Picked up this from the Casa Fernandez event at Outlaw Cigar. I am a sucker for buy 2 get 1 free. This turned out to be a pretty good cigar. Lots of flavor and smoke. I had comments from people that could smell the smoke on me later in the day that it smelled nice. Here is a review from toastedfoot.com about the 2009 Aresnio:
Hand-made in Nicaragua by the team of Paul Palmet and Eduardo, and utilizing Aganorsa leaf, the Casa Fernandez is another offering by the team that has produced Illusione and Cruzado. The name of their company is Tabacalera Tropical and they have been producing premium smokes for almost three decades. The Arsenio is named after master blender Arsenio Ramos, who works for Tabacalera Tropical. The double banding of this smoke is an eye catcher off the bat. The medium brown wrapper is well packed with minimal veins and has a beautiful cap that has a distinguished finish. The cigar has good weight but I am a little concerned that the draw may be tight due to the tightness of the roll. The pre-light aroma is of typical Nicaraguan tobacco with a hint of fruit. The cold draw follows the above trend but I pick up some spice on the finish.
The cap pops off clean and this cigar seems to be constructed very well with a nice draw that produces tons of smoke. The cigar canoes a bit at the very beginning but corrects itself for the most part by the time I am ¾ of an inch in. The ash holds well and is varied in color.
The first puff on this smoke produces solid notes of woody tobacco, no spice, and a nice finish. Moving into the first third, the tobacco becomes a bit earthier, spice is present in the form of pepper, and the finish is heavy and long. The second third finds the flavor of the smoke picking up as the rich Nicaraguan tobacco opens up a bit more. The notes remain constant but at one point I pick a bit of mint for just a few draws in the second third. The last third transitions into an even fuller smoke with an excellent balance of tobacco notes and spice.
This is an excellent Nicaraguan puro for the money. The blend is complex, it transitions well, and besides the uneven burn at the very beginning, the construction seems to be solid. The cigar is full bodied and full flavored in my opinion. The strength snuck up on me into the last third but that is not a bad thing, as it shows movement in the smoke. If you get a chance I recommend picking a few of these up.
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