Arturo Fuente Don Carlos No. 3

[BlackIrish]

The cigar: Arturo Fuente Don Carlos No. 3

Nutritional information
Vitola: Corona 5.5x44
Origin: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Republic
Binder: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Cameroon

Smoked at my local lounge while camera-less; sorry for the lack of photos.

Pre-Light
This corona-sized cigar looks quite nice. Its smooth, dark cameroon wrapper is oily and has very little tooth. It feels firm in the hand, no soft spots, and good bunching evident at the foot. It's well wrapped, with very unobtrusive seams and an expertly-applied cap. The only blemish: some smears of glue (?), something I've found on other high end Fuentes, including an Anejo. Curious, particularly at this price point.

The aroma is faint and mild, cedar and tobacco, without much barnyard.

The head takes a skim cut very well. The draw is excellent: just the slightest resistance. The cold draw delivers dark tobacco, wood, and perhaps some soft spice.

Construction/Burn
The cigar burned perfectly: it lights easily after a nice toasting, burns laser straight, and produces a long and solid light gray ash that drops in inch-and-a-half to two-inch pellets. It ashed only twice before I nubbed it. And it delivers clouds of smoke. Simply put, it's everything you could ask for in a burn.

The prelight appearance doesn't lie: this is an exceptionally well-rolled cigar. Perfect draw, excellent wrapping, great cap. I've got to subtract some points for the smears on the wrapper, but it's hard to find anything else to complain about.

Flavor
Smooth, rich, and complex. It starts with some wood and nuts, with a hint of sweetness. Interestingly, I don't notice much of a Cameroon flavor. There's a bit of that cammie tang at the very start, but after that the flavor is deeper and darker than I usually associate with a cammie, and the contribution from the wrapper is deep in the mix, balanced with all of the other flavors. It doesn't stand out in the way it does, say, with an Upmann Vintage Cameroon.

The progression of flavors from this cigar is fantastic: the wood and nut at the beginning start to grow into darker, richer, rounder flavors, with some soft baking spice in the background; no pepper here. The body and strength at the start is solidly medium. From there it builds into more leather and coffee in the middle third, with the spice growing, and the body getting fuller, rounder, and richer. The last third is fuller still, with more pronounced chocolate notes, more cinnamony spice, and a wisp of anise on the finish.

Summary
I came to this cigar with high expectations and it met them. Construction is top notch, and the flavor is smooth, complex, and delicious. With so many hyped cigars falling short, it's a nice change to find one that lives up to its reputation. This is one of the best coronas I've ever smoked, and a real treat.