REVIEW: Nestor Miranda Art Deco

Today's review is a newly released (I'm not sure where you can get them) cigar from Nestor Miranda, founder of Miami Cigars, and Don Pepin, creator of Don Pepin Cigars, amongst many others. As most of us know, Pepin is regarded as one of the masters of Nicaraguan blends. The story behind this cigar goes like this: With this cigar, Nestor wanted to give Pepin a challenge to use Domincan tobacco and still come up with something great.
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"We wanted to get Pepin out of his comfort zone, which is using Nicaraguan tobacco," said Nestor Miranda. "He accepted the challenge and came out with an amazing blend using 40% Dominican tobacco."

I am a huge Pepin fan, so after reading about this stick (and finally getting my hands on one), I am very excited to light this up and see what comes of it.

Vitola: Robusto Grande
Length: 5.5
Ring Gauge: 54
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Corojo '06
Binder: Dominican Corojo '98 & Nicaraguan Habano '00 (duel binders)
Filler: Dominican & Nicaraguan
Price: $7.50
Smoking Location: Explorer Lounge
Beverage: water
Manufacture's Website: http://www.miamicigarandcompany.com/

Pre-Light  

My Art Deco from Nestor Miranda had a inviting, smooth, chocolate-brown wrapper. The cigar was fully and evenly packed with just a slight bit of a give when pinched. The pre-lit aroma was very peppery with just a hint of a scent of sweetness -- an aroma I have come to really love, as it is present in most of Pepin's blends. The large cap on the stick clipped easily and the draw was excellent, tasting of hay with some natural tobacco flavors.

First Third

I lit my Art Deco with the normal triple torch I use for bigger ring gauge sticks and the cigar starting drawing effortlessly. I've really been having a great run of cigars recently when it comes to the draws. Not only with the sticks I write about, but also with the ones I've smoked for more casual purposes. All have been winners in the last few weeks. The starting flavors on my cigar are mild, but still easy to pick out. The classic Pepin pepper is there, but more muted than normal. On the finish I picked up some hints of coffee, but they were very slight. Like I wrote above, the flavors are mild, but not boring in anyway. The burn is a little crooked, but
nothing to be worried about at this point. The body was in the medium range. 

Second Third 

The second third of my Art Deco brought on a lot of changes from the first third. The distinct peppery flavors had subsided and now a strong, sweetened coffee and cream taste was what this cigar was about. The finish was very clean and, with the creamy notes, left my palate feeling refreshed. It was a drastic change and happened pretty much between one draw and the next. Speaking of the draw, the cigar was once again drawing perfectly, producing huge clouds of smoke. The ash on this stick held on for just over an inch before falling off. The body was still right in the medium range.

Final Third and Final Thoughts  

The difference in the final third of my Art Deco was not what the flavors were, but just how powerful they came through. The sweet coffee and cream flavors were in my face and lingered on the finish for well over a full minute. It might sound overwhelming, but the flavors were so smooth that it never felt like too much. The construction was perfect and the draw never got hot -- even all the way to the nub. Toward the end, the body stepped up to what I would call the medium-full range.


My final thoughts on the Nestor Miranda Art Deco? Even though I was looking forward to a spicy Pepin blended cigar, and got quite the opposite, I was not disappointing at all in the Art Deco. This is a wonderfully strong-flavored cigar that really takes off in the second third. As I burned through, the flavors just got stronger and stronger, so if you are smoking one and think it's weak, give it time

Would I buy it again? This is the second review in a row I have written where I think I would pay more than what the MSRP is listed. I noticed on my cheat sheet that this stick comes in a 4.5 x 50 vitola, too. I'm a big fan of that size, so next time I think I'd like to try that one out.

Would I buy a box?  This is a box-worthy cigar.

Dan