San Cristobal Clasico

Cigar Name: Ashton, San Cristobal.
Cigar Size: Clasico, 5"x50.
Wrapper Type: Corojo/Criollo.

Rain rain go away. Nothing to look forward to for the next 3 days except rain. Overall though, it was a good night. It was my Grandmothers birthday and my Aunt, Uncle and two cousins came up from the cape to celebrate the occasion with us all. Any day that I get Chinese food I consider a good day. Also my 5 and 6 year old neighbors came down to pay a visit (and snag some cake) and they are always entertaining to say the least. I thought before the day was over I might as well try to sneak in a cigar during this miserable weather.

The cigar is made under the Ashton name and in their factories, though the blend was created by Don Pepin Garcia. I consider myself a Don Pepin Garcia fan. He does seem to produce a lot of cigars, which I'm not a fan of people who focus on quantity rather than quality, but Pepin's cigars still maintain great quality. Though at times they can some what taste alike. I've had this little gem resting nicely in my humidor for over a year now. Time to spark this bad boy up and see if it worthy of that beautiful band.

Construction: 10/10

As expected from both Don Pepin Garcia and Ashton, construction is flawless. Very attractive and solid cigar.

Flavor: 21/25

I was expecting this cigar to be more full-bodied. I found it to be medium body, medium strength, medium-full flavor. I also expected a bit more spice then their was. Possibly the long rest settled it down. Most dominant flavors would be cedar, nutmeg, earth, with just slight pepper from time to time. Overall it was enjoyable.

Draw: 10/10

The draw was perfect on this thing. Took almost no effort.

Burn: 9/10

Burned slightly uneven a couple times, but naturally corrected itself. Wasn't an issue.

Ash: 5/5

Nice light gray ash, holds well over an inch and a half.

Smoke: 5/5

Thick white clouds of smoke, with a nice strong aroma.

Impression: 29/35

I would have to say, from first looks this is one of the most attractive cigars on the market. Beautiful dark natural wrapper, no visible flaws or unevenness, heavy in hand, smells great. The band is also my favorite cigar band on the market today, great colors and design.

I don't usually go much higher than $5.00-$6.00 for a cigar, and when I do I expect a lot. This cigar ran me about $9.00. The flavor wasn't what I expected. I was expecting more spice and dark chocolate. Was more earthy and nutty. It was a good cigar, but I've had better for a fraction of the price.

With the 93 rating it received from Cigar Aficionado, I was expecting a bit more.

Overall Rating: 89

Overall this is a very good cigar. If this was around $6.00 or so then my impression would be much higher. I'd have a hard time picking this up over a Padron Anniversary for around the same price. But still, it was an enjoyable smoke and I look forward to trying more in the future. Bottom line is, there are better cigars for the money, but this wont disappoint you.

This cigar receives my recommendation.

[BlackIrish]

Nice review of a very good smoke. They are overpriced at MSRP, IMHO, but you can find deals on them online. I scored a 10pk (one of Joe's Daily Deals?) for under $50.