Nicaraguan/Dominican/Honduran Tobacco Profiles
ZAP
Everyone, Registered Users Posts: 164
Could someone summarize the basic flavor profiles of these three types of tobaccos for cigars.
What cigars best show off the characteristics of each tobacco ? (ie which cigar that you smoke screams this is Nicaraguan, etc?).
Thanks for any information you can lend.
What cigars best show off the characteristics of each tobacco ? (ie which cigar that you smoke screams this is Nicaraguan, etc?).
Thanks for any information you can lend.
Comments
Cuba:
the key identifier for Cuban tobacco is what most people call the "twang." I however do not call it "twang." "Twang" is a sound. in fact, "twang" is the sound you get out of a Fender Telecaster. I describe it as a "sharp earth" flavor. Sharp as in Sharp cheddar vs mild cheddar but applied to the earth flavor. I have, at best, got a flavor that hinted at it in a non-Cuban cigar but i have never actually had it in a non-Cuban cigar.
Dominican:
i find that Dominican Tobacco has two schools: the full bodied and the mild. both of them have a roundness that is difficult to find elsewhere. In the mild version the flavors are slightly sweeter than Cuba. there is no "twang" but there is musty and/or grassy note. its usually filler leaf and compliments other tobaccos well. In the "full" school it has a heavy pepper especially as a wrapper leaf.
Nicaraguan:
Nicaraguan tobacco is very identifiable through its texture. the texture is pulpy in nature. it is very distinct. Nicaraguan tobacco has a heavy spice and is not as sweet as tobacco from other countries.
Honduras:
The tobacco is full bodied and round in flavor. Spice is hit or miss. The aroma is usually strong. this tends to stray to the nuttier side of tobacco.
Cameroon:
usually sweet and slightly tangy. it often does not play well with other tobaccos.
i hope that helps.
I don't have enough experience with the Cubans to know better, but Honduran tobacco seems a little "flatter" (like a beer can go flat) and maybe a bit more like bread than Nicaraguan tobacco, which I think you pretty much nailed. If tobacco were bread, Honduran would be a heavy whole wheat, and Nicaruagan would be a spicy pumpernickle pepper loaf. Whaddaya think?
Cuba: the tobacco has a deep, rich, aromatic fruity-flowery flavors with earthy underlaying aroma at the back. Some of them has very distinctive sugarcane sweetness. This sweetness is very different than other Nicaraguan or Dominican. There are also nutty and milk chocolate flavor and aroma. It has simply unique character and elements. The spiciness is more into white pepper. The finish is long.
Nicaragua: The tobacco has black peppery spiciness, molasses-caramel sweetness, more roasted strong coffee and dark chocolate flavors and aroma. More leathery notes at the back. It has very distinctive spicy sweetness. The finish can be medium to long.
Dominican: The tobacco has more black-white peppery spiciness, distinctive damp earthiness, raising-prune dry fruity sweetness. Dominican cigar has very distinctive and rich flavors and aroma but with medium to long finish.
Honduras: The tobacco has spiciness but less than Nicaraguan Esteli. It has a distinctive toasty crispiness. lots of nutty flavor and aroma. It also has fruity sweetness but not aromatic.
Cameroon: This tobaccos are all about sweet and balanced spiciness. It also has a lemony finish with nutty crispiness. Totally different than any other tobaccos. medium to long finish.
Costa Rica: Very earthy, medium sweetness with tons of nuttiness.
Peru: It has full flavor of coffee, chocolate and long finish. It is also spicy
Barzil: Little flat but it has a thick sweetness and dry woodiness
Mexico: -Sweet, earthy but not so spicy. Mild to medium finish.
Ecuador: Very spicy, toasty flavors with balanced sweetness. many blenders use it but do not give enough credit to this country
Now about strength. Its all depend how much ligeros(top sun grown leaves) they use. It is easy to make a strong and bold cigar with tons of ligeros but difficult to make a balanced cigar with flavor, aroma, long finish and strength.
both rzaman and myself have a list that will help.
This is a little off topic, but does anyone else find similarities between the Punch Punch and the Ave Maria?
I have found that my Nic cigars (which naturally tend to be fuller/stronger) age much better and offer vast changes with rest/age while some Dom/Hon blends that I like a lot have went flat on me after a few years when originally they were med-full bodies. This is not a hard/fast thing, just my experience. It really dose depend on flavor/strength preference as well as aging potential (if applicable and a consideration) and the blending profile of the various companies as well as their leaf buying availability.
Things are much more dynamic now and all three main regions are shipping tobacco from each others respective territories and other lessor known areas as well. It's a good time to be a cigar smoker!
when you smoke it slower you get the "puly" texture that i mentioned earlier in the thread.
...and to make the issue worse, i tend to not like my cigars as spicy as most do. so... I am very hit or miss with Nicaraguan cigars and even then, i feel they need age to smooth it out.
honduran cigars dont need as much age to smooth them out.
of course, if you bump down to medium bodied cigars you tend to get less spice and harshness. they dont wreck your palate. they can be satisfying but not overwhelm.
#4 favorite blend.
OK, I looked it up on Cigar Inspector, and this one has a pedigree:
"Elogio cigars are a boutique brand that comes from a small factory in Esteli, Nicaragua. Carlos Garcia Pereda is the master blender for Elogio, and he is the grandson of legendary Cuban tobacco grower and cigar maker, Alejandro Robaina. Carlos learned his trait in the Pinar del Rio region which can be considered one of the best of Cuba. The Elogio Serie Habano has tobacco from the Condega, Jalapa, and Somoto regions of Nicaragua. The cigar comes in several sizes: a 7 x 48 Churchill; a 5 x 50 Robusto; a 6 x 42 Corona Extra; a 5 x 32 Petite Corona; and the featured 6.13 x 52 Torpedo."
It gets a 4 star rating, which makes it an outstanding cigar.
Looks like I can get 'em at a B&M in Austin or Nashville. Maybe I'll get my daughter to pick me up a few.
http://www.elogiocigars.com/