The Glory of La Gloria Cubana!

The newest cigar from La Gloria Cubana is the Artesanos de Tabaqueros from the new Artesano line. It's predecessor is the Artesanos de Miami which was rolled at the El Credito factory in Miami. It is a true success made by the 10 roller team that produced this cigar. La Gloria Cubana upped the ante with an 18 roller team to create a dual wrapped masterpiece, the Artesanos de Tabaqueros.

Before even picking up the cigar, the box is gorgeous. I opens in the middle with a lighter shade on the bottom panel, darker on the bottom which mirrors the division of the look of the cigars placed inside. The wrapper is a smooth, flawless Connecticut shade tobacco at the foot of the cigar with a dark, rich, oily Ecuadoran Sumatra in the top two thirds. The binder and filler are Dominican and Honduran tobaccos. All tobaccos that make up this cigar are aged for at least five years according to www.teamlagloria.com

There are three sizes, simple enough, as they are named after their dimensions. The 650 is 6 inches in length with a ring gauge of 50. The 652 Belicoso is 6 inches in length and has a ring gauge of 52. Finally, the 750 is 7 inches by 50.

I purchased the 652 Belicoso for $9.00 for my review. This cigar was constructed beautifully. The transition between the two wrappers is practically seamless. No splitting in the wrapper, no flaking at the foot.



The cut was firm but not overly so with no peeling of the cap. I took a prelight draw, which pulled slightly, minimally tight. The toasting of the foot was even as was the light. I immediately noticed the smooth woodiness of the Connecticut wrapper, starting off very mild. The burn remained consistent with a little shakiness after the first inch, which quickly and easily corrected itself. After this point, the ash started to curve slightly but it never flaked.



As I got closer to the Sumatra wrapper, the strength of the cigar began to pick up with the notes of wood graduating into a more leathery experience. The burn developed a slight curve, but no big deal!





Once I smoked down to the last two thirds, the Sumatra, the taste experience changed drastically and took me by surprise, actually. I immediately experienced notes of coffee and spice, which woke my tastebuds right up! The smell of the smoke was wonderful as the spice tingled my nostrils. Shortly after this point, the ash finally fell, into my lap! I brushed myself off and continued to enjoy my cigar. After the first third, the spices began to mellow a bit and the leather and coffee become more dominant on my palate.

I never had to touch up the cigar with my lighter, never had any draw issues, no flaking of the tobacco. The Artesanos de Tabaqueros is a work of art and a treat graduating from mild/med to full bodied. I look forward to smoking more of these and I can't wait to see what else La Gloria Cubana has in store for their Artesano line!

Go here to read the blog by David Savona of Cigar Aficionado with a video featuring Mike Giannini of General Cigar.