Pre-light Experience

The wrapper is medium brown with a red tint and has a decent sized raised vein running down the length of the cigar on one side. The seams are really hard to detect as they are smooth and blended well. The head is finished off with what appears to be a double cap, but it is hard to tell for sure. The band is nice as the burgundy and gold colors match very well with the wrapper color and the panoramic cattle artwork is really well done. The aroma from the wrapper is hay along with a very faint barnyard funkiness. The foot brings sweet hay, some wood and a mild white pepper. The pre-light draw is a mix of wood and leather with a mild spiciness on my lips.

First Third

The cigar begins with an astringent spicy cedar and a light coffee note in the background. At a quarter inch in, the spicy cedar isn’t as sharp, as a slight cream has joined in to smooth it out while the light coffee note remains. At three quarters of an inch in, the retrohale is providing a very smooth cedar along with a little bit of cream which is a really nice combination. At an inch in, the coffee note become quite a bit fuller as it is now working with the cream while the cedar has lost some spice but is still at the front of the profile. As the third comes to a close, it’s a continuation of the cedar and creamy coffee. The strength in this third was mild-medium.

Second Third

The second third sees the cedar transition to an oak note while the creamy coffee remains. At a half inch in, the coffee note leaves the profile while the cream remains to support the oak up front. At an inch in, the oak gains a slight char while the cream is now very faint in the background. As the third comes to a close, the cream ramps back up as the oak is fuller as well. The strength bumped up to slightly below medium.

Final Third

As the final third begins, the full oak with a bit of char and the full cream continue on. At a half inch in, the char picks up a bit and the profile is now really well balanced with all of the components. The cigar maintains this same profile through to the end. The strength bumped up to right at medium.

Burn

The burn was a bit wavy throughout and there were a few sections where the smoke production became a bit light and I needed to take frequent draws to keep things going. The ash held on in inch and a quarter increments.

Draw

The draw was slightly looser than I prefer but didn’t cause any issues with the smoking experience.

Overall

The profile started with a fairly sharp cedar note which had me a bit concerned, but it quickly got past that and settled into a flavorful mix of spicy cedar, cream and coffee. As the cigar progressed, the coffee dropped out and the cedar changed to oak, but the cream remained throughout. Aside from some slight burn issues, the construction was pretty good. I found the Cattle Baron Stockyard’s to offer a pretty nice flavor profile and one that maintained itself throughout and didn’t really drop off in the final third like so many cigars do. Strength was medium and below the whole way, so if you’re a fan of lower strength and fuller flavors, then this is a cigar to track down as you may find a new cigar to add to your rotation.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

6.87

Cost/Point

$0.98

Scoring System

Personal Cigar Review: Cattle Baron Stockyard’s