Pre-light Experience

Aaron: The wrapper on the Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature is a marbled medium brown and has some decently raised and knotty veins present. The seams are smooth and the tapered head and foot are well finished. There are two bands, with the primary being the traditional design used on the Hemingway line and carrying a red ribbon near the foot. The aroma from the wrapper is lightly musty cedar and earth while the foot opening is too small to get anything distinct. The pre-light draw brings a mix of stone fruit sweetness and cedar.
Seth: The Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature is a decent looking cigar. It is a funky vitola. It’s always interesting to see the different takes on figurados/perfectos, and the nipple like foot is interesting with rough 109 style cap. The coloring is that of Colorado Maduro with some darker Maduro aspects, and it has an oily coffee bean color. It is veiny throughout with a bumpy texture and noticeable veins present. Aromas of manure, barnyard, tobacco and spices.
John: The Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature came in cellophane and had a UPC sticker with the cigar information along with an integrated tear tab so it remained intact when opened. There is a primary Arturo Fuente band along with a red ribbon foot band. I weighed the cigar at 10.5 grams and measured the humidity to 63.9% with the HumidiMeter Pro. Aromas I could detect off the wrapper were sweet tobacco and wood. As the foot was barely exposed due to the Figurado shape, I could not identify anything specific.
Jiunn: The Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature has a Colorado maduro wrapper shade. Wrapper look and feel is decent, with a slight dullness and protruding veins with minor soft spots. Pre-light aromas give light cedar and meatiness.

Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature

First Third

Aaron: The cigar begins with toasted oak, earth and mild black pepper. At a half inch in, a light leather joins the profile. The retrohale is toasted cedar and earth with light leather. At an inch and a half, the earth mellows a bit. As the third comes to a close, the toasted oak is up front, with earth in the middle and light amounts of black pepper and leather in the background. The strength was mild-medium.
Seth: The first third starts out with coffee and salted wood notes. It has this salty cedar and barnyard profile. Some earth notes are present as well with toasted walnuts and soft pepper on the finish. In terms of strength and body, solid medium.
John: The initial flavor impression here is creamy tobacco, wood, mild spices and then mildly dry wood, sweet tobacco and earth on the finish. The mild spices rapidly move up to light-plus strength after just a few puffs. As the first third settles in, some chocolate and earth combine for the center of the retrohale. That profile remains consistent for the remainder of the first third.
Jiunn: The first third creates a flavor profile that’s more subtle. There’s plenty of earthiness in cedar and dirt, with sweetness in semi-sweet roasted nuts. Retrohaling gives a sweeter nutty experience as well as increased cedar. The finish is very short with a quick hit of cedar. Strength and body is medium.

Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature

Second Third

Aaron: As the second third begins, the earth picks back up a bit. The retrohale is now toasted cedar and earth with light leather and black pepper. At an inch and a half in, the earth is now right behind the toasted oak. As the third comes to a close, the toasted oak is just ahead of the earth with light amounts of black pepper and leather in the background. The strength remained mild-medium.
Seth: The second third shows a lot of the same notes. Pepper notes are stronger with some tobacco, and it has that salted cedar/wood profile. Coffee beans and toasted walnuts are present on the finish. Again, medium in strength and body.
John: The second third gets going with creamy tobacco, a center of mild spices and earth with the same flavors finishing. Wood joins the post draw after a short delay. As the cigar continues towards the halfway point, earth has also joined the finish. At the halfway point, the earth is now in the post draw as well. On the retrohale, tobacco sweetness intensifies to medium strength. Some mild chocolate breaks into the retrohale not long after.
Jiunn: The second third has a similar profile as the first third. Some of the flavors are further accentuated, such as cedar and sweetness. But the profile also builds up a bitter nuttiness and tart cherries as well. Strength and body is still medium.

Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature

Final Third

Aaron: As the final third begins, the toasted oak becomes a bit fuller and more detailed. At a half inch in, the black pepper picks up a bit. The retrohale is now toasted cedar, earth and black pepper with light leather. As the cigar wraps up, the toasted oak is a bit ahead of the earth, with black pepper in the middle of the profile and some leather in the background. The strength bumped up to slightly below medium.
Seth: The final third has a similar profile to the second. More pepper and mineral notes. Tobacco with salted wood, coffee and barnyard notes. Medium in strength and body.
John: The last third begins with light-plus strength earth and sweet tobacco. The earth is present on the finish and delayed wood is present through the post draw. Tobacco is leading the profile by the halfway point with wood and earth teaming up for the center of the profile.
Jiunn: The final third’s build up of bitter nuttiness and tart cherries continues. It’s an odd combination because I love cherry flavors in cigars but also hate bitterness. It just doesn’t work. Strength and body finish the same medium.

Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature

Burn

Aaron: The burn was a bit wavy at times and the cigar struggled to stay lit in the final third and required two re-lights. The ash held on in inch and a quarter increments.
Seth: Burn was good from beginning to end. Really dark ash.
John: The burn was straight through the first third, wavy in the second third and wavy again in the last third. No interventions were required.
Jiunn: Burn performance was great. Past lighting up the nipple, there wasn’t a need for the lighter again. Even burn, great smoke production and a cool burning temperature.

Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature

Draw

Aaron: The draw was slightly tighter than I prefer, but didn’t cause any issues with the smoking experience.
Seth: The draw was perfect with the smaller ring gauge. The cigar smoked slowly with a nice bit of resistance.
John: As is often the case with a Figurado vitola, the draw was initially resistant, roughly 2-1/2 to 3 notches into the resistant spectrum. Once the burn line reached the shoulder, the draw was absolutely dead center.
Jiunn: The draw was also great, giving the ideal balance of air flow and resistance.

Overall

Aaron: The cigar began with toasted oak, earth and mild black pepper. Some leather joined in a bit later. The second third saw the earth pick up a bit. The final third saw the toasted oak become fuller and more detailed and later the black pepper increased. The Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature had an average flavor profile through the first two thirds, focused around the toasted oak and earth. The profile opened up a bit in the final third and increased in enjoyment which I don’t experience that often. I’m curious how the cigar smokes for the others to see if they had a more consistently good profile to know if it was just something with the one I smoked to determine if I want to come back to it. Overall, it was an easy smoking cigar with a nice price point, so we’ll see.
Seth: The Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature was a decent cigar. I don’t think it is a blend and vitola I would come back to in the future, but not a bad cigar. The cigar has a very long finish, and it leaves the palate dry and somewhat shot. The coffee and roasted nut profile lingers for some time. It’s not over the top in strength and body, but it is a pronounced cigar. There is something about how a Fuente smokes to me. I find it with all their releases. There is a distinct finish to the cigar, and you know you just smoked a cigar. My palate always seems to be done for the day. Something about the Dominican tobacco they grow.
John: I’m sure it will not come to a surprise to most cigar smokers, but the Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature is a good cigar. The first and second thirds delivered balanced and complex flavor combinations that kept me interested. I found the last third to be pleasant but lacking compared to the rest of the cigar. Both the burn and draw were amazing. No question I’d smoke the Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature again. The price point is quite reasonable through 2024 and 2025 and the flavor profile is something I enjoyed. Total smoking time was 1 hour and 45 minutes.
Jiunn: Like the average pre-light experience, the smoking experience was also average. The profile never pulled it together for me. Going from subtleties to contrasting flavors, it never gained any steam. Given this, this Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature is an easy pass for me.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

5.65

Cost/Point

$1.94

Scoring System

Seth Geise

SCORE

5.40

Cost/Point

$2.03

Scoring System

John McTavish

SCORE

6.82

Cost/Point

$1.61

Scoring System

Jiunn Liu

SCORE

5.75

Cost/Point

$1.90

Scoring System

Team Cigar Review: Arturo Fuente Hemingway Sungrown Oscuro Signature