Welcome to another Member sponsored Geek Critique. This one has been generously sponsored by our member nickthafish (Nick). The cigar provided for this round is the http://www.cigargeeks.com/cigardb/default.asp?action=showcig&cigar_id=158165">Southern Draw Cigars Rose of Sharon Lancero. Hand crafted in Esteli, Nicaragua – The Rose of Sharon embraces a unique blend. The natural cloud cover of Ecuador has supplied us with a prized wrapper, a velvety feel, gentle sweetness and a toasty burn, our beloved Nicaragua has gifted us with rich and elegant binder and filler tobaccos while the distinct Piloto Cubano of the Dominican Republic adds a dose of boldness and spice that allows this blend live up to its moniker: "She don't know she's beautiful!"
I don't normally smoke lanceros so was excited to give this a try.
Light in hand, the cigar smelled sweet and earthy.
The Pre-Light Draw hinted of leather and hay with a bit of nuttiness so was looking forward to getting started.
Lighting and Burn: 12 Points of 15 Possible
Toasted the foot and noticed right away that the draw was wide open. I thought this would be a quick smoke.
The burn was a bit wonky early on. It needed a few touch-ups to fix but midway through the first third, it kept a nice even burn the rest of the way.
The Ash held for about 3/4 inch at a time.
The Burn rate was ok but I think a little quick due to it having a wide-open draw. Very little resistance.
Construction: 27 Points of 30 Possible
Nice cap with a smooth light brown wrapper with minimal veins.
This cigar seemed well constructed. It was very light and didn't appear to be tightly packed as mentioned above which I think contributed to the open draw.
Flavor and Aroma: 38 Points of 45 Possible
Flavor - Initial hit was of black pepper which smoothed out a bit and I picked up hay and leather during the first third.
From the black pepper in the first third, the second third is where I picked up some white pepper. Slightly less spicy and a some of the earthy, nuttiness started to come through.
Final third actually got a little bitter for me. Perhaps I was smoking too quickly and built up some tar but it didn't finish well.
Overall the flavor was fairly consistent throughout. Bits of spice with leathery, earthy and nutty under-tones.
Smoke time about 45 minutes. Definitely a Medium to Full bodied cigar.
Summary
I'd like to thank nickthafish (Nick) for allowing me to participate.
I always appreciate these reviews so try to take them a little more serious than my normal smokes.
While it may not have finished the way it started, I did enjoy this cigar and would definitely try more from Southern Draw.