Wrapper: Mexican San Andres
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan (Jalapa, Esteli)
Vitola: Esenciales (5 5/8 x 46)
Strength: Full
Purchase Link: HVC Selección No. 1
HVC SELECCIÓN NO. 1 REVIEW – DOM
Summary: I cut off a good amount of the cap, but the draw is still a wee bit snug. Lighting up, dark chocolate, earth, and cloves start this cigar off with bold and beautiful flavors. Call it body, mouthfeel, or what have you, but there’s a coolness to the smoke that allows it to really sit on the palate. Deseeded jalapeños crank up the complexity. Tapping the toothy ash, rich, maple syrup and nuttiness have this cigar running up the score.
Towards the end, vanilla bean and more dark chocolate roll out the ice cream dream team. I’ll be looking to scoop up some more of these.
If You Like That, You Might Like This: A Christmas selection of whiskeys
Pairing Suggestion: Stout
Perceived Strength: Full
Purchase Recommendation to a Friend: Box
HVC SELECCIÓN NO. 1 REVIEW – RICH
Summary: This cigar brought notes of earth, anise, peanut, leather, caramel, and cedar. It was quite aromatic, with bright flavors and a lot of wood and nutty notes.
I had to cut deeper a couple of times to get any kind of draw, but after that it performed flawlessly.
If You Like That, You Might Like This: Wood & nuts
Pairing Suggestion: Bourbon
Perceived Strength: Medium
Purchase Recommendation to a Friend: 5-pack
HVC SELECCIÓN NO. 1 REVIEW – BEN
Summary: Well, helloooo cracked black pepper! Brace yourselves, it'll take you by surprise. It almost overpowered the salt and hickory notes to follow but the sweet and savory sensation from the sweetness of the tobacco was a welcoming touch. Second half served me tea leaves and an earthy foundation. It's potent in flavor with a whiff of minty sensation on the retro and closes out on a bitter black coffee note.
If You Like That, You Might Like This: after you've smoked you're 1st choice
Pairing Suggestion: Sweet red wine
Perceived Strength: Full
Purchase Recommendation to a Friend: 5-pack
HVC SELECCIÓN NO. 1 REVIEW – TED
Summary: The beginning is a mix of dark and slightly sweet notes of dry cocoa, earth, dark toast, and dark fruits. In the retro hale there are baking spices and a small amount of black pepper spice as well.
Unfortunately, in the middle of this stick I have started running into some burn issues and a small tunnel that requires a lot of my attention. Even so, the dark flavor profile remains with earth, raisin, cinnamon toast, coffee and cocoa.
The burn and tunneling issues continue into the final third of the cigar and it is having a very detrimental effect on the flavors. It really is too bad because I want to believe this is just an isolated incident. The flavors of this cigar seem like they would really be in my wheelhouse had they not been affected by the burn issues.
If this isn’t a cigar I’ve smoked already I sure would like to smoke it again and give it a second shot.
If You Like That, You Might Like This: A two star dinner at a five star restaurant
Pairing Suggestion: A nice fruity Cabernet
Perceived Strength: Medium+
Purchase Recommendation to a Friend: 5-pack
Participants in this blind review were completely unaware of the cigar they were evaluating until all submissions were received and processed. Each participant was asked to answer a summary paragraph, an if/than statement, a pairing suggestion, and a purchase suggestion. Cigars were provided by Small Batch with only the expectations of candid responses. All pictures, information, and formatting were completed by a Coordinator outside of the reviewing process.
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