I stopped by the Owl Shop after work today, a chilly late January Monday, with the Alec Bradley Nica-Puro Rosado Gordo in shirt pocket. The cigar was a gift from my brother in law, Liam, who shares my love of cigars. Liam and I have enjoyed several sticks together after family gatherings and the conversations have always been as good as the smokes. Liam and I are both fans of the Alec Bradley line; I have never smoked the Nica-Puro before.
The Gordo is a hefty 6.2” 60 ring gauge cigar. As the name suggests, this is a Nicaraguan puro – a Nicaraguan double binder and core of long-fillers from Nicaragua’s 3 main growing regions — Jalapa, Condega, and Esteli — are wrapped in a handsome Nicaraguan Rosado leaf.
Appearance is a nice oily chocolate brown, the Rosado wrapper is smooth with a couple of small veins and no seams. Construction was very firm, with some softness noticeable just beneath the beautiful double-band. The triple cap was impressive.
The cold draw was very flavorful. Delicious notes of dried fruit, spiciness and some cedar.
The first third started off with strong notes of cedar, pepper, earthiness and some cocoa and nuttiness. The burn was excellent, and a perfect draw. The ash was salt and pepper and firm – and didn’t break off until about the inch and a half mark.
By the start of the second third, the flavor became creamier with continued strong notes of cedar, nuttiness and pepper. There was a hint of leather and some cocoa. The burn continued to be perfect throughout the second third.
Final third became creamier and the cedar and pepper notes continued right to the end and the burn remained perfect. The cigar needed no touching up and never became bitter or stale tasting. The smoking time was an hour and forty minutes.
The AB Nica-Puro was about as good as a cigar can be. I would score it a 10 out of 10, a rating I don’t give often – but this is a true classic.
AB1DQ 