Cigar Reveal #156

Espinosa
FACTORY REVEAL

We're proud to bring you our second Factory Reveal cigar, the first one coming from Tabacalera La Isla in the Dominican Republic. We believe the Factory Reveal takes our blind tasting experience a bit further. Smoking one brand's cigars can be a bit misleading, because if they aren't producing their own cigars (many are not), then often they are using multiple factories for their cigars, resulting in a totally different experience from one of their brands to another. So we thought, what if instead of smoking one cigar from the company's portfolio, we blind smoked a cigar straight from the source (the factories themselves)? 

This cigar comes from the esteemed La Zona factory in Esteli, Nicaragua, owned by the man himself, Erik Espinosa, maker of award winning cigar lines like 601, Laranja, and Espinosa Habano, Crema, and Especial. For Factory Reveals, our goal is find a cigar that is representative of the factory. While cigar factories obviously make many cigars, they tend to have certain traits, preferences, and specialties. While Espinosa does many things well, certainly his biggest preference is in slow-burning, full-bodied, flavor bombs. And, well, this one is, for better or worse depending on your preference... the perfect representation of that! 

But unlike some of the stronger cigars emerging from La Zona that punch you right off the bat, this one has a more subtle, sneakiness to it. If you find yourself reaching for more whiskey or water about 2/3 into it, don't worry you're not alone. "A real meat and potatoes cigar," said one S+T member. No, it's not for the faint of heart, but this cigar is also packed full of flavor and complexity, bouncing from one dense flavor to another for the full 1.5+ hour smoke. If you're a lover of full-bodied, fullll-flavored smokes, you're welcome. If not, well, don't shoot the messenger, we didn't make it! 

Loved this cigar and want more for your humidor? Limited remaining stock available - take advantage of our members-only pricing when you buy today.

Espinosa Factory Reveal
Anatomy

  • Nicaragua

  • Nicaragua

  • Habano

Espinosa Factory Reveal
Flavor Notes

First Third

Black Coffee

Chili Pepper

Cocoa

Black Coffee

Chili Pepper

Cocoa

Second Third

Dark Cherry

Cream

Oak

Dark Cherry

Cream

Oak

Final Third

Rye

Black Pepper

Earth

Rye

Black Pepper

Earth

Reviews + Notes

The Styled Stogie

Rich and fairly dark wrapper. Strong milk chocolate scent with a hint of hay and some vinegar emit from the body. The foot smells like a chocolate croissant. Right after lighting up I get nice rich baker’s spice. There’s also some cream that comes through. The baker’s spices quickly change into black pepper. further in im starting to taste medium roast coffee. The pepper is still present and lingers on the finish. The dynamics keep going with some oak and florals. I’m really enjoying the finish on this one. It lingers and develops. The flavors don’t quickly fall away. As the second 3rd starts,  milk chocolate comes right to the front. About 5 minutes past this I get a pretzel note but without the salt. There isn’t too much change except for a little bit of Chili pepper, but no spiciness. More of just the chili flavor. A few minutes after this I get marshmallow fluff. It’s really got some strength into the final third now. Oak comes into the flavor profile with a little dark chocolate. Overall the palate texture has been rich and reminds me of pudding. 

One of the more dynamic cigars I’ve had recently. Enjoyable to experience the changes. 

Final rating: 89