Pre-light Experience

Aaron: The wrapper on the Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54 is medium brown with some darker marbling and it carries some decently raised veins. The seams are raised and the caps are fairly wrinkly. The band is black gold and red and denotes the brand and line. The aroma from the wrapper is smoky wood and light earth, while the foot brings cedar and bread. The pre-light draw brings a very light mix of cedar and floral notes.
Seth: The Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54 looks better than the Habano, but this is still very 90’s and disappointing for Gurkha. Might as well charge $25.00 and improve the packaging. Slight bit of oils with small veins throughout. Firm throughout with aromas of rich earth, chocolate, tobacco, nuts and toast.
John: The Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54 came in cellophane and had a UPC sticker with the cigar information and a tear space to remain intact when opened. I weighed the cigar at 20.2 grams and measured the humidity at 64.7% with the HumidiMeter Pro. Aromas from the wrapper included sweet tobacco and a background note of barnyard. Out of the foot, I was getting hay and dry wood.

Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54

First Third

Aaron: The cigar begins with a mellow mix of toasted hay and earth. At a half inch in, the toasted hay transitions to musty, toasted cedar. At three quarters of an inch in, some chalkiness joins the profile. The retrohale is musty, toasted cedar, earth and chalkiness. At an inch and a half in, a light burning paper joins the profile. As the third comes to a close, the musty, toasted cedar is up front, with earth and chalkiness in the middle and burning paper in the background. The strength was mild.
Seth: The first third begins with a soft mocha profile that is paired with some pepper spices. Bits of earth and wood are present as well. Just over medium in strength and body. Not medium-full.
John: Cream and spicy wood starts the first third with graham cracker sitting underneath. Spicy wood takes the profile into the post draw with some earth adding accent notes. Almost a black tea astringent flavor is present at the end of the retrohale. Milk chocolate notes are present in the retrohale as the first third progresses. Tannic wood joins the finish and starts to define the post draw as the first third closes on the halfway point.

Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54

Second Third

Aaron: As the second third begins, the chalkiness increases to move in between the cedar and earth. At a half inch in, the chalkiness is now even with the musty, toasted cedar up front. The retrohale remains musty, toasted cedar, earth and chalkiness. As the third comes to a close, the musty, toasted cedar and chalkiness are even up front, with earth in the middle and burning paper in the background. The strength bumped up to mild-medium.
Seth: The second third was in line with the first. Some tobacco and barnyard qualities present with some sweet spice. Mocha, pepper and earth present. Medium in strength and body.
John: Sweet wood carries the cigar into the second third with mild spices in the center and tannic wood to finish. Graham cracker joins the center of the retrohale as it settles in. Hay joins the finish as the cigar continues towards the halfway point. Earth joins the post draw through the bottom half.

Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54

Final Third

Aaron: As the final third begins, the chalkiness moves back to in between the cedar and earth. The retrohale remains musty, toasted cedar, earth and chalkiness. As the cigar wraps up, the musty, toasted cedar is up front, with the chalkiness a bit behind, the earth in the middle of the profile and some burning paper in the background. The strength bumped up to slightly below medium.
Seth: The final third is in line with the second. There is some harshness, char and minerals on the finish. Just over medium in strength and body. Same flavor profile. Lacking mocha.
John: Tannic cedar leads off with medium strength sharp, dry, tannic cedar to finish. Bitter char joins the finish as the cigar approaches the halfway point. The profile for the last third is almost entirely defined by wood with the bitter char to finish in the bottom half.

Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54

Burn

Aaron: The burn was a bit wavy at times and needed a single touch-up to keep things burning in unison. The ash held on through each third.
Seth: The burn was good from start to finish.
John: The burn was wavy in the first third, eventually forming a canoe which required a touch-up to correct. The wavy burn continued and became a canoe in the second third, requiring another touch-up. The burn was relatively straight for the remainder of the review.

Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54

Draw

Aaron: The draw was fairly snug and would sometimes take two draws to get enough smoke production.
Seth: Draw was good throughout.
John: The draw had a significant amount of resistance to it, roughly 3-1/2 to 4 notches into the resistant spectrum which is an average score for draw.

Overall

Aaron: The cigar began with a mellow mix of toasted hay and earth. The toasted hay transitioned to musty, toasted cedar. Later, some chalkiness joined in and then some burning paper after that. The second third saw that chalkiness become even with the toasted cedar up front. The final third saw the chalkiness mellow a bit. The Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54 had an average flavor profile throughout. After some slight transitions in the first third, it was fairly linear after that. This cigar has to be geared towards mild smokers or those that are picking up a cigar for the first time or a rare occasion. The price point is really high for what is delivered and it’s not a cigar I would return to.
Seth: The Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54 was an improvement over the Habano, but that is not a challenge. It’s like Tyson taking me on in the ring. It delivered some faint cocoa and earth qualities throughout, and it was consistent. Body and strength were on point with the flavors and it’s an easy smoking cigar. It’s not worth $19.00, but there are few cigars these days that are worth $19.00.
John: The Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54 provided a fairly pleasant smoking experience for the first and second thirds, never reaching a point where the flavor combinations came together in an organized or overly engaging way. The last third was defined by wood flavors and a char that made the third delivery off-putting. The burn required two touch-ups to correct and the draw had a significant amount of resistance to it. With an overall average flavor profile and some construction issues, at $19.00, this one is a complete miss for me and not something I’d smoke again. Total smoking time was 2 hours and 24 minutes.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

5.25

Cost/Point

$3.62

Scoring System

Seth Geise

SCORE

5.25

Cost/Point

$3.62

Scoring System

John McTavish

SCORE

4.75

Cost/Point

$4.00

Scoring System

Team Cigar Review: Gurkha Tyson 2.0 Undisputed Maduro 6×54