Review: Arturo Fuente Solaris

Next up for review is the latest installment in the Smoke Inn Micro Blend Series - a project for Smoke Inn in West Palm Beach, Florida. You can view my reviews of the previous three releases in this series Here, Here, and Here. The Fuente Solaris is a departure from the all Nicaraguan blends of the past three cigars and is, from what I can find, one of the only Fuente single shop releases in awhile.

Info taken from the Smoke Inn Website: For this Microblend installment Smoke Inn played no part in the creation of the size or blend. When Smoke Inn Proprietor Abe Dababneh approached the Fuente Family about making a Microblend, they decided this would be a perfect project for a small batch of cigars made over 6 years ago. Carlos Fuente Sr. had produced a small batch of belicoso cigars made from Ecuadorian Sun Grown wrapper that was uniquely light in its complexion. The cigars sat and aged for over six years. When smoked, we found the flavor mellow yet complex. One could definitely taste the quintessential Fuente flavor profile behind the elegantly aged smoke. Solaris will delight the palate of Fuente fans and collectors; especially those who like to age their cigars.”

Fuente is famous for their aged tobacco, so it should be interesting to see what this cigar is like due to that fact that they were made 6 years ago.
Specifics
Vitola: Belicoso
Length: 6
Ring Gauge: 49
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sun Grown
Binder: ?
Filler: ?
Price: $8.95
Smoking Location: House of Cigar
Beverage: water

Pre-Light 

The wrapper on my Solaris was very smooth with minimal veins or tooth. The color was light and reminded me of the color of peanut butter. The construction looked classic Fuente with an exceptional looking cap. Holding the stick to my nose, I picked up a lot of sweet scents, mixed in with aged tobacco. It was not an overly strong smell, but it was interesting. The cap clipped with no issue and the cold draw consisted of a walnut flavor and some honey notes.

First Third

Right out of the gate this cigar produced thick creamy textured smoke. The kind of smoke that coated the entire inside of my mouth. Although the smoke was thick, the flavor was a bit muted and very mild in body. What I did pick up was a sweet natural tobacco flavor on the front, which finished off nicely into refined honey. Also to note was how clean the finish was, even with the thick texture of each draw. Like I wrote above, it was very mild, but still a nice flavor. The nicotine strength was almost non-existent, so in the very mild range.      

Second Third

In the second third of my Solaris, the flavor profile got stronger. The front of each puff now consisted of some nutty flavors (pecans maybe?) mixed in with a burnt sugar taste. The finish was still the same as the first third (raw honey), but was now a lot stronger. This is the part of the cigar I liked the most -- lots of flavor. Even thought the flavor had picked up, the nicotine level was still unbelievably low. I would say again that the second third was in the low mild area. I did have a bit of a crooked burn during this section of the cigar, but it was easily corrected with my torch.

Final Third and Final Thoughts 

The final third was almost identical to the second third. The only real different is on the finish of each draw was that the honey flavor had left and an earthy grit took over. It wasn't a dirty flavor, just something with a bit more bite. It added a bit of interest into the profile which, by now, I pretty much thought I had pegged. A nice way to finish off the cigar, in my opinion. The nicotine strength was consistent in the low mild range.

Final thoughts on the Arturo Fuente Solaris? Although this might be the mildest cigar (as far as nicotine strength goes) I have smoked a ages, it made up for it in flavor. The flavor profile started out a bit weak, but it builds and builds throughout the cigar and turns into something very enjoyable. I would say anyone new or old to the hobby of cigar smoking will enjoy this stick. A good cigar to pass around to friends.

Would I buy it again? yes

Would I buy a box? Not really my cup of tea for a whole box, but with it being so limited... not a bad choice.

Dan