Illusione Nosotros
Dec 12, 2009 Cigar
Tonight’s review is the Nosotros from Illusione.
Although listed as an Illusione brand cigar, the Nosotros is actually a combined effort by Illusione creator Dion Giolito and Drew Estate’s Jonathan Drew.
Dion says that the Nosotros started with a meeting between himself and Jonathan Drew on a trip to Nicaragua. Jonathan Drew had introduced him to some interesting tobaccos and blends that Dion was interested in experimenting with.
That led to the Nosotros partnership. He describes it as full-bodied and rich with a sneaky strength that gradually hits you with a velvet hammer.
He expects Nosotros to be on shelves very shortly. The cigars debuted at the 2009 IPCPR in New Orleans. MSRP should be between $8-$13 with a variety of vitolas.
Now, on to the review.
FULL DISCLOSURE: Dion sent me the Nosotros as part of a trade he and I had made. We are friendly on twitter and he has agreed to do an interview with SmokeScore.com early next year.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Size: 5×50 (Robusto)
Origin: Nicaraguan
Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Connecticut Habano
Filler: Nicaraguan
APPEARANCE and CONSTRUCTION – (19 of 20 pts.)
Wrapper is very clean with a medium brown color and has some darker splotches in some areas. No veins or blemishes on the wrapper or foot. Firmly packed with no soft spots to speak of. Cap is well applied and overall construction appears to be very good.
SMOKING CHARACTERISTICS – (23 of 25 pts.)
The wrapper has an aroma of cedar along with a slight barnyard smell. The foot was a whole other story. The foot had one of the most interesting aromas I’ve picked up on a cigar in a long time. There was a very distinct aroma of sweet bran or breakfast cereal. Not a sugary kids cereal, but more like a honey, nut, bran type cereal. The aroma was delicious. Cut perfectly with my standard punch cut. Draw was perfect. Ash was a nice white and held firm through the first third. Middle third had a slight wave to the burn, but I let it correct itself and by end of second third, it was fine. Rest of burn was normal.
FLAVOR – (27 of 30 pts.)
The Nosotros started out with a blast of toasty wood flavor along with some hazelnut. There was also a slight spiciness that increased into the second third. Second third introduced a sort of gingerbread flavor that reminded me of what I smelled on the foot prior to lighting. A faint sweetness, but with a nice spice balance. Final third brought back the wood flavors and an increase in strength.
OVERALL IMPRESSION – (23 of 25 pts.)
This stick had some very interesting flavors early on that I found enjoyable and unique. It was medium to full body which is exactly the profile I enjoy. The flavor profile of this cigar in unlike anything else I’ve tried from within Dion’s portfolio which includes Illusione, Cruzado, Epernay and others. Cigar’s that capture my attention as I’m smoking them are always something I enjoy. This cigar did that for me. It’s a very good cigar and one that I will be picking up more of.
TOTAL SCORE – 92
Tags: Dion Giolito, Drew Estates, illusione
GUEST REVIEW: Illusione Epernay
May 29, 2009 Cigar, Guest Review
Tonight’s review is a very special Guest Review.
My buddy Barry Stein from A Cigar Smoker will be doing a guest review of the brand new Illusione Epernay series.
New from Dion Giolito, the Illusione Epernay is a new, lighter blend patterned from the original ECCJ release. Named after the heart of France’s Champagne region, Epernay is an all-Nicaraguan cigar comprising tobacco from two specific farms and finished with a shade-grown Corojo ‘99 wrapper leaf.
“Certain cigars and Champagne go together fabulously,” said Giolito. “I think that this cigar is the perfect complement to great Champagnes, so I named it after a region in France that made this grape famous.”
According to Giolito, the blend is more suited to a “European palate,” which, to him, entails using a lighter shade of wrapper, and replacing some of the spicy character of his other brands with a sweeter, more floral tobacco.
For purposes of this review, Barry will be using his own personal scoring system.
And now, on to Barry’s Review.
I was lucky enough to be gifted this cigar by Tony here at leafandgrape.com when we got together for a smoke at Cigar Inn in NYC. Being it was such an enjoyable cigar, I was asked to review it here…
Appearance/Contruction 14pts
The cigar is a vision of beauty. The wrapper has minimal veins and a fair amount of oils. This classic looking stick has a decent weight to it and no soft spots and finding the seam in the roll is virtually impossible. The cigars band looks a lot like the eccj cigar with its white and gold band.
Character- 23pts
The cigar has a flawless burn that remains even throughout the cigar. The ash is a medium shade of grey with a little bit of flake which prevents it from holding for a long time. The draw was a little loose which seems to be my only consistant complaint from illusione cigars.
Flavor- 25pts.
There are some amazingly defined notes throughout the cigar. The first third there were notes of apple cinnamon spice. Now you might think I am crazy here, but when Tony smoked on he picked up those same notes. In the middle of the second third the cigar begin to lose those notes and there was some pepper and wood which remained through the final third.
Overall : 31pts
Total Score: 93 pts.
One of the best illusione cigars I have ever smoked. The problem is they are not yet readily available and I want them now. When these come out in regular production I suggest you run out and buy a box for your humidor!
Don’t forget to visit Barry’s site www.acigarsmoker.com
Tags: A Cigar Smoker, Barry Stein, Dion Giolito, Epernay, illusione, www.acigarsmoker.com
Illusione -hl- (Holy Lance)
Apr 24, 2009 Cigar
The concept behind Illusione Cigars was to re-create a specific taste profile from years past. Before the Sandinistas took over Nicaragua in 1979, Nicaragua was growing some of the best tobaccos in the world. The cigars made from these prized fields in the Jalapa Valley and Esteli region were strong, bold and clean. After years of neglect, these old Somoza fields have been re-cultiviated by the legendary master grower Arcenio Ramos of Cuba. Along with Fernano, Chandito and famed Cuban agronomist Jacinto, Arsenio has assembled the varitable “dream team” of tobacco production.
They have re-grown these humble acres to yield their fullest potential once again.
This premium, hand-made line of cigars is produced by Dion Giolito, who coined the term “small batch” to us in relation to making cigars that can maintain a level of quality and consistency deserving of the true connoisseur.
As Dion set out to re-create a cigar with a taste profile from long ago in Nicaragua, this line fits our mission of bringing you cigars that represent “The New Havana” in terms of bringing you the best cigars from every region. Using the flavors and strength of Nicaraguan cigars past, Dion blended the line using tobacco produced by a team of growers who took the fields of the Jalapa Valley and Esteli region of Nicaraguan and started producing tobacco that rivals the best of the Nicaraguan tradition.
Using tobacco from first generation Corojo ‘99 and Criollo ‘98 seeds and Cafe Colorado wrapper leaf, these cigars are beautifully constructed and are finished with a cuban style triple cap.
Made at the Raices Cubanas factory in Honduras from 100% Nicaraguan tobacco.
The -hl- is also known as the “Holy Lance” and it is the only lancero in the Illusione line.
Now on to the review.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Size: 7.5 x 40 (Lancero)
Origin: Nicaragua
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
APPEARANCE and CONSTRUCTION -
The hl is a pretty looking stick. The wrapper is a dark brown somewhere between milk chocolate and dark chocolate. It is clean and even and has no apparent blemishes. There is a cuban-style pigtail at the end of the triple cap and finishes off this pretty looking lancero nicely. The cigar felt firm to the touch with no soft spots at all.
SMOKING CHARACTERISTICS –
The hl gave off very little aroma from the wrapper, but the foot had a spicy aroma that actually tingled in the nose a bit. I decided to depart from my usual punch and I cut the hl with my Xikar Xi cutter. It cut perfectly and had a cedary flavor on the cold draw. There was also a bit of spice. The hl lit beautifully and evenly. About a third of the way through however, I began to have significant burn issues. The burn line became extremely wavy and I needed to perform several touch ups to maintain an even burn. The burn eventually worked itself out, but not until I was starting the final third. Tough call as to what might have caused this as I have not experienced this before with this smoke despite having several of them over the last year. The hl gave off a good volume of smoke. The smoke was light gray and had a nice woody aroma.
FLAVOR –
The hl had a little more spice than I remember in the past. The first third of the cigar had some nice leather notes and a strong sense of spice to it. The leather gave way to some woodier notes about halfway through but the spice remained fairly prominent. The spice turned a little black pepper in the final third, which I actually did not enjoy so much. Earlier it balanced well with the leather notes, but the spice started to become a little much as the cigar went on. It was medium to full bodied and had a good clean finish.
OVERALL IMPRESSION –
I enjoy most of the Illusione line and I think Dion makes some fantastic smokes. While this cigar was enjoyable, it didn’t distinguish itself so much. The flavors were fairly basic and not overly complex. I am probably unfairly comparing the hl to the other sticks in the Illusione line such as the cg4 and 888, both of which I adore. The hl was a good, but not great smoke.
TOTAL SCORE – 86
Tags: Dion Giolito, illusione, lancero, Nicaragua, Raices Cubanas
