Macanudo 1968 robusto

[BlackIrish]

The cigar: Macanudo 1968 robusto

Like many inmates, I'm not a Macanudo smoker. Oh, I've smoked a few, particularly in the early days, when I was dipping my toe in the cigar pool, but as I gained experience, I realized that I liked my cigars to have flavor. I later tried the Macanudo Robust line, thinking I might find some flavor there, but was disappointed. When I heard about the release of the new 1968 line, I signed up to receive a promotional sampler, to see whether Macanudo could deliver. I received the sampler pretty quickly, tossed the sticks in my humi, and pulled one out to try one morning a couple of months later. This is the story of my experience.

Nutritional information:
Vitola: 5x50
Origin: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Honduran San Agustin
Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan (Esteli), Nicaraguan (Ometepe)
Binder: Connecticut Habano 2000
Humidor time: 2 months

The marketing (courtesy of General Cigars)

Macanudo 1968
Wrapper: Honduran San Agustin
Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan (Esteli), Nicaraguan (Ometepe)
Binder: Habano Connecticut
Country: Dominican Republic
Factory: General Cigar Dominicana

The History:
Ever since the first Macanudo was rolled, America has embraced its quality and consistency, making it this country's favorite premium cigar.

The Cigar:
This bold expression of Macanudo boasts a depth and complexity that will delight the seasoned cigar smoker.

The Experience:
Macanudo 1968 boasts a bold new taste that perfectly balances the cigar's fuller-bodied tobaccos. Aged in tercios and charcoaled wooden barrels to further enrich its flavor, the blend marries Dominican and Nicaraguan tobacco to a proprietary filler cultivated exclusively for General Cigar in the remote island of Ometepe. These tobaccos were developed expressly to complement the Connecticut Habano binder and flawless Honduran San Agustin wrapper.


Prelight: This cigar looks and feels pretty good. The black and gold band provides a classier presentation than the traditionally boring Macanudo band. Although it's bumpy and a bit veiny, the dark San Agustin wrapper promises some flavor. The foot shows dark tobacco, albeit with a few lighter stemmy spots. The cigar feels firm, the scent sweet compost. Cold draw shows some sweetness, too, and a vague chocolate note.







Burn: Again, pretty good. It lit well and produced a light and mostly solid ash, with a fairly straight burn line. I noticed some white dots in the ash (like the kind described in this article from Stogie Fresh). As the burn approached the band, it became flakier and somewhat more erratic, but I didn't run into any terrible problems.











Here's a close up of the white dots I mentioned.








Some flakiness and erratic burn as the end approaches.







Flavor: What I didn't run into was much flavor, despite the promise of the wrapper. It's touted as a full bodied smoke, with "depth and complexity." Alas, to my palate, this was medium-bodied, at best. There was a bit of sweetness, maybe a hint of chocolate and coffee, but only because I was trying hard to find some. Maybe I brought my anti-Macanudo prejudices with me to the smoking -- I wonder how it would have fared if I'd smoked it in a blind tasting? -- but this cigar came up short in the flavor and body department. It wasn't a bad cigar, but I can't see myself buying any more, and certainly not at the $8.50 MSRP.

And so the story ends, where all of my Macanudo stories end: lightweight, the cigar equivalent of a summer beach read. I'll give credit where credit is due, recognizing that the cigar is pretty well made, and perhaps it's a good choice for the newbie or occasional smoker. But that's as much as I can say for it.

Rock on.

BlackIrish

[SmoknTaz]

I like these much better then the rest of the Mac line. Would I smoke another (yes, hey I'm still a newbie) but there are definitely a lot more better smokes especially at this MSRP. Thanks for the review.