Pre-light Experience

Aaron: The wrapper on the rectangle pressed AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado is a matte medium brown with some lightly raised veins and fine tooth. The seams are smooth and the tapered head and foot are well finished. There are three bands, with the primary being the traditional design for the line, but carrying a green variation of it and denotes the line name and sub-line. The secondary band is gold and green and denotes the company name. The foot has a green ribbon which is attached to a cedar sleeve that runs from the foot up to the secondary band. The cedar sleeve actually detracts from this particular vitola as it masks the shape of the foot, and it could be mistaken for a Torpedo. The aroma from the wrapper is rich earth, cocoa and light smokiness. The foot brings smokiness, earth and cedar. The pre-light draw is an airy mix of cedar and stone fruit sweetness.
Seth: The AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado is a great looking cigar. The cigar presentation with the cedar is fantastic, and the figurado revealed is just as lovely. The cedar is not hiding an ugly wrapper. The wrapper has a soft Maduro coloring with bits of Colorado, and it is oily and leather-like in texture. The cigar has an aroma of spices, leather and tobacco on the wrapper, and the cold draw delivers some mocha qualities. Coffee beans present.
John: The AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado came in cellophane and had a UPC sticker with the cigar information and was attached to the main cellophane body to remain intact when opened. There is a primary ‘Dias de Gloria Brazil’ band and an ‘AJ FERNANDEZ’ secondary band as well as a cedar sleeve that included a green ribbon foot band. As well as the Figurado shape, the cigar includes the artisanal complication of being box pressed. I weighed the cigar at 13.9 grams with the cedar sleeve and 13.1 grams without. The humidity was measured at 60.7% with the HumidiMeter Pro. I nosed the wrapper and could pick out cedar, fresh prunes, tobacco and faint earth. As there was only a small portion of exposed foot, I could only detect wood.

AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado

First Third

Aaron: The cigar begins with a bold mix of toasted oak, earth and black pepper. At a half inch in, the black pepper mellows a bit. The retrohale is toasted oak, zingy black pepper and some earth. At an inch and a half in, a light creaminess joins the profile. As the third comes to a close, the toasted oak and earth are even up front, with the black pepper a bit behind and light creaminess in the background. The strength was slightly above medium.
Seth: The first third begins with this mocha profile that has great coffee, cream and chocolate notes. There are some leather and barnyard qualities present as well, and the finish has warm spices and tobacco notes. Balanced and complex. Medium in strength and body.
John: The first third opens with creamy tobacco, spices to follow and an earth and tobacco finish. Some lingering medium strength pepper joins the post draw and brings with it light plus earth. Muted wood moves into the center of the retrohale as it settles, with the post draw pepper falling to light plus. Sweet tobacco replaces the wood as the cigar continues and the spices have become all but absent from the front of the draw. In the bottom half, the post draw pepper has moved back up to medium strength.

AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado

Second Third

Aaron: As the second third begins, the black pepper mellows significantly, and the overall profile loses a fair amount of fullness. The retrohale is now an even mix of toasted oak, earth and black pepper. As the third comes to a close, the fullness of flavors picks back up a bit as the toasted oak and earth are even up front, with the black pepper just past the middle of the profile and some light creaminess in the background. The strength remained at slightly above medium.
Seth: The second third delivers more rich earth notes, but continues with the mocha, leather and barnyard notes. Finish of warm spices and tobacco. Really lovely. Medium to medium-full in strength and body.
John: Creamy tobacco greets me in the second third with lingering light plus spices in the middle and wood through the finish. Earth at light plus strength combines with spices on the finish as the second third continues. Sweet tobacco joins the creamy start by the halfway point.

AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado

Final Third

Aaron: As the final third begins, the black pepper mellows a bit once again. The retrohale remains an even mix of toasted oak, earth and black pepper. As the cigar wraps up, the toasted oak and earth are even up front, with the black pepper in the back half of the profile and some light creaminess in the background. The strength bumped up to medium-full.
Seth: The final third begins to deliver more tobacco and leather notes with a darker mocha quality and dryer earth profile. Warm spices still present with tobacco to the end. Medium in strength and body. Cool finish. Nice finish to the Figurado.
John: Creamy sweet tobacco combines with spices here with earth coming in on the finish and delayed spices through the post draw. That profile remains stable until the bottom half where pepper joins the post draw and moves rapidly up to medium strength.

AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado

Burn

Aaron: The burn was straight throughout and the ash held on in inch and a half increments.
Seth: The burn was perfect from start to finish.
John: As is typically my case with cigars from AJ Fernandez, the burn is excellent with only a minor waviness in the second third.

AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado

Draw

Aaron: The draw was perfect, with just the right amount of resistance that I prefer.
Seth: The draw was perfect.
John: The draw is at most one notch towards the open spectrum which puts it in the ideal range between open and resistant for an amazing draw score.

Overall

Aaron: The cigar began with a bold mix of toasted oak, earth and black pepper. The pepper mellowed a bit fairly quickly. A light creaminess joined a bit later. The second third saw the fullness of the flavors drop off a fair amount and the black pepper mellowed significantly. Things picked back up at the end of the third. The final third saw the black pepper mellow a bit. The construction was perfect. The AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado had an average flavor profile throughout. The second third was odd, as it seemed like valve for the fullness of flavors was tightened until right at the end. Overall, a pretty average and linear profile that isn’t exciting enough for me to want to come back to.
Seth: This AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado was a great cigar, and I would smoke more of these in a heartbeat. I don’t find the price to be bad, and it’s nice to smoke a good Mata Fina release again. It’s been a minute. The cigar has creamy chocolate notes, and it had this faint hot chocolate and mocha profile that I loved. The burn and draw were great, and it was complex from beginning to end. Nice transitioning and depth. AJ has some great tobacco, and I know blends he makes for himself, and others can be very similar in experiences, but this is an example of something unique. Something good.
John: The AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado started out strong in the first third with interesting and engaging flavor combinations. The second third was almost there but fell short for me in the bottom half of the third. Both the burn and draw were rated amazing. I would try the AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil again, but I would likely change the vitola out for a Corona or a Robusto to see how they compared. The cigar was almost at the point of getting an overall good score. Total smoking time was 2 hours and 1 minute.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

5.75

Cost/Point

$2.70

Scoring System

Seth Geise

SCORE

7.17

Cost/Point

$2.16

Scoring System

John McTavish

SCORE

6.10

Cost/Point

$2.54

Scoring System

Team Cigar Review: AJ Fernandez Dias de Gloria Brazil Figurado