Pre-light Experience

The wrapper is a deep reddish brown with a fair amount of marbling. There are a few visible veins that carry a little darker color to them. The seams are visible but very smooth and the triple cap is applied very nicely. The cigar has a primary band with the company name and a foot band that has the line name. The bands are primarily royal blue with gold lettering and borders with a bit of red thrown in on the logo. The aroma from the wrapper is a light barnyard. The foot is fairly sweet which I would liken to a cherry. The pre-light draw brings some of that cherry sweetness from the foot aroma along with some leather. There is also a pretty spicy sensation on my lips.

Pre-light Experience

The Serino Royale Maduro XX Sublime has a rich and hearty maduro and oscuro like wrapper. A great amount of oil content remains on the finger tips off the wrapper. Veins are well pressed and seams fairly tight. Bunching and rolling feels quite firm and uniformed. The parejo head is finished off with a well applied triple cap. Pre-light wrapper aromas give rich, quality cedar and floral notes. Nosing the foot gives roasted nuttiness and dry white pepper spice. Cold draw tells dry white pepper, cardboard and a touch of salt and dry white pepper on front of the tongue and lips.

First Third

Initial draws bring a bold peppery cedar. After a few draws the pepper settles down quite a bit and a good volume of cream comes in to mix with the cedar. The retrohale consists of that same bold peppery cedar the cigar started with. Half an inch in, there is a creamy spiciness on the finish to go along with the creamy cedar up front. At three quarters of an inch in, the pepper on the retrohale mellows a bit and moves to the background while the cedar moves up front. An inch in, a bit of baking spice joins in with the creamy cedar. At an inch and a half, the creamy cedar and baking spice are really mixing well. The retrohale is still cedar with a bit of pepper in the background. The strength in this third is slightly above medium.

First Third

The first third starts with distinctive decadent dark chocolate paired with a palate awakening oily black pepper zing. In addition, a spicy charred oak and gritty earth. Towards the end of the first third, ripe stone fruits are realized. Through the nose, amplified and welcoming black pepper spice, creamy nougat and oak. The finish consists of a long and lingering oily black pepper mixed with slight charred oak. In terms of body and strength, both is at a medium throughout the entire first third.

Second Third

As this third begins, the baking spice goes away and is replaced by some bitterness on the finish. A quarter inch in, the bitterness goes away and leaves an even mix of cream and cedar. The pepper has left the retrohale and it is now a creamy cedar as well. At three quarters of an inch in, the baking spice comes back to mix with the creamy cedar. At an inch and a quarter, the baking spice goes away and a citrus notes comes in to mix with the creamy cedar. The retrohale is primarily cedar with a little cream in the background. As the third comes to a close, there is still a bit of a citrus finish with the creamy cedar up front. The strength in this third is just above medium.

Second Third

The second thirds profile becomes less sharp (especially in the pepper department) and smooths out in general. Still a prominent and decadent dark chocolate, toned down oily black pepper zing, less gritty earth, ripe stone fruits and faint charred oak. A new note of almond creaminess mixed with bread emerges, flavors I always enjoy in a cigar. Through the nose, still the same level of welcoming black pepper spice, creamy nougat, oak and barnyard. The finish is now namely a lingering tapered oily black pepper and slight charred oak. Body remains medium. Strength towards the end of the second third ramps to a medium-full.

Final Third

As this third begins, the citrus goes away while a little bit of spiciness comes in to mix with the creamy cedar. A quarter inch in and some citrus comes back while the cedar transitions to oak and the creaminess and bit of spice remain. Three quarters of an inch in, the citrus and spice go away and creamy oak remains. There is a little bit of sweetness that is now present with the cream. As the cigar comes to an end, the creamy oak remains, but has lost the sweetness. The strength in this third was medium-full.

Final Third

Starting the last third, the medium-full strength creates a relaxing cloud and buzz in my head and body. Still that same tasty, decadent dark chocolate carries the profile in a distinctive manner. In conjunction to the chocolate, faint charred oak, tapered oily black pepper zing and creamy bread (no longer tasting the almond component). Through the nose, still the same level of black pepper, creamy nougat, oak and barnyard. The finish continues to linger with tapered oily black pepper and charred oak. Body is still at a consistent medium.

Burn

The burn line was skewed pretty much the entire time and required a touch up in the first and second third to keep the burn line from getting too far off. The ash held on in just over one inch segments.

Burn

The burn was both bad and annoying. Half the ring gauge did not want to burn. This created 6 total touch-ups and 1 complete re-light (first third). On top of that, the wrapper split the entire smoking experience. Ashes were incredibly flowery and flaky, often times falling all over my lap and floor. Surprisingly, I did not feel this altered the flavor profile. On the upside, total smoking time clocked in at a great 2 hours and 52 minutes.

Draw

The draw was just slightly tighter than I prefer, but didn’t seem to be detrimental to the smoking experience. The combination of the tighter draw and the larger ring gauge made the draws a bit more deliberate.

Overall

The cigar kept with a core set of flavors and not really any transitions, but that’s OK. I had hoped for a better burn, but it wasn’t anything that really caused any issues with the smoking experience other than having to keep an eye on it and a couple touch ups. I’d really like to try this in a smaller ring gauge, maybe the Robusto to see what that profile offers. This is a cigar that’s more inline with a seasoned cigar smoker due to the strength level, but I recommend trying one as I could see it really fitting a lot of peoples profiles. I would definitely give this another whirl.

Draw

The draw was slightly tight, still good nonetheless, never becoming hot or causing me to alter my normal draw intervals.

Overall

Only reflecting on the flavor profile, this was one of the most memorable maduro cigars in recent months. The long lasting dark chocolate was incredibly tasty and I looked forward to that note on every draw. But the bad burn plagued the cigar, and left me frustrated. It may be important to note that this was received at IPCPR and I was only able to smoke one cigar for the review. I did smoke two non-show examples a couple weeks ago and the horrible burn issues were not present. On those two samples, I had to perform two minor touch-ups, ie not a big deal. Hopefully this was a one off scenario. Regardless, I cannot deny the delicious flavor profile, and that alone will keep me coming back for more.

Aaron Loomis

SCORE

6.40

Cost/Point

$1.64

Scoring System

Jiunn Liu

SCORE

6.93

Cost/Point

$1.51

Scoring System