Pre-light Experience

Aaron: The wrapper on the Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario is medium brown with some darker marbling and there are some decently raised veins. The seams are smooth and the caps well applied. There are two bands, both in a gold and black color combination along with rainbow stripes. The primary carries the typical design for the line and denotes the line and sub-line. The foot band denotes the company. The aroma from the wrapper is a mix of earth and cocoa powder while the foot brings smoky oak, earth and some spice. The pre-light draw brings lightly musty cedar and some floral notes along with a mild spiciness on my lips.
Seth: The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario is a nice-looking cigar. The colors on the bands are great, and it pops against the dark Colorado wrapper. It has a soft coffee bean coloring with a leather like texture. Firm in hand, it has small to medium sized veins present throughout. There is a rich aroma on the foot of earth, leather, tobacco and spices, and the wrapper has nice leather, tobacco and spice notes.
John: The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario came in cellophane and did not have a UPC sticker. There is a primary Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario band and a secondary Crowned Heads foot band. I weighed the cigar at 17.2 grams and measured the humidity to 62.5% with the HumidiMeter Pro. Aromas from the wrapper included sweet bread, tobacco and mild wood. Out of the foot, I was picking out light hay, wood and tobacco.

Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario

First Third

Aaron: The cigar begins with toasted cedar, baking spice and mild earth. On random draws, bits of cinnamon shine from the baking spice. At a half inch in, the toasted cedar opens up a bigger lead over the baking spice. The retrohale is toasted cedar with earth and mild baking spice. At an inch and a quarter in, the earth takes on a dusty profile as the baking spice mellows. At an inch and a half in, the toasted cedar gains a light smokiness. At an inch and three quarters, the baking spice transitions to black pepper and becomes even with the dusty earth in the middle of the profile. As the third comes to a close, the toasted, smoky cedar is up front, with dusty earth and black pepper in the middle of the profile. The strength is right at medium.
Seth: The first third starts out with some white pepper, cocoa, coffee and hay notes. There are some wood qualities present as well, and it has an earthy and soft spice finish. Some cinnamon notes are present. I would classify the cigar as medium in strength and body. Nice finish.
John: The first third gets going with espresso, sweet tobacco and mild pepper to finish. A delayed wood comes into the post draw. Sweet bready tobacco moves into the retrohale with medium strength spices to follow, and a pastry finish. The post draw pepper ramps up after a few puffs to medium strength. Some earth is joining the post draw roughly 15 minutes into the first third. Chocolate adds to the retrohale roughly 45 minutes in, combining with the espresso.

Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario

Second Third

Aaron: As the second third begins, some mustiness joins the profile. At a quarter inch in, the dusty, dry earth increases and causes the overall profile to become a bit dry. At three quarters of an inch in, the dusty, dry earth is now right behind the toasted cedar. The retrohale is now toasted cedar and dry earth. As the third comes to a close, the toasted, smoky cedar is just ahead of the dry, dusty earth, with black pepper just behind the middle of the profile and light mustiness in the background. The strength remained at medium.
Seth: The second third shows a rise in black pepper notes, and it is paired with the coffee, cocoa, cinnamon and hay qualities from before. Bits of oak and earth are present as well with a finish of soft spices. Like the first third, the cigar smokes at a medium level for strength and body.
John: Creamy tobacco leads the second third with a dark roast coffee center that teams up with earth into the post draw at medium strength. Sweet tobacco moves into the center of the retrohale as the second third settles in. That profile remains stable to the halfway point. In the bottom half, creamy tobacco is still leading off at medium as earth and coffee at medium define the post draw.

Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario

Final Third

Aaron: As the final third begins, the earth mellows a bit. At a half inch in, the black pepper picks up a bit. The retrohale is now toasted cedar, dry earth and mild black pepper. At an inch and a quarter, a light vegetal note joins the profile and the mustiness increases. As the cigar wraps up, the toasted, smoky cedar is a bit ahead of the dry, dusty earth, with black pepper and mustiness in the middle of the profile and a light vegetal note in the background. The strength remained at medium.
Seth: The final third delivers oak and earth notes. Cocoa and cinnamon flavors are present along with some coffee, and it has some pepper and mineral qualities on the finish. It smokes cool and smoothly till the end, finishing with that medium level in strength and body.
John: Creamy tobacco again in the last third with earth in the center which also finishes just under medium strength. That profile remains stable as it marches towards the halfway point. The earth moves up to medium-full on the finish and post draw through the bottom half. As it continues, wood makes up the center of the profile.

Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario

Burn

Aaron: The burn was slightly wavy at times, but never needed any intervention. The ash held on through each third.
Seth: The burn was a little off at times, and I had to touch-up the cigar.
John: The burn was straight in the first third. I found it uneven in the second third, eventually requiring a touch-up to correct. The burn was uneven in the last third, eventually forming a canoe that required a touch-up to correct.

Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario

Draw

Aaron: The draw was perfect, with just the right amount of resistance that I prefer.
Seth: The draw was a little snug at times, and I needed to re-light cigar.
John: The draw was at most one notch towards the resistant spectrum, which puts it in the ideal range between open and resistant.

Overall

Aaron: The cigar began with toasted cedar, baking spice and mild earth. The cedar gained a light smokiness a bit later and the baking spice transitioned to black pepper. The second third saw some mustiness join the profile and the dry, dusty earth moved up to right behind the cedar. The final third saw a light vegetal note join in. The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario had a nice start, with a well balanced profile. The second third took a step down as the earth became dry and built up in fullness and remained at that level the rest of the way. I was curious to see how the line celebrated 10 years and I wasn’t all that wowed. It started well, but fell off a bit and I was hoping for the restrained and well balanced profile to continue on longer. All in all, not a cigar I’d see myself coming back to.
Seth: I enjoyed the Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario. I thought it was a balanced cigar, and one that would do well with age and dry-boxing. The flavor profile worked well with the strength and cigar, and I enjoyed the pepper, sweet spices, cocoa and coffee qualities. The oak notes were enjoyable as well. Overall, a nice smoking cigar and a good looking one. It may shock you to read this, but I would pick these up again and smoke.
John: The Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario had a pleasant and engaging start, with complex flavors that harmonized well. The second third had most of those flavor components, but they didn’t quite harmonize in the same way. The draw was perfect while the burn was wavy and required two touch-ups to correct. I think if the second third had harmonized a bit better then the cigar would have jumped up to the good category, but as it stood, my overall impressions were above average. Crowned Heads has a large portfolio so I’d likely reach for something else before seeking out the Aniversario again. Total smoking time was 2 hours and 22 minutes.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

6.00

Cost/Point

$3.16

Scoring System

Seth Geise

SCORE

6.07

Cost/Point

$3.12

Scoring System

John McTavish

SCORE

5.90

Cost/Point

$3.21

Scoring System

Team Cigar Review: Crowned Heads Las Calaveras Décimo Aniversario