Cigar Geeks - Caldwell Cigar Co. Long Live The Queen Ace Of Hearts

Cigar Geeks Geek Critique

Caldwell Cigar Co. Long Live The Queen Ace Of Hearts
Written by Cigar Geeks Member: Barry (benchjockey)

86
Cigar Geeks Rating

Welcome to another Member sponsored Geek Critique generously sponsored by our member BewareDaPenguin (Adam). The cigar provided for this round is the Caldwell Cigar Co. Long Live The Queen Ace Of Hearts.

Boutique brand owner Robert Caldwell is releasing a new line of cigars called Long Live the Queen, a regular production line of smokes that he says has been aging for the better part of a year after rolling. The Ace of Hearts is the limited edition version of this cigar, rolled at the Ventura family's El Maestro factory in the Dominican Republic. It's a four-country blend consisting of a reddish-brown Cameroon cover leaf, a Sumatra binder grown in Indonesia and a mix of Dominican and Nicaraguan fillers.

Caldwell Cigar Co. Long Live The Queen Ace Of Hearts

Brand:: Caldwell Cigar Co.
Name:: Long Live The Queen Ace Of Hearts
Length:: 6
Ring Gauge:: 52
Country of Origin:: Dominican Republic
Filler:: Dominican Republic
Nicaragua
Binder:: Indonesia
Sumatra
Wrapper:: Cameroon
Color:: Colorado
Strength:: Medium-Full
Shape:: Toro
Notes:: https://www.cigaraficionado.com/article/caldwell-long-live-the-queen-coming-this-fall

Pre-Light: 9 Points of 10 Possible

This is a good looking box-pressed stick. You would be hard pressed to find a visible vein on the chocolate brown Cameroon wrapper. It is a stick that apparently was rolled with care. It has a matte finish with the cap neatly attached. A straight cut removed the cap, but a tiny part of the wrapper came with it.

Lighting and Burn: 12 Points of 15 Possible

The pre-light draw carried a sweet taste. The grey ash was flaky and tapped off before it fell. This process was maintained during the entire smoking experience. The burn was on the slow side. The burn line only once slightly wandered but quickly self-corrected. No relights were required. Smoke output was generous.

Construction: 25 Points of 30 Possible

The draw was fine for my liking, though a tad on the light side. The part of the wrapper that was pulled off was never an issue.
About my only criticism would be the flaky ash. A testament to the good construction is that the burn line only wandered off once and self-corrected.

Flavor and Aroma: 40 Points of 45 Possible

There was a bit of pepper on the retrohale at the start, but the main flavor was milk chocolate which lingered on the tongue.
The taste of nuts came next.

The second third began with citrus and plenty of sweetness. At this point I would label this smoke as medium strength.

The final third brought more citrus—lemon at times, orange occasionally. Spice came only on the retrohale and in the form of pepper.

Summary

I didn't expect this much milk chocolate sweetness from this cigar, but it was certainly welcome. Perhaps the biggest compliment I can pay the Queen of Hearts is that I smoked it slowly savoring each puff. However, I would have liked to have found more spice.

My thanks to Adam for his sponsorship and for introducing me to this fine cigar.