Pre-light Experience

The wrapper is medium brown and has a couple of raised veins running down one side of the cigar. The seams are hard to detect as they are very smooth while the head is finished off with a well applied triple cap. The band has the traditional Montecristo design with an extended section below it that indicates the line and batch number. The aroma from the wrapper is a mix of barnyard and wood while the foot brings more wood along with some natural tobacco sweetness and a faint white pepper. The pre-light draw brings a mix of a soft wood note along with a bit of a floral note. There is also a mild spicy tingle on my lips.

First Third

The cigar begins with aged wood, some floral notes and a very mild black pepper. At a half inch in, the floral note becomes faint and even though the black pepper is mild, it has a very long finish. At the one inch mark, the floral note returns to its previous level as the black pepper is now very faint. The retrohale is a mix of the aged wood and a faint floral note. At an inch and a half, the floral note picks up on the retrohale. The strength in this third was right at medium.

Second Third

As the second third begins, the aged wood remains up front with a floral supporting note. The black pepper is still very faint in the background. At a half inch in, the aged wood note has become a bit fuller which lessens the effect of the floral note on the profile. At an inch and a quarter, the wood gains a slight char while the floral note is now very faint in the background. As the third comes to a close, a slight creaminess joins in with the charred wood while the floral note has completely left the profile. The strength has actually dropped down to slightly below medium.

Final Third

As the final third begins, the char really picks up while the cream remains as the supporting flavor. At a half inch in, some mintiness joins the profile of charred wood and cream. At an inch in, the cigar begins to warm up and the retrohale provides a warm, slight charred note. As the cigar came to a close, it really heated up as some ashiness joined in with the charred wood, cream and mintiness. The strength in this third bumped up to slightly above medium.

Burn

The burn was great until the final third when the cigar didn’t want to stay lit and required two re-lights. The ash held on in inch and a quarter increments.

Draw

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

Overall

This cigar reminded me a bit of the Montecristo Epic Craft Cured where it had some nice floral notes. This cigar seemed to keep that note longer than the Epic did. A nice mix of aged wood and floral notes provided a good flavor profile until the final third when burn issues wreaked havoc with the experience and flavors. If the burn was better there, this cigar would have scored a bit better. The price point is quite high, but for those that really enjoy this flavor profile, it might be something they go back to. For me, the Montecristo Artisan Series Batch II is enjoyable and I would smoke more, but the price point is a bit of a deterrent. This is another nice cigar in the Montecristo portfolio which seems to be building a nice offering.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

6.12

Cost/Point

$2.94

Scoring System

Personal Cigar Review: Montecristo Artisan Series Batch II