Cigar Name: Orishas Robusto (5 x 50)

Cigar Description: Costa Rica with Cuban filler (made in Canada)?

Cigar Strength: Full

Review of the Cigar itself: When I was in Halifax and perusing through Smoke On the Water, I decided to try this cigar since I had never seen it anywhere else before and it wasn’t too expensive like many of the name brands were. When I got back I couldn’t find anything online about it — at least not at first. This took quite a lot of digging but I eventually found them (or, at least a page that mentions them).  I have to admit, there is still a lot about the cigar I don’t know (so if anyone knows of it, let me know).

The wrapper is a nice reddish brown (rosado?) and generally well constructed. There were some prominent thin veins that flowed through the wrapper along with occasional bumps from the tobacco inside. After punching the cap, taking the sliver of it off and then lighting it I got to enjoy a deep sweet nutty flavour that I had been smelling from the tobacco itself. It burned a little lopsided but tried to even itself out. The ash was a flaky, lopsided calamity that I kept tapping to keep from falling all over. But even with the tapping, it remained fixed to the end of the cigar with only little bits flaking off. The draw was simple but rich and creamy. As I continued into the first third, I noticed a tickle of pepper fighting to get onto my taste buds.

As I got into the middle third of the cigar the peppery/spiciness began to come through more but it was still the sweeter creamy taste that dominated. It reminded me of Guinness ale in the sense of that it was a meal in itself, that’s how robust the taste was. Although the construction wasn’t meticulous the flavour more than made up for the little bits here and there that weren’t “perfect”. The more I continued into the cigar, the spicier it got. The white pepper taste started to come through more as I removed the simple band off the cigar with a gentle tug.

The last third began with a bang into rich creamy leather and sharp roasted nut flavours. This wasn’t just some run of the mill cigar. It’s almost like finding that little known micro-brewery (e.g., Mill Street out of Toronto) or unique whiskey (Glen Breton Ice) that few know about but that everyone should experience at least once. Although this cigar didn’t have the near perfect outside, the inside was awesome. I’d definitely recommend that you eat first before having this one as it’s definitely a full cigar that packs a silent, finishing wallop. Now, if I could just find them outside of Halifax..

Enjoyed with: water

Smoke time: approximately 80 minutes

Final Review Rating: 9.1/10

Tidbit: The Orishas were Santeria Gods. An Orisha would claim you at birth (kind of akin, I think, to the animal spirits of Aboriginals in North America).