Pre-light Experience

Aaron: The wrapper on the Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro is light reddish-brown with some thin but raised veins. The seams are smooth and the caps have some wrinkles to them. The band carries some pastel colors on the front along with black and gold for the borders and around the back. The front denotes the line and the company is noted on back. The aroma from the wrapper is a mix of cedar and construction paper while the foot brings cedar, bread and some earth. The pre-light draw brings well aged cedar, faint floral notes and a mild spiciness on my lips.
Seth: The Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro is a decent looking cigar. I personally love the band and the colors, and it blends in well with the wrapper. The wrapper has a very light Colorado coloring with solid Natural tones. It has some dark hay coloring with golden qualities. The wrapper is silky throughout with minor veins. It is firm in hand with aromas of nuts, tobacco, soft spices and dry wood.
John: The Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro comes in cellophane with a UPC sticker containing the cigar information, which tears upon opening. The cigar sports a primary band and no artisanal complications. I weighed the cigar at 17.9 grams, and the humidity measured 57.8% on the Humidimeter Pro. Aromas from the wrapper included sweet tobacco, green wood and hay, while the foot offered sweet grain, some bread and tobacco.
Jiunn: The Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro has a lighter shade of Colorado Red. Veins are well pressed, seams tight, bunch and roll even and the head is well wrapped and capped. Pre-light aromas give mixed nuts and a hint of meatiness.

Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro

First Third

Aaron: The cigar begins with aged, toasted cedar, earth and some mild black pepper. At a half inch in, the black pepper becomes very light. The retrohale is aged, toasted cedar and earth. At an inch and a quarter, light leather joins the profile. As the third comes to a close, the aged, toasted cedar is a bit ahead of the earth, with light amounts of leather and black pepper. The strength was slightly below medium.
Seth: Ixtelli begins with dry wood and earth notes. There are warm baking spices present as well, but it is not overly sweet. Some cream, tobacco and walnut notes are present as well. It is medium in strength and body.
John: The cigar opens with creamy baking spices, followed by muted bread and wood, and a combination of mildly tannic wood and medium-strength baking spices through the finish into the post draw. The bread note becomes more defined on the retrohale, adding welcome texture. As the first third continues, the baking spices settle back to light-plus strength, and by this stage the profile has achieved a balanced rhythm. Approaching the halfway mark, the spices retreat further to a subtle background level, with sweet tobacco and bread leading each puff.
Jiunn: The first third’s flavor approach is soft but nuanced. Mixed nuts, floral perfume and oak. Retrohaling highlights all these flavors but with greater intensity. The finish is medium in length with creamy oak. Strength and body is medium.

Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro

Second Third

Aaron: As the second third begins, the leather increases a bit. The retrohale is now aged, toasted cedar, earth and some leather. At an inch in, a light chalkiness joins the profile. As the third comes to a close, the aged, toasted cedar is up front, with earth a bit behind. The leather is just behind the middle of the profile and some black pepper and chalkiness are in the background. The strength remained at slightly below medium.
Seth: The second third is fairly in line with the first. Dry wood and earth notes. Warm baking spices are present with cream, tobacco and toasted nuts. Some mineral and pepper notes emerge in this third, but it is still at that medium level for strength and body.
John: The second third begins with creamy bread, followed by mildly dry wood that lingers through the post draw. As this portion develops, wood becomes increasingly forward, and by the halfway point, the profile is driven by wood up front, sweet tobacco in the center and mild wood on the finish.
Jiunn: Unsure what happened in the second third, but the concentration of flavors takes a fairly large back step. Now it’s mainly mild dried red pepper spice and roasted mixed nuts. Strength and body remains medium.

Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro

Final Third

Aaron: As the final third begins, the earth increases to just behind the cedar. At a half inch in, the leather increases a bit more. The retrohale is now an even mix of toasted cedar, earth and leather. At an inch in, the earth is now even with the aged, toasted cedar up front. As the cigar wraps up, the aged, toasted cedar and earth are even up front, with leather in the middle of the profile and some black pepper and chalkiness in the background. The strength bumped up to medium.
Seth: The final third delivers a flavor profile of toasted nuts, dry wood, earth, tobacco and warm baking spices. Some citrus peel notes are present as well, and there are some chewy rind qualities with the spices. Like before, medium in strength and body. Some mineral notes on the finish.
John: The final third opens with creamy wood, as baking spices return at medium-minus strength, steadily increasing. Dry wood carries the cigar into the post draw. Dry and tannic accents intensify on the finishing wood as the final third settles in, building to medium strength. By the halfway mark, mild bitterness joins the finish, adding a coarseness to the closing profile.
Jiunn: The final third mimics the second third such that it’s still a one dimensional and less flavorful experience centered around mild dried red pepper spice and roasted mixed nuts. Strength and body finishes the same medium.

Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro

Burn

Aaron: The burn was a bit wavy at times, and at the end of the first third and beginning of the second third, the burn was tunneling and went out twice, requiring re-lights.
Seth: Burn was good from start to finish. Some wavy aspects, but overall solid.
John: The burn was wavy in the first third, then uneven in the second third, where the cigar eventually went out. After the re-light, the burn remained mostly straight through the remainder of the second third and into the final third.
Jiunn: Burn performance was good but had a couple issues. The wrapper burn was uneven the entire time and there was a complete re-light needed within the second third.

Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro

Draw

Aaron: The draw was a bit tighter than I prefer, but didn’t cause any issues with the smoking experience.
Seth: The draw was good throughout the cigar.
John: The draw measured 70 inches of water on the Cigar Medics Draw Machine. Subjectively, I found the draw to be 3½ to 4 notches toward the resistant spectrum, placing it firmly in the snug category.
Jiunn: The draw on the other hand was perfect, giving the ideal air flow and resistance.

Overall

Aaron: The cigar began with aged, toasted cedar, earth and some mild black pepper. The black pepper then became very light. A bit later, some leather joined the profile. The second third saw the leather increase and some light chalkiness join in. The final third saw the earth increase until it was even with the cedar up front. The leather also picked up a bit more. The Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro had an average flavor profile throughout. It was a very basic profile with no real complexity, just some minor changes in components and fullness. Overall, not a very exciting cigar and not something I’d see myself returning to.
Seth: The Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro was a solid cigar. I think it had a nice beginning, and if it had a little bit more depth and complexity, the blend would be great. I have always said that it’s easy to make a solid Nicaraguan puro. You can’t go wrong. But, very rarely do you see a great Nicaraguan puro that has tons of complexity and depth. There is always potential, but not always delivered. I do enjoy the use of Criollo on the wrapper. I think Criollo has taken a back seat for too long and should be utilized more.
John: The Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro starts off promisingly, with a first third that threads together creamy baking spices, sweet tobacco and a well-defined bread note on the retrohale. It’s a beginning that feels both comforting and composed, suggesting a profile that might evolve into something layered and rewarding. There’s a nice symmetry early on between sweetness, baking spice and a soft tannic wood undertone. By the time the first third is fully settled, the cigar has found an equilibrium that feels natural and unforced. However, as the cigar transitions into the second third, the shift toward a more wood-driven profile introduces a gradual narrowing of the experience. The creamy bread that opens the third is pleasant, but the increasing dominance of dry wood begins to mute the dynamic elements that made the opening stretch enjoyable. The sweet tobacco still contributes some contrast, but the range begins to contract, moving the profile toward something more utilitarian than expressive. In the final third, the wood takes an even firmer hold moving to dry and tannic, intensifying as it continues. The return of baking spices adds some structure, but the rising tannins and eventual bitterness pull the profile into a rougher, more rigid space. It’s not an unexpected turn for a cigar built around wood-forward components, but it does shift the cigar from pleasant to off-putting in its final moments. Construction plays its part as well. While the burn ultimately behaved after the relight, the initial waviness and mid-cigar outage interrupted the rhythm. The draw, significantly on the resistant side, could have contributed to the overall roughness of the profile in the latter two thirds; with airflow restricted, the cigar felt like it was always holding back a bit. The Ixtelli Toro performs best in its opening act before narrowing into a more restrained wood-forward profile as it finishes. Total smoking time was 2 hours and 18 minutes.
Jiunn: I don’t have a lot of experience with Karen Berger cigars but after smoking this Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro, I can say this was a decent offering but it does leave some things on the table. It would have been great to keep upping the level from the first third, but unfortunately it fell flat for the remaining two thirds. Given this, I will pass.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

5.30

Cost/Point

$2.74

Scoring System

Seth Geise

SCORE

5.60

Cost/Point

$2.59

Scoring System

John McTavish

SCORE

5.45

Cost/Point

$2.66

Scoring System

Jiunn Liu

SCORE

5.90

Cost/Point

$2.46

Scoring System

Team Cigar Review: Karen Berger Ixtelli Toro