A Blue Maduro

Cigar Name: 601 Box-Pressed Blue Maduro Robusto (5.2 x 52)

Cigar Description: Nicaraguan Cuban-seed filler with NIcaraguan wrapper

Cigar Strength: Medium-Full

Review of the Cigar itself: After my last 601, I wasn't too sure about this one but I thought I'd give it a try. I've always like the maduro dark wrappers for that extra bit of hidden sweetness. The box-press gives a nice square form to it and the construction is done to perfection. There are very few visible veins, displaying an attention to detail and the quality of the cigar. As I toasted the end I noticed that initial sweetness hinting as the foot burned a bit and tasted it as it hint my tongue. At first I couldn't place or describe it but then I realized: it's almost like a sweet nutty flavour.

At first it generated a bit more smoke than I had expected but that eventually settled down. The first third consisted of a gentle peppery taste (that would sometimes tickle the back of my throat) along with an earthy robust flavour. I had to touch it up once when I got distracted by morning routine but was able to keep it going. A few good puffs allowed it to correct itself when it tugboated some of the burn but this also resulted in a fair amount of extra smoke. But it did seem to fit with the fog rolling in on this early Saturday morning.

As I listened to the construction crew outside hammering and banging away, the delicious sweet flavour of the cigar continued to pour forth. It is a stark contrast to the Green Oscuro I had tried before. While I found the 601 Green to be stronger and harsher, I found this one to be far more pleasant and tantalizing on the tongue and taste buds. In the middle third, I found even the wrapper to have a pleasant, very light, sweet fennel taste to it. This married with the gentle sweet nutty-earthy flavour that the filler emitted. The tame heat that came from the core of the cigar was enough to ward off the dampness and cold of the fall morning. The band came off with a trivial tug, a testament to the good construction and attention to detail of this cigar.

In the last third, the sweet fennel taste started to come from within the rest of the cigar. Intertwined within there was a timid espresso flavour, a perfect tie to the morning coffee I was enjoying. As I got to the nub of the cigar, the coffee and peppery flavours combined to create a great flourish of a finish. It was a great start to the day.

Enjoyed with: Water and coffee with vanilla flavoured soy milk

Smoke time: approximately an hour and a half

Final Review Rating: 8.5/10