Pre-light Experience

Aaron: The wrapper on the Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion is light brown with some of the more prominent veins carrying a darker color to them. The seams are smooth and the caps well applied. The band is white and gold and denotes the company name and line along with the factory. The aroma from the wrapper is a mix of earth and cedar while the foot brings sweet, musty cedar and some dusty earth. The pre-light draw brings musty cedar and some hot chili powder along with a spicy tingle on my lips and the tip of my tongue.
Seth: The Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion is an average looking cigar. White band gets hidden against the light Natural/Colorado wrapper. The wrapper has a number of veins throughout, and they are small to large in size. Oily and leathery on the texture. Slightly firm with an aroma of tobacco, spices, wood and barnyard. Earthy.
John: The Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion has cellophane and a UPC sticker with the cigar information and an integrated tear space to remain intact when opened. There is a single band, with a gold font on white background with images. I weighed the cigar at 17.1 grams and measured the humidity at 61.7% with the HumidiMeter Pro. Aromas from the wrapper included sweet tobacco and aged wood. From the foot, I was picking up sweet tobacco, hay and wood.

Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion

First Third

Aaron: The cigar begins with toasted cedar and a cinnamon forward baking spice. At a quarter inch in, the baking spice transitions to a slight sharp black pepper. At a half inch in, the pepper loses the sharpness and some earth joins the profile. The retrohale is toasted cedar, earth and mild black pepper. At an inch and a half in, the earth is now even with the toasted cedar up front. As the third comes to a close, the toasted cedar and earth are even up front, with the black pepper near the middle of the profile. The strength was right at medium.
Seth: The first third starts out with a musty barnyard and mushroom flavor profile. Cedar and nutty qualities are present as well with some pepper and sweet spice notes on the finish. Medium in strength and body. Bits of creaminess with the pepper.
John: The first third gets going with spices as wood follows and finishes. Wood and musty tobacco are present through the retrohale with medium-full spices and wood on the finish. A breadiness breaks into the retrohale as the cigar progresses and the spices recede in intensity. Creamy tobacco and wood as the cigar continues towards the halfway point, with spices and wood that finishes and takes on a mild dryness on the post draw.

Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion

Second Third

Aaron: As the second third begins, some minerality joins the profile. At a quarter inch in, the black pepper mellows a bit. At three quarters of an inch in, the earth takes a slight lead in the profile and a vegetal note joins in. The retrohale remains toasted cedar, earth and mild black pepper. At an inch and a quarter, the minerality has departed. As the third comes to a close, the earth has a slight lead over the toasted cedar, with black pepper near the middle and a light vegetal note in the background. The strength remained at medium.
Seth: The second third continues to deliver that musty barnyard quality with some nuts, cream, cedar and pepper spices. Sweet spices present as well. Tobacco present on the finish. Medium in strength and body. Solid profile.
John: A creamy, tannic wood welcomes me in the second third with a sharp, tannic wood to finish. Bread moves into the retrohale as it progresses, and finishes with spices, and tannic wood that define the post draw. Fruit sweetness moves into the center of the retrohale as the cigar arrives at the halfway point. The profile is wood forward in the bottom half with an earthy finish.

Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion

Final Third

Aaron: As the final third begins, the toasted cedar and earth are back to even. At a half inch in, the toast level increases a fair amount. The retrohale remains toasted cedar, earth and mild black pepper. As the cigar wraps up, the heavily toasted cedar and earth are even up front, with black pepper in the middle and light vegetal note in the background. The strength remained at medium.
Seth: The final third is in line with the second. Cream, cedar, tobacco, musty barnyard and pepper spices. Really nice Dominican flavors with this blend. Medium in strength and body.
John: Earth and wood take the cigar into the last third with earth to finish and linger between each puff. Wood takes on some bitterness on the finish by the halfway point, but the profile remains otherwise unchanged.

Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion

Burn

Aaron: The burn was wavy throughout and required two touch-up to keep everything in line. The ash held on in inch and a half increments.
Seth: Average burn from start to finish. Slightly wavy, but not surprising with the blend.
John: The burn was relatively straight through the first third, wavy at times through the second third and relatively straight in the last third.

Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion

Draw

Aaron: The draw was a bit tighter than I prefer, but opened up in the final third.
Seth: Solid draw throughout.
John: The draw was at most 1/2 to 1 notch towards the resistant spectrum which leaves it in the ideal range between open and resistant for an amazing draw score.

Overall

Aaron: The cigar began with toasted cedar and a cinnamon forward baking spice. The baking spice transitioned to black pepper quickly. The second third saw some minerality join for a bit and then depart and a vegetal note joined in. The final third saw the toast level become pretty heavy. The Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion had an average flavor profile throughout, focused mainly around toasted cedar, earth and black pepper. Some accompanying notes were present, but didn’t elevate the profile. Not a cigar that brought enough to make me want to come back.
Seth: This Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion might be the best release from Eladio Diaz since his departure with Davidoff. It’s a Dominican focused blend, but it receives some help from that Ecuadorian Corojo wrapper. What’s funny is that the blend reminds me more of a quality La Aurora blend than a quality Davidoff blend. The price is a little bit higher than I would like with a cigar like this, but that is where most cigars of this caliber are today. I would definitely come back to this blend, but would have preferred a smaller vitola.
John: The Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion was overall pleasant to smoke but the profile was largely wood driven and I found it lacking in dynamic flavor combinations that would set it apart from other products in the market. The draw and burn were both perfect. Without factoring in the price, there wasn’t anything through the review process that caught my attention and would motivate me to seek this out again. Once you factor in the price tag, this one is a pass for me. Total smoking time was 2 hours and 38 minutes.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

5.30

Cost/Point

$3.02

Scoring System

Seth Geise

SCORE

5.85

Cost/Point

$2.74

Scoring System

John McTavish

SCORE

5.75

Cost/Point

$2.78

Scoring System

Team Cigar Review: Eladio Diaz Before & After Pasion