Usually I scoff at such blatant gimmickry, but in this case my initial negative reaction was turned into something more like curiosity followed by intense interest. It is not often that I am intrigued by a cigar offering anymore, the industry has just become so big ring and full flavored focused in the last few years that I can hardly stand it anymore. Along comes Pete Johnson, one of the masters of gimmicks, with this selection. For those of you that don't know what this is, it is a coffin with four cigars in it, one is the original Tatuaje Black Lancero and the other three are Lancero Culebras. Culebras are so rare and fun to have that I nearly knocked people over on my up to the front of my local B&M and to get one of the coffins. It is no secret in this blog that my departure from Pete had almost been complete when he pulled me back in with L'Atelier and with that greatness fresh in my mind I was mouth watering over this selection from the word go. In fact, the proprietor (always quite the joker), made some comment about inventing a cigar bib for me to stop the slobber from hitting my dress shirt. Very funny, very funny, but probably apt. Needless to say the week I had these laying in my humidor was killing me.
The Culebra is a mangled mess of a cigar to look at and I love every minute of it. Like looking at a masterpiece painting or sculpture I feel like there is depth and a palpable sense of anticipation at every turn and curve of the cigar. I am always concerned about the smoking performance of these cigars, you wonder, how could they be any good with all that mess there? Oddly enough I have had very few perform badly. This one looks like a thing of beauty and I can't detect any areas that will cause me concern at all. The pre light aroma is a heady mix of pepper and dark wood. The pre light draw shows some coffee tones with dark wood highlights.
The cigar opens with a profile that has miles and miles of depth and character. There are some brilliant meanderings of black pepper that smack the palate early on, only to be softened by some wonderful wood tones that have cedar, oak and hickory notes all wrapped into one. I am positively abuzz about this experience from the beginning and it is not letting me down. At the back of the palate and through the nose there are some very nice hints of coffee flavors and very nice crisp tobacco note on the finish that is harmonic when considered against the rest of the smoke. The draw is an absolute dream, perfect resistance and perfect delivery of smoke lead me into a considered pose as I contemplate the holidays and other such goings on because I know this cigar will not cause me an issue at all. The burn is also splendid and there is nary an issue.
The first half of the smoke really ramps up the flavor and robustness as it progresses. The core profile is really hammering away with black and red pepper notes that leave the palate alive and looking for more. The undertone of exceptional wood flavors still holds on in the background as almost a barrier to the pepper flavors becoming too much to bear. The back of the palate settles into a nice presentation of crisp and hearty tobacco flavors that further lend to the dampening of pepper notes that could become too much for the palate to work with if unchecked. The draw continues to be a wonderful experience and the burn moves right along with even ash and neither a run or split.
The final half of the cigar moves it into serious cigar of the year contention. The core profile takes on some more pepper flavors, but a hint of gingersnap comes into the profile and the molasses quality adds a satisfying counterpoint to the entire experience. It has been a long time since I was this impressed with a profile in a cigar and my transition back into the Pete Johnson fold is almost complete. The back of the palate and the nose still show effective tobacco flavors and some of the wood from the front of the smoke has found its way here as well. The draw and burn perform without a single issue all the way to the end.
The finish was woody and had some molasses bite and sweetness to it that lingered on.
Appearance- 100 I would not give a work of art like this a lesser score
Taste- 96 one of the finer profiles I have experienced in awhile
Construction- 100 the performance was so good for such an intricate vitola I have no choice
Strength- 97 a very nice full flavored experience
Overall- 98.25 an instant classic and definitely cigar of the year quality
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