Size: 5″ x 45 was measured (supposed to be 5″ x 50, Invictos)
Strength: Full
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Corojo
Filler: Cuban-seed Nicaraguan

Appearance:
This is a pretty good looking stick. About average in color for a Corojo with a nice wrapper, however it does contain two medium veins and you can see where the wrapper overlaps (due in large part to varying shades on the wrapper itself). The ring is elegant and traditional Pepin.

Construction:
This appears to be a pretty well rolled cigar (I sure hope so since it’s rolled in Miami and is apparently personally overseen by Don Pepin himself). Density appears even throughout and there are no structural issues. The ring removed with ease. It did however come in quite a bit under the stated ring gauge, and it therefore must lose 3/4 of a point.

Aroma:
Aroma is that of a good strong cigar. It’s spicy and has a little of that dried fruit smell, but not too strong as to where it burns the nose. If you like the smell of a strong cigar, then you’ll definitely like this.

Burn/Ash:
Burn so far is pretty good and even. It’s not razor sharp, but it doesn’t really stray, barely wavers occasionally. The ash kind of has a funny yellow-ish almost lightly charred tint to it, but it hung on for a nice 1.5″. The second ash fell a little prematurely at just under 1″, but I did knock it pretty good setting it down. At least both ash drops left behind a nice cone shaped cherry.

Draw/Smoke:
Draw is a little tighter than I would like, but just by a little bit. The smoke is about average to start – plentiful, but nothing really special. An inch and a half in and the smoke has increased a bit and is a little creamier. Past the half way mark and the smoke is now much fuller and creamier, up there with the better sticks.

Flavor:
Flavor is to start is very Pepin-esque based on my experience. It’s peppery on the back of the throat, with a nutty, earthy, peaty aftertaste. A 1/3″ in and this cigar is a total pepper bomb, overriding the other flavors. Approaching an inch into the stick and the pepper is mellowing down a bit and the nuttiness and peaty-ness are back. There is a good cedar flavor on the draw, mixed with some pepper. Half way in and the pepper has mellowed even more, less on the back of the throat now and more on the tongue. A cedar & earth note is still there and the pleasant peaty/nutty aftertaste continues. These flavors pretty much continued throughout the remainder of the stick.

Overall/Value:
At retail this stick might be worth a purchase here and there, but it’s not really worth retail on a regular basis. Luckily this stick sells for quite a bit below retail and can be had for $3 (often in DPG samplers). In that price range, this is a great stick to keep in the rotation and a pleasure to smoke. It’s not very varied throughout the stick, but flavors are pleasant and complex enough to be enjoyable.

Retail Price: $7.00

Appearance: (4.25/5)
Construction: (4.25/5)
Aroma: (9/10)
Burn/Ash: (8.5/10)
Draw/Smoke: (17/20)
Flavor: (31/35)
Overall/Value: (13.5/15)
Final Score: (87.5/100)