Reviews of Nicaraguan Habano & Wrapper Samples

[deluxestogie]

If you are among those who received the Nicaraguan Habano seco and viso filler, and/or a recipient of Don's WLT wrapper samples, this is the place to report your opinions. If you love them or hate them, say so here.

I've already raved about the seco and viso, since I received samples of them in the fall. After I've collected my notes, I'll review the various wrapper samples that I received.

I'll start out by saying that my notion of the delicious viso is that a single strip (a half-leaf) seems perfect when added to 3 or 4 whole leaves of other varieties. It's got a punch.

Bob

 

[deluxestogie]

Nicaragua Habano seco puro

All of the seco is frog-legged, that is, the thicker half of the stem has been removed. Some of the lamina are more intact than others. Since it is graded for use as filler, perhaps only one half-leaf out of every 5 or 10 leaves is suitable for use as a wrapper or binder. I've chosen two strips that have only a few pinholes.

Chosen wrapper and binder on the left. The rest will be filler.

My choices for wrapper and binder were misted with water and set aside for about 5 minutes. That's really all it needed to come into medium to high case.

After stemming, I align the filler leaf halves, and crush them together. I then cut the filler to my desired cigar length, made a tidy pile, then squeezed it into a cylindrical bulk.

Filler cut to length.

Since the filler is in low case (it will sometimes crack, but will not crumble), I compress it firmly in my hands. Because the binder is from a different side of its leaf than the wrapper, I will apply the binder with its upper surface to the inside. It needs to wrap in the same direction as the wrapper.

Inside-out binder.

I used no glue. The binder is twisted at the head.

Bulk in a binder.

Since the chosen wrapper is a bit raggedy, I trimmed the outer and stem edges. It is applied with the upper leaf surface to the outside of the cigar.

Wrapper is started so that it overhangs the foot.

As wrapping progresses toward the head, I clip away the twist on the binder, so that the wrapper can fit snugly.

Clipped binder twist.

The wrapper is completed with its own twist (no glue).

The foot is cut. The head is cut.

Finished Nicaragua Habano seco puro.

As you can see, this is a fairly rustic appearing cigar, but its earthy taste is enjoyable, and not too mild. It burns evenly, and leaves a nice aftertaste.

Bob

NOTE: When the filler is quite dry (in low case), but not so dry as to be crumbly, I find that I can roll a cigar as tightly as possible, yet always get a good draw. With dry filler, it will never be too tight. With filler in slightly higher case, too tight means poor draw.

 

[johnlee1933]

I have rolled several from the seco with 142 binder and different wrappers. I believe they are the finest I have ever rolled. I am rolling the viso today to compare them. Next I will start messing about with the sample wrapper and some of my own to see if I can do even better. Nice smokes.

 

[MarcL]

That sounds good.
I've got some Dominican Seco and Nicaragua Habano Viso due on Friday.
I'm psyched.

 

[Matty]

Smoking a 40X5" of habano viso wrapped in some criollo 98 maduro. Filler is thick and rumply making it easier to make a good bunch with lots of air flow. Wrapper is on the thick side, stretchy enough to be a little rough with. Rich tobacco flavors, almost sweet, not bitter. I would place the flavor on the nutty end of the flavor spectrum, opposite from cocoa/esresso. Burns slow, lots of white smoke, medium grey ash. The smoke is smooth, as it should be from aged leaf. A good smoke. These tobaccos open new doors when blending with other tobaccos.

 

[BarG]

I like the way you roll! I have no problem improvising and thats how I roll my best cigars.
2 this morning as per my norm. Very rarely using a binder but considering my stash?
Damn Don't get get much better than what what I got.

 

[SmokesAhoy]

Wow Bobs look positively elegant compared to mine!

So far I've rolled a few robustos and a bunch of backwoods size/style yard gars. FM packed them in perfect case for filler, getting the binder on means rehydrating, or using all 10 fingers to smoke the cigar..

So, a recipe for a backwoods size smoke: Take the frog legged leaf, 1 total, and seperate the leaf in half. the side that has the rib is ripped into 4" lengths with the remainder going to the head. the other half is hydrated over a steaming tea kettle. trim this leaf out and take your trimmings to add to the filler. bunch filler up real nice and use the steamed leaf to roll a binder nice and tight over the filler, then roll it a little tighter. Like Bob said if you use filler in the case that it was shipped in you cant roll too tight. Next trim the head and the foot and reserve trimmings to go into the next cigar. Place these aside in a wood box (old cigar box?) until the moisture comes back out of the binder and the case comes down. For me this takes about a day, so roll a bunch so you dont have to wait.

I know this might seem like a bastardization of such fine quality leaf, but the 4x30 or so that this produces is perfect for most of my smoke breaks, i only smoke the big gars when my FIL is up.

So the flavor- puros probably are not letting me taste all the flavors. This is a rich full bodied smoke. I guess the comparison might be to a bourbon, that people might add a splash of water to taste the finer notes, diluting it down. While I dont do that with my bourbon, I think my palatte cannot really appreciate the undiluted nicaraguan leaf. I love it, but I think i'm missing the finer notes. To me, a relatively new cigar smoker (only a few years, and none of the ultra top quality buys) this is an intense full bodied smoke. Thick clouds of earthy smoke with each puff. If I send it out my nose it's a little on the strong side, but if I send about 10% smoke out with exhaled air it opens up some really good smells and tastes.

I was thinking of adding some virginia to some to dilute it out, maybe a quarter of the filler. I like a strong cigar, but I want to also try a milder version of this. As this is now, it is a very flavorful (if you are like me, bring a drink, the niccups will start to get you about halfway thru) cigar that smokes like a $10+ stick at a bargain basement price and will very likely spoil me rotten, so I will probably have to pack these with me when I go places so if I'm out with my family and we're smoking cigars I dont have to smoke one of theirs and then sound like a snob when I talk about the ones I'm used to. heh.

 

[Knucklehead]

I rolled a hugenormous cigar for my first sampling of this leaf. 2 Nicaraguan Seco leaves, one Nicaraguan Viso leaf wrapped in an Ecuador Maduro binder/wrapper. I smoked Padron Maduros for many years and find this cigar to be even smoother. I inhale about every 3rd or 4th puff. No problem. Even using the cigar wheel below, I still don't have the cigar language to describe the flavors. It's probably the best smoke I've ever had. Here's the cigar flavor wheel I'm moving from another thread:

 

[BarG]

Nicuaraguan Revue thread.

Somebody needs to start this thread. I've already got a good pic of a huge fat cigar to post a pic of. I also know I aint a good thread starter.But heres my cigar with an ecuadaren wrapper and seco and viso fillers.


I 'm really enjoying it by the way!

can I move this thread to the cigar topics?

 

[johnlee1933]

Re: Nicuaraguan Revue thread.

As I said in another thread I have rolled the Seco and love the cigars. My best ever. On the down side I have also rolled the Viso and it is way too strong for me. Maybe I can blend it with some milder leaf to produce a flavor I like or maybe friends will like it. Maybe it's a total write off. Any experiment that yields 50% wonderful is well worth it.

Both burn well and produce a very light ash.

 

[ChuckP]

Re: Nicuaraguan Revue thread.

As I said in another thread I have rolled the Seco and love the cigars. My best ever. On the down side I have also rolled the Viso and it is way too strong for me. Maybe I can blend it with some milder leaf to produce a flavor I like or maybe friends will like it. Maybe it's a total write off. Any experiment that yields 50% wonderful is well worth it.

Both burn well and produce a very light ash.

Howdy JohnLee,

What other varieties do you have to blend? I always grow some WI Seedleaf or Madole to help mellow stronger overpowering filler. Sometimes I use some smaller or holly CT Shade (Shade Grown) too. What would you guys categorize the Viso at - Medium/Full or Full?

 

[ChuckP]

Re: Nicuaraguan Revue thread.

Good Lookin Smoke BarG! Looks like a gordo sized fino.

 

[johnlee1933]

Re: Nicuaraguan Revue thread.

Howdy JohnLee,

What other varieties do you have to blend? I always grow some WI Seedleaf or Madole to help mellow stronger overpowering filler. Sometimes I use some smaller or holly CT Shade (Shade Grown) too. What would you guys categorize the Viso at - Medium/Full or Full?

Mostly Havana's. I have tried MD 609, MCY,CT shade and broadleaf and others. I never tried either WI Seedleaf or Madole. I just ordered some seedlings from Larry so I added 5 WI seed leaf to try. Thanks for the suggestion.

I categorize Viso as strong but I am pretty sure that is personal only. Ligero will be stronger still and some folks swear by it.

 

[BarG]

I don't think the viso is to strong , I always like a little punch in my cigar, I was using pa red tips and burlly tips till now.

 

[Matty]

I would say the viso is medium/full. It is on the strong side but I enjoy it. I have some dominican ligero and it is just a little stronger.

 

[deluxestogie]

The Nicaraguan Habano viso does add a wonderful richness to a cigar, but my preference it to add only a single strip (a half-leaf) to several whole leaves of the seco. That makes a large cigar. So I would clarify that it's about 1/7 or 1/8 of viso in my blends. The viso will also serve well when blended with much milder leaf, such as WI Seedleaf, Catterton, Keller, Harrow Velvet or Yellow Twist Bud.

In my original review of the viso and seco, back in the fall of 2012, I mentioned that a 1:1 ratio of the two might lead to a lot of excess viso, since it is so much stronger than the seco. But since it stores well, it will be handy for some time to come.

Just in the last few weeks, the tip leaf of my 2012 Little Dutch, Havana 263, Havana 38 and others have come out of the kiln (after a lengthy shed hibernation). Most are very dark, some nearly black. A single, narrow strip of any one of these dramatically alters the flavor of a cigar blend.

Another use for the viso is to use it as binder. It burns well, and is quite sturdy after reaching medium case.

Bob

 

[Knucklehead]

Here's a tip for you new cigar smokers. When you get ready to set down a cigar that will be relit later, blow the smoke out of the body of the cigar. If you really want a fresh tasting relit cigar, reclip the end. The smoke left in the cigar will turn stale after awhile, blowing the smoke out will prevent this from happening. If you blow out the smoke and reclip the end, the cigar will relight tasting almost as fresh as a new cigar. Here's a picture of my Nicaraguan Seco, Viso filler and Maduro wrapper. This leaf is as close as you will come to a genuine Cuban or Alabama grown cigar.

 

[Matty]

Good tips Knucks, and, this leaf is DIRECTLY comparable to a good cuban. Maybe not a Cohiba but an H.Upman or Romeo Y Julieta comes real close.

 

[Tfrankz]

I gave 5 Cigars out to some Cigar guys. I told them to wait at least a week to smoke to give the cigar time to rest after rolling. I find two weeks work well for me tastes better than a day or two. So one guy could not wait and smoked one at a cigar bar the next day. He got two guys comment on how good the cigar he was smoking smells and a thumbs up and good comments from him on the taste. Still waiting to hear from the other guys.

This leaf is a good base for a cigar. Just add a little something you already like and you got a really great smoke. The Viso is strong. I have found in the second half of the cigar is where it picks up and the flavor changes on me. I put some Brazilian in and that sweetness the leaf adds is a perfect add. The best to date so far rolled by me and best looking too. The Maduro wrapper is a dream to roll with.

The sample Maduro wrapper has less veins in it and is darker at one end from the other. Rolled nice. Also not in as nice condition as the Ecuador maduro wrapper. Will be smoking one in a day or two.

 

[DonH]

Started rolling a few cigars. My first was a puro of Criollo 98: Seco, Viso, Ligero (just a strip), and the Criollo Maduro wrapper. I was only home for less than two days between work trips, so I rolled it quickly. Also, I rolled it a little too tight. I left it out overnight to dry, then put it in the humidor and went away for five days. I smoked it when I came back and the taste was fantastic. Earthy and peppery, tons of flavor. Good stuff.

Then tonight I rolled one from the Habano Seco and Viso with a Havana Clara wrapper. I rolled that one a little too loose, and didn't have patience to wait, so I smoked part of it right away. Since the wrapper was moist and the filler in very low case, the filler burned quicker than the wrapper. It also burned a little hot, because of the looseness and the dryness of the filler. Lesson learned, have patience. Flavor was good, but the Clara wrapper didn't pack the same flavorful punch as the Maduro. I'm still learning what I like when it comes to cigars.

Then I rolled one with Criollo 98 Seco, Habano Viso, a Capote Sumatra binder, and a Havana Clara wrapper. I think I may have gotten the right amount of tightness this time. I watched the video again on the accordion method, because I don't like loose cigars, but I need them to draw well.