Viaje Satori Karma

[Don Fernando]

Viaje is the hottest boutique brand in the cigar industry at the moment, not for sale in The Netherlands, but on my last trip to Florida I got my hands on a few, some I bought, others I got bombed and this Satori Karma was a bomb. Satori means enlightment and all the cigars from the series have Buddhist names too like "Zen" and "Karma". The Karma is a 5x52 robusto, which is made from Nicaraguan tobacco with an oscuro wrapper.



The wrapper is flawless, dark and oily with a nice band. I see a few thin veins and the wrapper is shiny too. The smell is mild and smells like moist wood, like a walk in the forest after the rain in the summer. The construction feels good and the predraw is fine.



I taste coffee and an earthy flavor with some floral notes. I also taste some wood and some sweetness that reminds me of powdered sugar. After a quarter of an inch the coffee disappears and I get a fresh citrus flavor instead. After half an inch I taste wood with some pepper in the aftertaste. After a third I taste wood with something sour and nutmeg. I taste some white pepper in the aftertaste. The sour flavor disappears near halfway.



I keep tasting wood with nutmeg, mild spicy. I taste herbs and some pepper in the aftertaste. After two thirds I taste cedar with nutmeg, the aftertaste is mild acidic with herbs.



This cigar lasted me five minutes short of two hours. The draw and smoke are great. The gray ash is frayed but firm. The wrapper rips open, which caused the burn to be a bit crooked. This cigar is full flavored and full bodied.



Would I buy this cigar again? I wish, the small batch is sold out.

Appearance: 9 / 10
Construction: 8 / 10
Draw: 8 / 10
Burn: 7 / 10
Smoke & ash: 8 / 10
Aroma first part: 8 / 10
Aroma second part: 8 / 10
Aroma third part: 8 / 10