Segovias De Esteli may seem like a new arrival to the cigar scene. By that name, they are, however the cigars and the factory have been around for longer. You may recognize the band and the blend as Antigua Esteli. After an issue that resulted in a rebrand, Segovias De Esteli is back with their Maduro and Habano lines! These cigars are made at their factory Tabacalera Segvoias De Esteli - responsible for the Casa 1910 Calvary Edition and the Fosforo Limitada 2023.
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: Tabacalera Segovias De Esteli
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Oscuro
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Vitola: 5 1/2 x 52 Robusto
Price: $10.00 MSRP
Link to Purchase: The Cigar Farm (Use code “Review” to save 10%!)
I like the bands on these cigars. They’re a little cheesy, but I can dig it. The wrapper on this looks and feels like a dark leather sofa. The cold draw is reminiscent of chocolate chip cookies. It smells like a syrupy baked good. First light brings about medium bodied smoke with medium-full flavors of slightly tannic wood, baking spices, and some dark brown sugar sweetness. I had to do some touching up in the first half inch to square the burn back up. I definitely get the impression that there are thicker tobaccos in this blend. Ending the first third the flavor is coming up towards full. The tannins are gone but the wood and baking spice core remains with some added citrus. The retrohale brings in cane sugar and more baking spices. No touch ups have been needed since the first one. I jinxed myself. Passing halfway I had to do another small touch up. The second half is seeing that citrus note morph more into a dark sweetness, like maybe dates. The retrohale has seen the addition of some floral creaminess. Coming to an end here the wood is the primary component with a touch of pepper as well. The performance has been good up to the end and the smoke time clocked in at about an hour and 15 minutes.
Overall Experience
This is a solid cigar. I don’t find it to be an extraordinary or necessarily unique smoking experience, but it delivers rich flavors with decent performance at a competitive price point. I will note: I marked the body as medium, though if you do a “double puff” then that easily becomes full, as you can get quite thick, mouth coating smoke. I think this is an easily approachable cigar for most smokers. It leans in favor of the typical Nicaraguan cigar smoker with the rich, more robust flavors. However, there is always a delicate layer of sweetness that balances things out that would not make me fear recommending this to any type of smoker. I will also note, lastly, that you ought to be retrohaling this cigar. It adds a delicate dimension to the profile.
Have you smoked this one? Let me know your thoughts!