Cigar Weekly

Nick Perdomo, Jr. seemed destined to make great cigars.  Nick's Cigar Company, which began in 1991, started with two Cuban rollers and a sales and marketing staff consisting of himself and his wife, Janine.  His grandfather, Silvio, worked as production manager for several of the most prestigious cigar factories in Cuba.   His father, Nick Sr., also served as manager for a number of top Cuban producers until 1962, when he joined the exodus out of the country after Castro came to power.

Most of Perdomo's cigars are produced at a 27,000-square-foot factory in the Nicaraguan tobacco town of Esteli, where some 300 workers, turn out 90% of the company's product.  Perdomo has factories in Ybor City (Tampa, Fla.), Ecuador and Nicaragua.  The company is one of the larger manufacturers of premium cigars made in the United States.

Perdomo makes the La Tradicion Cabinet Selection, La Tradicion Cabinet Perdomo Reserve Tobacos San Jose and most recently the Perdomo2.  Perdomo also has a line of flavored cigars.

The Perdomo Reserve Line uses Rosado colored wrapper from Ecuador with Cuban seed filler and wrapper from Nicaragua.  Also available in maduro.

Cigar Weekly reviews are blind taste tests conducted by our readers. Reviewers are sent three samples with all identifying marks removed. Reviewers are chosen randomly from the list of everyone that has signed the Cigar Weekly Guest Book. Their comments are below.

Pre-Smoke Comments

Chris Pranis (Cohiba Kid): Upon inspection, it looked real nice, oily, nice shape, nice even box press. However it had some very loose spots along the body, the bunch felt inconsistent. It displayed a rich chocolate color.

dan zemaitis (samogitian): This is a good looking box pressed stick, dark and slightly oily. The wrappers are a bit wrinkled. They have a fabulous aroma, creating some pretty high expectations. I was pretty eager to set fire to these.

Ken Hoffman (tnfan): Box pressed perfecto in a smooth dark wrapper. Firm with no lumps or soft spots. Smooth wrapper with no noticeable veins. Well constructed cigar. Pre light aroma was mild. Well made cap. Pre light draw a little tight but expected being a perfecto.

Kenneth Oliver (Dallas Guy): #144 Was a beautiful box pressed maduro. The press was very sharp. The wrapper was a little wrinkled, but that was the only negative to one pretty stick. It had a nice tobacco smell, and no hard spots were felt.

Mike McCarty (smoke1): An interestingly shaped cigar, this approximately 5.5x50 maduro wrapped cigar was square-pressed with a perfecto foot. The wrapper was a slightly blotchy dark reddish brown. It had a leathery look due to the crinkles on several sides of both samples which I initially thought was due to a loose wrapper or underfilling. The 1st sample was a bit lumpy and had a soft spot near the head. The 2nd sample was more uniformly firm.

Richard Lambert (Double Maduro): These were beautiful cigars, box pressed rosado looking wrapper and perfecto tip. The cap was nice. The wrapper was smooth with little veining but looked fragile.

Steve Meiller (RedRock): This is a hard cornered quadrado with a severely tapered foot. One side is slightly wrinkled and loose, but that didn't effect the burn. Nice oily maduro wrapper.

Smoke Comments

Chris Pranis (Cohiba Kid): After clipping, the wrapper exhibited some looseness around the filler. Lit fairly well, draw was a bit tight probably because it had a real tight spot near the cap. It started out with a nice maduro profile with a slight vegetal taste. It began to cone as it burned. It had a mild to medium flavor characteristic. Aroma was a bit on the brief side. It finished a little hot to the tongue.

dan zemaitis (samogitian): This is a smooth smoke with subtle cocoa flavors. One was medium bodied and the other medium-to-full. The flavor was pretty consistent throughout the smoke. I had to "help" the burn on one and the very thin wrapper split in a couple places on the other, revealing the binder but not unraveling. Both had a nice 2"+ ash.

Ken Hoffman (tnfan): Both cigars had a lot of flavor and great taste. Finish was short with a little bitter post smoke aftertaste. Noticed a little taste lingering on the lips. A very solid grey ash. No burn on the throat. The first sample had no problems with burn. The second sample burned unevenly and I had to work at keeping it lit. Draw on the first sample was nice and easy with large volumes of smoke. The second sample was a tighter draw. Aroma was fragrant but mild.

Kenneth Oliver (Dallas Guy): Wow. This baby had a pretty good kick, though the flavor wasn't harsh. The weakness of the cigar was its burn. It was a little loose and sometimes uneven. One of the cigars had to be relit twice. The draw was heavy, though the aroma was good.

Mike McCarty (smoke1): The 1st sample had an easy draw but smoked cool. It burned quickly down one side for the 1st half, but then evened out. It produced copious mouthfuls of smoke. The 2nd sample was a bit tighter, but burned evenly and produced a 3" ash before it fell, demonstrating great construction. Both were full flavored with spicy chocolate notes mingling with earthy, woody tobacco elements.

Richard Lambert (Double Maduro): The first cigar started to run immediately and after adjusting the burn I thought I had it under control. Silly me, it had just decided to tunnel to the halfway point where it broke out again. The second cigar started to run but after adjusting it burned straight, until the wrapper cracked and split and the cigar fell apart. The taste was almost non-existent, the same with the aroma and strength. The ash was alternately dark gray and white, big patches of each.

Steve Meiller (RedRock): This is a powerful smoke. That is its distinguishing feature. The flavor is plentiful and nice enough but is overwhelmed by the sheer strength of this cigar. I'd rather enjoy the flavor than try to keep my balance while my head spins.

Summary Comments

Chris Pranis (Cohiba Kid): It wasn't a great smoke nor a bad smoke. It burned badly and didn't correct itself. The flavor was a mild maduro, with some leathery chocolate tastes. Other than the small construction flaws, it was ok. I would try some more from this cigar maker.

dan zemaitis (samogitian): These were an excellent tasting smoke. The only issues were slightly cosmetic and construction. Considering their excellent flavor, I could deal with those minor nuisances. It's a cigar that I'd feel comfortable handing out to cigar-savvy friends. To me, the bottom line is that this is one that I'll be buying a few more of.

Ken Hoffman (tnfan): I really enjoyed the first sample. A medium to full bodied smoke with great flavor. Tasted a lot like a Perdomo. However I would be a little concerned about the consistency until I tried a few more. The second sample was definitely not as well made as the first and a difficult smoke.

Kenneth Oliver (Dallas Guy): I liked the cigar, but I wouldn't pay too much for it due to its burn problems. Expensive cigars should burn almost perfectly in my book. I would gladly pay up to $8 at my local tobacco store for more.

Mike McCarty (smoke1): Overall this cigar gets good marks from me. It looked attractive and had good burn characteristics. I enjoyed the smoking experience and this cigar belongs in the company of better maduro cigars. A bit more richness and complexity in the flavor profile would have made it an excellent cigar, but it is certainly better than average the way it is.

Richard Lambert (Double Maduro): I will not smoke one of these again no matter what the price.

Steve Meiller (RedRock): This cigar is for those who can't seem to get a strong enough cigar. Personally, I find it hard to enjoy a cigar that makes me feel like I'm being drugged. Over all, an excellent cigar that is just a little too strong for my taste. Coupled with the fact that I prefer round cigars, it means that this one is just not my cup of tea.

Scores

 Review Results
Final Score: 34.4 out of 50

3 1/2 Stars -- Above Average

This is the third cigar we've reviewed in this line and the scores have been fairly consistent. The other two cigars we reviewed -- the No. 2 and the No. 5 -- both scored slightly higher and in 4 Star territory. Most reviewers enjoyed the No. 4 and described it as medium bodied with chocolate, earth and wood flavors. Not everyone prefers the box pressed style of the Perdomo Reserve line, reminiscent of the cigars made in Cuba during the 1950's. But for those that do, the La Tradicion Perdomo Reserve represents some of the best cigars that Nicaragua has to offer.