Cigar Geeks - Stallone Cigars Zaino Broadleaf Toro

Cigar Geeks Geek Critique

Stallone Cigars Zaino Broadleaf Toro
Written by Cigar Geeks Member: Neal (ntanner)

90
Cigar Geeks Rating

Welcome to another Member sponsored Geek Critique. This one has been generously sponsored by our member Cfickter (Chuck). The cigar provided for this round is the http://www.cigargeeks.com/cigardb/default.asp?action=showcig&cigar_id=192427">Stallone Cigars Zaino Broadleaf Toro. Tony Barrios, a cutting horse competitor, founded Stallone Cigars in 2014, though its cigars didn't enter the U.S. market until August 2020. While there are many companies that use horses for various parts of their branding, few cigar companies have leaned into the theme quite like Stallone. It has six different blends sold under the Cowboy Series name, each of which features Stallone's horse-themed logo and the name of each cigar can be identified by the color of the cigar wrapper resembling the horse's color in Spanish. Zaino refers to the dark-colored brown Broadleaf wrapper found on the cigar.

Stallone Cigars Zaino Broadleaf Toro

Brand:: Stallone Cigars
Name:: Zaino Broadleaf Toro
Length:: 6
Ring Gauge:: 52
Country of Origin:: Nicaragua
Filler:: Nicaragua
Binder:: Nicaragua
Wrapper:: United States
Color:: Maduro
Strength:: Full
Shape:: Toro
Average Member Purchase Price:: $6.50
Average Member Rating:: (1 Review(s))
Notes:: https://stallonecigars.com/cowboyseries/ https://www.smallbatchcigar.com/stallone-zaino-toro

This cigar was enjoyed with Coffee

Pre-Light: 9 Points of 10 Possible

Classy looking cigar with a satin footband and cedar sleeve and the double bands above the sleeve with a very dark leaf as a background. After removing the sleeve I find a toothy dark wrapper. There are a couple of vein lines and the wrapper feels like a fine grit sandpaper and appears to be fairly thick with a slight sheen.

The cannon feels solid from cap to foot and appears well packed. The triple cap is well done and pre-light she smells like a cedar sleeve. Takes a cut well and has a firm draw before lighting.

Lighting and Burn: 13 Points of 15 Possible

Took a fire well enough and burned slow and cool from start to finish. The ash was a light grey with some darker patches and solid when dropped. It held well beyond an inch and left a nice cone when dropped. The burn got wavy from time to time as would be expected from such a thick wrapper but never to the point of needing correction.

Construction: 28 Points of 30 Possible

The triple cap on this cigar was well done and took a cut well enough. The draw was a little firm but smoke production was good and after lighting the draw wasn't an issue.

The wrapper is toothy and thick with a slight oily sheen and a nice dark reddish brown color.

Flavor and Aroma: 40 Points of 45 Possible

A very nice start with a sweet earthy profile. Hints of toasted malt and some black pepper and a sweet finish with toast and walnut aromatics and a decent amount of spice in the retro.

The second third has a dried berries and wood flavor with hints of baking chocolate, the spice has dropped off some in the retro and the aromatics are still toast and now some leather hints. The finish is still sweet and so far I am finding this profile very enjoyable.

The last third has a dryer finish with some almond hints joining the mix along with cedar and a coffee note but the aftertaste is still marked by a sweet note. Aromatics are mostly leather now and the spice is at just the right level in the retro to provide a nice balance.

Summary

For me this was a very enjoyable experience. The flavor profile was right in my wheelhouse, the burn was good, smoke production was on point, really I have no bad things to say about this one. Great smoke and thanks for letting me in on this one.