I will start off by saying that gimmicky cigars drive me nutty. Two wrappers, double wrapped, gigantic ring gauges etc....are all usually eye catchers to distract we the smoker from the fact that some company has wrapped up some dog turd and tried to pass it off as a premium cigar, I thought this crap stopped when the boom ended. I was apparently wrong because we have seen an unprecedented number of dos capas and other silly ideas floating around in the last year and a half or so.
The reason for the above diatribe is this cigar that I am reviewing, it is a dos capa vitola from La Gloria. The two inch section nearest the foot is covered in what appears to be a Connecticut shade varietal, while the rest of the smoke is draped in a dry and toothy wrapper that appears to be some sort of dark habano leaf (I am not one to research what leaves are used and such, I just smoke and report back to you). The visual impression is intersting, and they top off the presentation by putting the band on two thirds of the way down the cigar, so as to draw the eye to the gimmick. The construction concerns me as the cigar feels spongy, and I am concerned about how it will smoke. The pre light aroma is floral. The pre light draw is a touch sharp and almost bitter, but has some notes of spice.
The cigar opens with some bitter flavors of dry vegetation, but they dissipate rather quickly as the cigar progresses. There are some sweet floral impressions and a light peppery quality to smoke as it settles in over the first inch. At the back of the palate there are some impressions of dark wood, but there is an ashy flavor that hurts the performance early on. The draw is a bit tense for me, but I am not sensing any issues to this point. The burn is fading fast and I can tell already I will be in for some fight with this smoke.
The Connecticut part of the smoke proceeds for the two inches, or so, as I described above. Then the darker part of the cigar kicks in. I note a profile shift almost immediately and I am pleasantly surprised when the cigar takes a turn for the better. The core flavors are of cocoa and slightly scalded coffee, they couple with some peppery tones that are unbalanced when weighed against the other flavor components. At the back of the palate there are some loamy flavors showing through. The burn is a fight and I have to relight several times during this smoke, I believe that the cigar is too wet. The draw is also still too tight, but is loosening perceptibly.
The final half of this cigar settles in nicely. The core profile shifts yet again and shows some interesting mixes of peppery and a sweetness that I believe reminds me of honey. At the back of the palate there are gentle floral impressions and crisp notes of light wood. This cigar really has too much going on and the balance, complexity and depth are all hurt by that. The burn is a lost cause and saps much of the enjoyment that could have been had from this smoke. The draw remained a touch tight throughout.
The finish was nice and smooth with notes of crisp, light wood.
Appearance- 80 this dos capas thing does nothing for me, some like it and some don't, I don't
Taste- 86 a slightly above average experience, but the back half was very pleasant
Construction- 73 the burn was so terrible that I could have scored it worse
Strength- 88 a nice medium smoke
Overall- 81 a very sub par effort, I may buy some and age them and see how they perform
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