Cigar Weekly

Handmade in Nicaragua, Mayorga receives high marks for their quality, great taste and low prices. The box-pressed maduros offer a naturally processed Costa Rican wrapper while the Natural line uses a gorgeous Nicaraguan grown H2000 wrapper. Both lines are made with a blend of Esteli, Jalapa and Ometepe Nicaraguan tobaccos.

Available in seven sizes, prices range from $2.75 for the Robusto to $4.00 for the Torpedo.

Cigar Weekly reviews are blind taste tests conducted by our readers. Reviewers are sent three samples with all identifying marks removed. Reviewers are chosen randomly from the list of everyone that has signed the Cigar Weekly Guest Book. Their comments are below.

Pre-Smoke Comments

Don Schumacher (BurntFingers): Nice looking box-pressed cigar. Looks to be about 7x 48, dark brown to maduro in color. Smooth draw with lots of smoke and flavor. With a bit of spiciness this would be a great cigar.

Joe Dakille (Vegas1): Fairly nice dark brown wrapper with no noticeable sheen on the samples. Mostly firm throughout with a few soft spots with a slight uneven color on the leaves. Also slightly veiny with just a few rough spots, no big deal. My heart starts racing whenever I see a box pressed cigar (call me a cigar romantic), so lets pour a Makers Mark and see if these babies live up to their looks.

Joe Wagner (CigarJoe-MetsFan): Both samples were a nice dark brown wrapper with slight veining and little oil. The texture was almost leather on both. The cigars were a churchill size with a good box press. The first cigar was a little spongy (could have been a little over-humidified in my travel humidor) but the second was very solid.

Kevin Elder (nivek): This churchill cigar was very uniform in color, nice light brown maduro, no soft spots at all, boxpressed cigar in the old style but a little veiny. Over all a good looking cigar! If cigars were based on looks alone this would be a great cigar!

Louis Briscese (iluvcgars): A boxed Press cigar with a darker shade of brown. I would not consider this a maduro wrap. The shade of the wrap varied in color also. The construction was pretty good overall. I had some unraveling of the wrapper on the 2nd cigar but not enough to ruin it. The 1st cigar burned uneven and sort of made it unpleasant. The draw was really good, lots of smoke and the ash was very flaky with a medium grey color.

Skip Pacheco (Thairlar): This cigar is a nice looking box pressed churchill with a slightly veiny maduro wrapper, probably Connecticut Broadleaf. The bunch was consistent and firm. It appeared that the bands were a bit too tight, as there was an indentation where they had been before they were removed. There were also a couple of small light spots on the second cigar. The pre-light draw was perfect. This cigar lit evenly and easily, producing a nice volume of white smoke.

Steve Hurban (BigSteve): These 7" X 48 Churchills sported a light maduro wrapper that showed some veining and one of the 2 had a rough cap. A firm box press and slightly oily surface had me anxious to fire them up. The pre-light draw was perfect having a strong cedar taste together with some mellow spiciness, possibly nutmeg and cocoa. Really nice looking cigars.

Smoke Comments

Don Schumacher (BurntFingers): Smooth draw with lots of smoke and flavor. With a bit of spiciness this would be a great cigar.

Joe Dakille (Vegas1): Both samples exhibited a fantastic draw and burn with a solid light grey ash that stayed firm throughout. Starting out very mild, but they did pick up a little steam halfway into them. Some light spice flavors are present with just a touch of earthiness developing at about the midpoint. Not quite one dimensional but pretty close with a short finish on both samples. This cigar was far from being a finger burner.

Joe Wagner (CigarJoe-MetsFan): Both cigars exhibited a medium body while not being overly strong. There was a distinct toasted flavor to both samples. The first sample was smoked over coffee in the morning. The second with some beers in the evening. This cigar is better suited for the morning as its strength is not ready for prime time. Overall, both cigars burned very well with an acceptable draw.

Kevin Elder (nivek): I had slight burn problems with both cigars, but fixed them easily, this cigar's flavor was lacking some and for me too mild. This cigar was very earthy, and I thought the flavor would increase while smoked but it did not! Smoke from this cigar was ample, and was not harsh. Very one dimensional.

Louis Briscese (iluvcgars): The taste was very pleasant, the abundance of smoke did not bother me at all. There was no bitter aftertaste to the cigar at all. It was almost earthy with a touch of leather. There was no burning of the throat or tongue.

Skip Pacheco (Thairlar): The flavor was spicy with an underlying sweetness and almost chocolate flavor, and was consistent throughout the cigar, although it did strengthen nicely through the smoke. There was a light, although not unpleasant, bitterness in the aftertaste. On the second cigar, the draw seemed to tighten slightly from the middle to the end.

Steve Hurban (BigSteve): Each had a nice even burn with a solid, light ash. One small runner during 1 of the smokes. There was plenty of smoke volume allowing for smooth, tasting. These are medium strength with the nutmeg/cocoa in the 1st 3rd of the stick as I mentioned in the pre-smoke section. Initially, I had thoughts that these were too "flowery" but into the 2nd 3rd of stick some good tobacco flavor mixed with the cedar giving them more balance. A little more strength toward the end made these quite interesting.

Summary Comments

Don Schumacher (BurntFingers): I really enjoyed both of these cigars. Both were very consistent in quality and flavor. I would love to add these to my regular rotation.

Joe Dakille (Vegas1): Once again I have to preface my review with my likes in a cigar, robust and powerful. That being said this was a fairly decent smoke. The one point that really stood out was the draw and burn, simply fantastic. Whoever put these together is a true craftsman. Like I said, just not enough strength and body for me. Someone looking for a mild to medium smoke really can't go wrong with these. Depending on the price I might consider grabbing a few of these when I'm looking for a less powerful smoke.

Joe Wagner (CigarJoe-MetsFan): I enjoyed these smokes and would be willing to add them to my cooler. They would be excellent for golf as the wrappers seemed fairly tough and the strength would be about right while not sacrificing flavor. I know I've had that toasted flavor somewhere before but I can't remember where. I'm anxious to find out what these were.

Kevin Elder (nivek): This cigar was very very average, way too mild to my liking, I thought it was one dimensional and bland. I wanted to like this cigar because it looked good and tasty but was a bit disappointed!

Louis Briscese (iluvcgars): A very good smoke overall. It took a long time to smoke but the whole experience was pleasant. It never felt like it wanted to go out at all but I could tell it burned better with a shorter ash. Overall I like it and am curious to know what it is. I would guess at either a Perdermo, or a La Tradicion line of cigar.

Skip Pacheco (Thairlar): This cigar was a pleasure to smoke, and I would consider buying some once I smoke some room in my humidors. The flavor is well rounded, balanced and fairly complex. Definitely not a one dimensional smoke.

Steve Hurban (BigSteve): In general, I liked these cigars. There were times I could taste La Luna and hints of Padron Anniversario in these (what a combination, huh)? Each smoked the same and were comparable in taste which says something for the consistency. Maybe too "sweet" at times. There was no burning or harshness. The aftertaste was lasting and pleasant. Very enjoyable cigars that I'm curious to find out the identity of.

Scores

Review Results
Final Score: 35.4 out of 50

4 Star -- Excellent

 

Find out more:

This Issues Reviewers
Review Methods