 per cigar. The cigar was priced at $16.50 back in 2017. Warped Cigars has said not to expect another release of the Black Honey for a minimum of six years.
Blend and Origin
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro
Binder: Ecuadorian
Filler: Nicaraguan and Dominican
Country of Origin: United States
Factory: El Titan de Bronze
Vitolas Offered
Belicoso: 5 x 48
The cigar is well made and brown in color. It has an average feel in the hand.
The test draw after cutting the cap was very tight. I used the PerfecDraw tool to open the draw. It helped but it's still a little tight. The initial flavors at light up were citrus, brown sugar, creamy nutmeg, and light leather. There was black pepper rated at 7 to 7 1/2. I am hoping the draw opens up.
At the first third (29 minutes) the cigar has improved. The flavors are coming out better. The draw is a little better but still not great. The citrus notes are nice and there's quite a bit of brown sugar, almost a honey aspect. The nutmeg is a thick, chewy nutmeg and there's still light leather. The black pepper is at least 7 1/2. The finish is leather with hints of honey and very good lingering black pepper. The cigar is medium bodied. The cigar is good but the draw is holding it back. I rated the first third 93.
Moving through the second third (51 minutes) the ash was still intact. The time from the first third to second third shows the difference in the draw. The first third had a burn time of 29 minutes, where as the second third was 22 minutes, which is more in line for a cigar of this size. The citrus is downplayed while the brown sugar and honey notes have increased. There is a little earthiness and light leather. The black pepper is inching up. It's between 7 1/2 and 8 at this point. The finish is leather with hints of citrus and honey with very good lingering black pepper. The cigar is better now. I rated the second third 94.
The cigar lasted 1 hour 16 minutes. That's probably a little long for a cigar of this size. The tight draw kept it from burning at the proper rate. These cigars will have to sit a while after you receive them. I'm not a fan of this because a cigar should be ready to go when it's purchased. But, I feel these will greatly improve once they open up a bit. The draw never got great and it's holding back this cigar. The flavors are light citrus, a lot of brown sugar, honey, minor earthiness, and light leather. The black pepper is now rated 8. The cigar is medium to full bodied. The finish is unchanged. I held the score of 94. The cigar will get much better with some time.
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