AVO

Classic Maduro

TL;DR: An almost perfect cigar save for the appearance. Easily one of my top 5 favorites of all time. ——— 67% RH @ Cap, 60% RH @ foot - Home humidor aged 1 month. ——— Initial observations - The wrapper has a nice dark brown color to it, but the seams aren’t smooth and a few of the veins are very prominent. The complex cap is cut sloppily but placed straight and deeply. The foot is clean, but the filler is not exactly even with the binder and wrapper. Avo has clearly “spared expense” and it shows here, but that’s where it stops. I’ve always liked the beautiful design of their bands and logo, and this is no exception. Even when they use different colors, they’re always tasteful. The feel of the cigar is as firm as its price and classification as a premium cigar brand would suggest. The buncheros are doing their job; the rollers…could use a little more practice (or care, whichever is the real reason for the external looks). Finally, this cigar smells of cinnamon, hay/wheat, coffee (all standard), and a faint chocolate. The chocolate is even more pronounced on the foot. ——— Cold draw - The cap took my double guillotine straight cut with ease. The draw itself is good, and the flavors I got were cinnamon, coffee, and musty leather. ——— Light up - Easy light up and the initial flavor notes I got were black pepper, walnuts, black coffee, wheat, and a faint raisin note that disappeared quickly. The finish has cream and coffee lingering with a vegetal note. Retrohales gave red pepper, cream, and chocolate to start. ——— First third - From early on, the burn rate seemed very good. The draw is dialed in well too. Ash is a light gray, almost white, and solid with just a touch of flake to it. As for taste, whatever this cigar lacks in looks, it makes up for in flavor. On the palate is a hearty wheat bread note, perhaps with a slight toast to it. There’s also coffee, walnuts, cooking spices like nutmeg and a faint cinnamon, and a touch of sweetness that comes across as dried fruit or vanilla. The flavors mix so well from the start that it’s hard to separate them individually. The retro has an abundance of cream, along with milk chocolate, a mildly pungent cumin, hay, and coffee. The finish leaves a lingering leather and hay. I quite enjoy all of these flavors, especially when I can taste the difference between cream notes and milk chocolate notes. And the blend is so smooth. The first third here is better than many cigars’ best third, and I imagine that it will only get better. An inch and a half in and the ash was still holding on well. A sweet tobacco note gradually showed up, signaling a transition to the second third. ——— Second third - My mouth was watering from all the flavor notes in the first third, and I didn’t find the smoke to be arid at all, so I barely sipped any water through the first third. I did take a sip here just to reset my palate, and the cigar ashed itself. Returning to the cigar, I noticed the walnut flavor shifted to add almonds, and both tasted toasted. A woody note of cedar and oak joined the party in this third as well. The coffee became more pronounced on the palate and the finish, and the spices (pepper, cumin, and nutmeg) picked up a little in the retro. The smoke output was plentiful. While the burn line wasn’t razor sharp, there was nothing really to complain about. The strength was a medium, and flavors were really pronounced. My cigar ashed itself right at the band, and I took the opportunity to remove it and bring in the final third. ——— Final third - The band resisted removal a bit, even with warmth from the cherry, but I got it off without damaging the wrapper. I noticed some of sweetness falling away in this third, though the cream and spices kept going full steam ahead. I also found the woody notes to have a little more “char” to them instead of just “toast” in the previous third. Still, I found most of the flavors very consistent from light up to final act. The smoke did dry out a bit, so I ended up sipping my water a bit more, but that just refreshed my palate more often. While that washed away the finish, it allowed me to pick up a new yeasty dough flavor in the retro. That’s one of my favorite flavor notes that I don’t find in many cigars outside of Plasencia’s. I also picked up some enjoyable leather here in the final third. The final tasting note before putting down the nub was a good anise. ——— Other notes - Extremely well balanced! Consistency was great too. Spoiler alert, this is one of my favorite cigars, period. I smoked this until I couldn’t hold it anymore (less than 0.5”) and took 1 hour 5 minutes to smoke this robusto vitola. ——— Personal Final Score - 93

Really enjoyed this one. Heavy.

Excellent smoke, great taste,