Cigar Review murcielago

BRAND: Murcielago by EO

NAME: Belicoso Maduro

TYPE: Belicoso

REVIEW #1

LENGTH/RING GAUGE: 5.5 x 52

WRAPPER: Mexican San Andres Maduro

BINDER: Mexico

FILLER: Nicaragua

DATE OF PURCHASE: 8/2/2010

DATE OF RATING: 9/25/2010

TIME IN HUMIDOR: 1.8 months

LOOK AND FEEL: 89

FLAVOR AND AROMA: 90

BURN: 89

OVERALL SCORE: 89.5

STORAGE CONDITIONS: These cigars have been resting in their original factory box in my Aristocrat humidor. This humidor is maintained at 72°F, and 68%RH. They are boxed-pressed, individually wrapped in cellophane and packed in boxes of 20.

BACKGROUND: United Tobacco (EO Brand) was established in 2003 and produces the highly acclaimed 601 and Cubao brand cigar lines. Erik Espinosa and Eddie Ortega, both relatively new to the cigar industry, are highly respected within the industry. Both men started in the 1990's in the cigar business and have served in operations, management and sales for many big named cigar manufacturers. In 2010, a 50% stake in United Tobacco/EO brands was sold to the Rocky Patel Corporation, a move intended to better distribute this cigar brand.

The Murcielago was released in 2009 at the IPCPR show in New Orleans. Don Pepin Garcia's "My Father" cigar company in Esteli, Nicaragua manufactures the cigars.

Murcielago is Spanish for 'Bat,' a furry aviary mammal that inhabits the San Andres Valley area of Mexico where the dark, ominous wrapper of this cigar is grown. The bat itself is very important to this region. It is where agave cactus is grown to make tequila. The bats provide fertilizer (guano) for the agave, and without it, the agave might not survive long enough to become tequila. "No bats, no tequila" is the motto down there.

This particular box of cigars I received in early August from Eddie Ortega. On the back of the box is the packaging date of April 26, 2010. The date allows me to deduce that there is 5 months of age on these cigars. While it is encouraging to see "box dating" done by manufacturers, Don Pepin Garcia seems to be one of the few that regularly promotes this practice.

TASTING NOTES: The Murcielago is draped with a San Andres Negro wrapper that is dark chocolate in color. Slight veining can be seen, but the veins are almost flush within the box press of the cigar. The wrapper is rough and leathery to the touch, with the body being firm along its length. The aroma emanating from the wrapper gives off hearty notes of nuts, earth, and a slight heavy sweetness. While nasally probing the foot, I found similar but stronger aromas, with a small amount of ammonia nuance detected at the foot. The cigar was nicely finished with a triple-cap, as you might expect from Don Pepin's My Father cigar factory.

The pre-light pull was easy, but did not seem loose. Light flavors of sweet chocolate and nuts seemed to dance across my palate.

After lighting this cigar, I was greeted with the flavor of sweetened chocolate and a spice blast in the retrohale. The sweetness of this wrapper became more apparent in the aftertaste, lingering around longer than the initial chocolate nuance. After approximately ½ inch, the spice diminished slightly as bolder flavors took over.

By the halfway point, the chocolate deepened into an earthier flavor, with the sweetness remaining in the aftertaste. The spice seemed to stick in the back of my throat like Texas humidity. It hung there like pepper as the other flavors diminished.

After the halfway point, the earthy flavor deepened again into a rich, espresso coffee flavor, sweetened with sugar and continued to become bolder as the smoke progressed. The body was medium-full at this point, with full flavors. The finish is lingered with full-sweetened espresso flavor.

This cigar produced a salt and pepper ash that was cracked and loose. It attained no more than an inch before falling to the ground without being coerced. The burn line seemed acceptable, showing no signs of blistering, as one might expect with a thick wrapper like this.

Overall, I like this cigar. If I had a "go to" list, this cigar would be on it. It isn't the best cigar out there, but it delivers solid flavors and is moderately challenging to the experienced smoker. Averaging about $7 per cigar, it is well made, and a good smoke that won't take a bite out your wallet.

We'll rate this cigar again after three months.

~Blake

Murcielago by EO

Sunday, September 26, 2010