Santiago Cigars Maduro Robusto | Cigar Review

Wrapper: Mexican San Andrés Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan, Mexican
Size: 5 x 50 “Robusto – Box Pressed”
Body: Full
Price: $7.50 MSRP ($7.00 @ Summit Cigars)

Today we take a look at the Santiago Cigars Maduro Robusto.

BACKGROUND:
There is zero information on the usual new sources. The Santiago de Los Caballeros web site is full of pertinent info but it won’t allow me to copy and paste the history and background. And there is just too much information for me to memorize and then type in here. So please go to their web site to read about the company.

Other than Summit Cigars, I could not find a single online store that carries them. Summit carries the Robustos but not the Toros.

What I could glean is that the owner is anonymous. He is mentioned but no name is put forward and the only other name is Plasencia who must make these cigars for this mysterious individual. A financier of the cigar industry in Nicaragua.
The name of the cigar comes from the first capitol of Nicaragua.
The rest of the information on the web site is a history lesson about Nicagarua.
I could not find a single review of any of the blends. So maybe this will shake things loose as this will be the first review.

DESCRIPTION:
A gorgeous box press with a beautifully mottled red coffee bean color. Seams are tight. Few veins. A perfect triple cap. The wrapper is toothy.
A simple, but classy, cigar band whose color of burnt umber/dark orange is the perfect offset for the wrapper’s color.
I’m waiting on Joey to send me the Habano version. There is also a Connecticut.

SIZES AND PRICING:
Robusto 5 x 50 $7.50 MSRP ($7.00 at Summit Cigars)
Toro 6 x 50 Unknown

AROMAS AND COLD DRAW NOTES:
From the shaft, I can smell floral notes, sweetness, dark cocoa, spice, and cedar.
From the clipped cap and the foot, I can smell sweet cedar, cocoa, spice, and floral notes.
The cold draw presents flavors of spice and dark chocolate.

FIRST THIRD:
Wham! The cigar opens up with a blast of pepper. Ha Cha Cha. A perfect draw. Then a laundry list of flavors: Chocolate, creaminess, nuts, oak, barrel-full of malts, and dried fruit.

The malts kick in right away: Chocolate Malt, Aromatic Malt, and Chocolate Rye Malt. (See Malt Chart).
Strength is immediately medium/full bodied.

I’ve had this cigar for over a month. I’ve wanted to light ‘er up but discipline and a forgetful memory stopped me. Now I am very glad. The Santiago de Los Caballeros Maduro shines like a bright star. Is it Mizar or Magress? I am not sure.

I pencil pointed my burn line around the wrapper instead of torching the foot and am rewarded with a laser sharp char line.
There is a wonderful Mexican San Andrés Maduro sweetness.
And then wasting no time, at 1” burned, the strength reaches full body.

New flavors: Cherries, raisins, and butterscotch. The Santiago de Los Caballeros Maduro has a gorgeous flavor profile. Every piece fitting perfectly like a jig saw puzzle.
Smoke production is well beyond what the size suggests.

I knew this would be a great cigar. The Katman’s instincts. I wanted to start the week on a good note. From now on, all I have is older cigars for review which is fine with me. Keeps me busy and adds to my existing catalog.
A new note of black licorice. It’s lip smacking time.

This is how a great cigar should behave. Start with a bang and keep getting better with each puff…lots of transitions…super complex…nice balance…and a long, chewy finish.

SECOND THIRD:
Smoke time is 20 minutes.
Here is the list: Spice, creaminess, nuts, chocolate, malts, butterscotch, cherries, raisins, black licorice, and oak.
This is a fast smoking cigar. I don’t think I will pass the one hour mark.

Chocolate and creaminess and malts surge.
The complexity digs deeper with each puff. I shun water for this review. I don’t need it.

HALFWAY POINT:
Smoke time is 30 minutes.
The Santiago de Los Caballeros Maduro is flailing past my sense of time. It is such a wonderful blend that I’d give anything for a Toro to smoke.

The Santiago de Los Caballeros Maduro is what every Maduro should aspire to. Incredible flavor profile. And super complex while maintaining a very potent strength.

This Plasencia made blend is something they should be very proud of. It’s a killer and for $7.00? Ha! I could list a dozen cigars off the top of my head that cost twice the amount and are half as good as this blend.

I grab a bottle of water so I can see how puffing then sipping affects my palate.
Slurp. Yeah baby. Even better. What a schmuck. Should have done this from the start.
I could fawn over and praise this cigar all day long.

The malts move into first place on the flavor list. Right behind is the creaminess, chocolate and cherries. I can’t tell if this is a candy bar, an ice cream sundae, or a fancy French dessert.
Construction has been top notch. Perfect char line. Just plain yummy.

I slow way, way down on puffing. I’m trying to savor the hell out of this cigar.
With 2” to go, another flavor explosion. I have to grab a wash cloth to clean my face from that explosion.
The spiciness zooms into the stratosphere. The flavors…I don’t know what to say..just fantastic.

LAST THIRD:
Smoke time is 45 minutes.
This is the perfect cigar for experienced smokers. But it is also a great cigar for newbies to practice getting their bold palate on.

No nicotine. Smooth full body. Massive flavor profile. Ridiculous pricing.

The cherries are right up front. Not black cherries. But red cherries. On top of whipped cream. And chocolate sauce.
This cigar just might make it on to The Katman’s Top 25 Cigars of 2015. Yeah, it’s that good. If you buy some from Summit Cigars, make sure you tell them the Katman sent you.

The Santiago de Los Caballeros Maduro finishes beautifully. No harshness. No heat. And NO nicotine!
Flavors blast away right to the end.
Final smoke time is 55 minutes.

I highly recommend getting your hands on these.
Remember, tell Joey I sent you.

RATING: 93

PRICE POINT:
I am flabbergasted that this quality can be had for $7.00 a stick at Summit Cigars. I just checked and Summit is sold out of the Habanos. Leaving the Maduro and Connie. Summit only sells them in singles. Doesn’t matter.
This cigar, under a different brand, would cost $10. Maybe more.

Just a thought:
I’ve ranted on a bit about this new way of lighting my cigars that never occurred to me. Or at least, I don’t remember.
I’ve told you how in a dementia filled epiphany, I now light just the outside perimeter of the foot of the wrapper. I don’t touch the torch of my single flame lighter to the actual foot.

I start with pinpoint precision rotating the cigar getting about 1/16” around the cigar’s foot. I carefully enlarge the perimeter to 1/8”. Then eventually to either 3/16” or ¼”. Never touching the foot.

Now the cigar has a chance to burn inward instead of outward decreasing the chances of a ragged burn or canoe.

This is time consuming. As it takes laser-like precision with the hand holding the lighter…constantly rotating the cigar.
And then just in the last couple of days I noticed something. I have said that if one doesn’t get a laser sharp burn line by this method, well; then the cigar isn’t rolled properly.
I was right.

In using this method, I discovered that sometimes that precise burn flares to a quarter of an inch on its own. I found the chink in the armor. Sometimes it happens 2 or 3 times as I rotate the cigar.

Right there it tells me that the cigar’s wrapper was not terminated precisely. It was loose or had a lousy seam.

And sure enough, when those little flares happen, I get runs exactly where the flare occurred. Sometimes, I can fix it. Other times, I cannot because it is a runaway train.

I’m amazed at how many lousy rollers get a hold of fine cigars. Quality control. Where is it? Manufacturers don’t want to use #9 rollers. Too expensive. So they use what they can afford and put up with what they pay for.

I wanted to take photos but since this is unpredictable, it is impossible. I can’t sit in the dim lighting of my man cave with my camera hoping for this anomaly to happen.
So it ain’t you. The runs you get are the fault of the rollers.

Now I don’t use those lighters with 16 flames on them. Ever see some guy light his cigar with one of those multi-flame lighters? He torches the wrapper an inch up the cigar. Then all bets are off. If you don’t mind constantly burning the shit out of your wrapper to fix the run, go for it.

But if you want a nice easy char line, use the method I proscribe.