Cigar Weekly

Published Monday, September 10, 2001

San Cristobal is Cuba's newest addition, created in 1999. The entire lineup consists of four sizes; Two of the San Cristobal sizes are unique to the Cuban cigar world. The La Fuerza is a long robusto, measuring 50 ring gauge by 5 1/2 inches. The El Morro is a tweaked Churchill/Double Corona hybrid measuring 49 by 7. The range is completed with a tres petit corona (4 3/8 by 42) called El Principe and a belicoso (52 by 5 1/2) named La Punta. The Havana prices for these cigars are (per box of 25): $57.50 for El Principe, $102.50 for La Punta, $120 for La Fuerza and $152.50 for El Moro.

San Cristobal is probably the best of the new brands Cuba has introduced over the past several years, with the exception of Trinidad, which debuted in February 1998.

Veteran roller Rigoberto Dorticos, 67, one of the eight torcedores who worked on the new brand, stated that the blend was sort of a cross between Hoyo de Monterey and Punch. The cigars are reportedly very aromatic according to interviews with Dorticos. They are all manufactured in the La Corona factory. The smaller sizes have been geared more toward a strong full bodied smoke, with the larger sizes taking on a bit more mellow of a blend.

For this review we sampled the El Morro (7x49) with a box code date of June 2000. Although the samples are still considered young, I detected no youth in the samples.

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

Charles Belida (charlieb): This Churchill was put together very nice. The wrapper was well applied and did not contain any pronounced veins. The head was smooth and clipped well. The overall feel of the cigar was firm and I did not detect any underfilled or soft spots. Both had good pre-light draws.

Dennis Powell (dkp858): These cigars had a beautiful smooth brownish wrapper with a nice oily sheen. They had the appearance of a slight box press with the triple cap applied perfectly. There was one moderately predominate vein running down the side.

Lowell Patrick (Park Bear): There were no flaws. The wrapper was smooth, but it was not very oily as I would have expected from an ISOM. I did not notice any blemishes in the wrapper. There were no soft spots, either

Michael Almazan (SLR): Wrapper was medium tan, kind of like a dark Conn shade. The cigar was nice looking with thin veins, perfect cuban cap, smooth and silky to the touch. Wrapper was very thin so you had to be careful not to damage it. When applying light pinch, it was evident the cigar was very dense. After cutting the cigar, my worse fears were realized, it was plugged. I applied the draw poker for about an hour and it drew better but still very tight draw.

Mike Headley (huskerMike): The cigars have a light brown wrapper that is fairly smooth to the touch and looks good. There is some peeling of the wrappers but I had no problem moistening and getting to stay in place. The bunch is a little soft but still firm enough. After clipping and taking my pre-light draw, I notice one has a very easy draw. The other is more to my liking. Once lit, there is a subtle aroma. I took a couple of draws and immediately the cigar is burning uneven and tunneling. Both samples did this and went out a couple of times, also.

Smoke Comments

Charles Belida (charlieb): Both samples lit well and the similarity ended there. The first sample tended to run and produced a crater coal. I had to smoke fairly quickly to prevent the cigar from going out. I performed a number of touch ups to keep it smokeable. The second sample exhibited none of these problems. Are they the same, and if so glad you sent 2. Thoroughly enjoyed the second, start to nub with no problems and a nice cone coal. Both cigars were of medium strength to me with a slightly dry finish. They produced a typical dark gray ash that hung for better than an inch.

Dennis Powell (dkp858): This cigar burned evenly with a nice, coned, grayish white ash that was typical in nature. The draw was perfect, and the smoke was plentiful. It started out on the mild side and the flavor was modest at best. After about 2 inches of this 7 inch 48 ring parejo the flavor started to show itself and the itensity picked up. The spiciness left a slight tingling sensation on my tongue and it developed into a very enjoyable smoke with a medium to full strenghtand very generous body and flavor.

Lowell Patrick (Park Bear): This churchill had a perfect draw. The first flavors were of a rich toasty, earthiness. There was a nice aroma put it did not produce a lot of smoke. About half way I notice some bitterness, maybe some youth. Not long after that it became very bitter and it never regained its original flavor. I think this was probably because it needed a little more age.

Michael Almazan (SLR): After lighting the cigar, flavors started off on the mild side with bitter notes. During the first third, the bitter, floral characteristics dominated, and it was not very pleasant. Draw was okay during the first third. The second third was a problem since it started to plug up. But the flavor profile changed dramatically, and the bitterness that I was experiencing during the first third was replaced by this nice, creamy, sweet spiciness that was just a wonderful experience. It was still kind of floral but that sweet spiciness just took over and made for an intensely rich smoking experience. The flavor was deep and remained medium bodied for the rest of cigar. Flavor was never aggressive, just rich and creamy with sweet spice and a long sweet floral finish. The last third was tough due to continued plug problems but the flavor was fantastic I did not want to put it down. I continued to smoke it despite its hard draw and my face turned shades of blue to the end.

Mike Headley (huskerMike): I was an inch and a half into these cigars before any flavor came through. It was mild to medium getting slightly stronger as I smoked. There was nothing distinctive about the flavor and it was different in each of the cigars. The aftertaste did have a slight sweetness to it and I did get a bit of saltiness on my lips from the wrapper, both of which faded as I smoked.

Summary Comments

Charles Belida (charlieb): Informed that this was of Cuban origin, I had great expectations from the start. Sampler 1 did dissapoint me with it's burn problems. The enjoyable experience from sampler 2 redeemed this cigar. Medium strength with flavor that stayed constant throughout the cigar. These cigars did not "spice" up and did not overpower me. Although not a normal churchill smoker I would like a few of these for a summer outdoor relaxing smoke. Do they come in robusto for the winter? Thanks for letting me review this cigar.

Dennis Powell (dkp858): In summary I would say yes I would recommend this stick without hesitation. It was a little larger than what I usually smoke but I did enjoy the 1.5 hours sitting on the deck and watching the stars come out as I smoke this cigar. Thanks for opportunity Dan. I look forward to finding out what this stick is.

Lowell Patrick (Park Bear): If this cigar were allowed to age for a couple or 3 years, I think it would be a keeper and something I would like to keep around and smoke on a regular basis. I sure hope this is not a Punch or RyJ, because I have never liked them. This would force me to buy a box to age.

Michael Almazan (SLR): The cigar was just a joy to look at, with a nice silky feel on the wrapper. Started off slow and not very appealing due to the bitter floral flavor. But this changed dramatically in the next two thirds of the cigar, filling the palate with rich sweet spice and rich tobacco flavor. The burn was perfect with nice flaky white ash, no tunneling or uneven burn on either sample. The only real problem was the draw on both samples. It had a very hard draw which really makes cigars hard to enjoy to its fullest potential. Had the draw been perfect I suspect the flavors would have been more intense and full, and the bitter floral notes would have been far less then what was experienced. Still a very good cigar in terms of overall flavor. Top rate in my book, just needs to draw better.

Mike Headley (huskerMike): This cigar did not do it for me. It was lacking flavor and body. I don' t know if it was lack of aging or if they were too moist but they were inconsistent. I don't think I would recommend this one.

Scores

 Review Results
Final Score: 32.4 out of 50

3 1/2 Stars -- Above Average  

by Joseph Giordano

These are nice looking, well made sticks with a firm uniform bunching, well made cap and a nice, semi-dark natural wrapper. The pre-lite aroma is subtle but inviting. The cigars had a good draw with a fair to good smoke volume. The smoke was not a thick chewy smoke, but flavorful. As with many longer smokes, these needed the occasional touch up with the blazer.

The initial flavors are a deep heavy earthiness with a bit of a musty flavor, similar to many HdMs (especially the Lo Hoyo line). I detected a subtle touch of twang with a bit of a dry finish. This cigar had only the lightest touch of spice, which did not increase as the cigar burned. The flavors graduated to earth and leather and the mustiness gradually faded with an increase in leather like flavors reminiscent of a Ramon Allones. I also detected a bit of woodynutty tones.

The overall burn was good with a dark gray firm ash. I found the aroma to carry a bit of a floral scent like a Rafael Gonzales.

I did enjoy this smoke and found it to be fairly complex, but in a subtle way. It is a smooth mellow cigar of medium body and medium strength. While none of the flavors will make you stand up and take notice, this smoke provided several distinct flavors and aromas found in many other popular brands. Maybe this is its problem, in that the cigar didn't really have its own unique flavor, but flavors found in many of its competitors. Although, not a powerhouse cigar, the flavors are strong enough so that it can be enjoyed after a big meal as well as smooth and mellow enough to smoke during the day.

Overall, most of our reviewers seemed to enjoy this cigar, citing its top notch construction and appearance and lack of an abundance of spice. Many also noted its floral like aroma, which I enjoyed. A couple of reviewers noted problems with the burndraw. Although I was fortunate not to have a draw problem, I did need to touch up the smokes, and have found that common with many larger sized cigars. I do agree with some of our reviewers that this is a great cigar to kick back and relax with. I would definitely recommend you try them.