Late in 2024, Vance Taylor launched Stoic Cigars. For those who might be unfamiliar with what Stoicism is, it is the philosophy of self-discipline and self-denial, in order to better one’s. An interesting view in a hobby that aligns more with a hedonistic lifestyle. However, there is an element of introspection that goes hand-in-hand when smoking cigars. It’s also a great way for cigar smokers to connect with the owner, Vance, by understanding something that is close to him.
Vance chose to go with Kelner Cigars S.A.S., a relative newcomer in terms of cigar factories, but has a pedigree unlike most in the industry. Klass Kelner worked with Vance on this first blend. The blend comes in four vitolas: The Justice (toro), Moderation (corona gorda), Courage (robusto), and Wisdom (churchill). The blend features an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, over an Ecuadorian Habano binder, and fillers from the Dominican Republic, the USA, and an undisclosed filler from a South American country.
OVERVIEW
VITOLA: Justice (Toro)
SIZE: [6″ x 52]
ORIGIN: Dominican Republic
FACTORY: Kelner Cigars S.A.S.
WRAPPER: Ecuadorian Habano
BINDER: Ecuadorian Habano
FILLER: Dominican, USA, and undisclosed South American country
STRENGTH: Medium+
SOURCE:
Small Batch Cigar
ENVIRONMENT
WHERE:
Studio/Lounge
WHEN:
March 5, 2025 @noon
DRINKS:
Bottled Water
WEATHER:
Indoors
HOW MANY CIGARS SMOKED:
3
PRODUCTION
RELEASE TYPE Regular Production
ORIGINALLY RELEASE DATE November ’24
TOTAL PRODUCTION
Typical Box Size: Boxes of 20 or Bundles of 10
Production Totals: Unknown
VITOLA BREAKDOWN
o Justice (6″ x 52)
o Courage (5″ x 50)
o Moderation (5-1/2″ x 46)
o Wisdom (7″ x 48)
BAND DESIGN
The band of the Stoic Justice is an elegant design. Black with blue accents, it features the Stoic logo (an artistic cigar leaf) in the middle. The logo is flanked by four different designs that represent the four pillars of Stoicism: a lion’s head for Courage, scales for Justice, an owl for Wisdom, and what appears to be an anchor for Moderation. Each of these is blue, except for the vitola you’re smoking. In this case, the scales are gold. It’s a clever way to promote the vitola.
PRE-LIGHT OBSERVATIONS
CONSTRUCTION
The Ecuadorian habano wrapper on the Justice is a beautiful shade of light brown. The cap is perfectly placed on the head of the cigar. There is one, very visible vein near the foot of one of the cigars smoked for this review. A nice sheen of oil can be seen in the light. It’s a beautiful looking cigar.
AROMA
The foot of the Justice gives off notes of bread, raisins, sweet tobacco, and just a slight hint of barnyard. The Ecuadorian habano wrapper reveals notes of barnyard, cedar, and a faint fruit note that I can’t quite place.
COLD DRAW
The cold draw has notes of toasted bread, nuts, baking spices, and fruit. The draw itself is almost perfect, with just the right amount of resistance with each pull. The fruit and baking spices really start to become more prominent with each cold draw.
SMOKING EXPERIENCE
LIGHT & DRAW
Cut: Le Petit by Les Fines Lames
Fire: Vector’s ICON III
Notes of baking spices, leather, red pepper, and nuts all jump out. The Justice starts out spicy from the light. Big notes of black pepper on the retrohale. Red pepper flake claws at my throat. Interestingly, there is a floral note that I got off the light from each cigar smoked for this review. There is a creaminess to the Justice, but it’s drowned out from the initial spiciness. Lemon zest rounds out the notes I’m getting from the initial light.
SMOKE
The smoke is thick and plentiful; coating my palate with each draw. There is a lot of smoke, even when the Justice is at rest.
FIRST THIRD
>> Nuts, Wood, Black Pepper
Once the initial light calms down, the first third begins with notes of nuts, cream, baking spices, red pepper, wood, and a hint of citrus. Black pepper rules the retrohale. It has a relatively short finish, but the pepper and wood linger the most. The burn line is razor sharp, with a nice mascara line. The ash is compact, with a few stray flakes, and is grey with black streaks. Stackin’ nickels. There is a vegetal note that is hiding beneath the surface. There’s also a jam like sweetness that begins to emerge. The Justice is medium+ bodied and wood forward for the first third. There are additional notes of cream, caramel, earth, and a floral note.
SECOND THIRD
>> Caramel, Red Pepper, Baking Spices
The middle third begins with notes of caramel, red pepper, leather, and lemon zest. Baking spices on the retrohale. The ash on each of the Justice cigars smoked for this review, have been nothing short of spectacular. It holds well into the second third of each cigar before I decide to deposit it in the tray, lest it ends up in my lap. However, the ash does become a bit flaky, and I must dust off my shirt with each draw. The burn line is sharp, just not razor sharp. Again, this may be due to allowing the ash to get so long…a fun game when smoking on your own time but could be a detriment when reviewing a cigar. White pepper joins baking spices on the retrohale. Wood and toast linger on my palate. Red pepper still claws at the back of my throat, though more gently than in the first third. The sweetness is gone, replaced by bold earthy notes. A herbaceousness adds much needed depth to middle third. It cuts through the rich, bold, earthy flavors.
FINAL THIRD
>> Roasted Nuts, Charred Wood, Dark Chocolate
The final third starts off with notes of honey roasted nuts, charred wood, earth, and baking spices. Black pepper rules the retrohale once more. The burn line has become slightly uneven and more wavy than sharp. The ash remains a bit flakey but not terribly so. There’s a hint of dark chocolate now and maybe a bit of fruit under that. The bold earthiness of the Justice make it hard to pull a lot of the nuance out of the cigar. And, honestly, that’s what this final third is…just rich, earthy flavors with a touch of chocolate. The burn line gets really wonky, but the ash is less flaky.
RATING & FINAL THOUGHTS
FLAVOR PROGRESSION
The Stoic Justice starts out strong off the initial light, at least stronger than I would have thought it would. Which, I suppose, is as subjective as it gets. Regardless, the flavors only change slightly from each third: caramel to nuts, wood to charred wood, etc… There is a bit of chocolate, citrus, cream, and honey that come and go throughout the Justice and help keep it interesting.
BURN EXPERIENCE
The burn on the Justice starts out strong but ends with a less than stellar burn line. That said, the construction is pretty good with the Justice only flaking after leaving the ash on for more than a 1/3 of the cigar. While impressive, I just don’t think that accounts for the cohesion of the ash. I’ve seen much worse, but coming out of Klaas Kelner’s factory I would have expected a much tighter ash throughout the cigar.
RATING BREAKDOWN
0.75 / 0.80 … Craft & Aesthetic
0.50 / 0.50 … Pre-Light Characteristics
0.50 / 0.50 … Lighting Process
6.72 / 7.70 … Smoking Experience
0.45 / 0.50 … Personal Enjoyment
COMPLIMENTS & CRITIQUES
- Flavors are great!
- Well constructed.
- Flakey ash and inconsistent burn at the end.
- Not enough nuanced flavors to compliment the bold, earthy flavors.
JUSTICE..THE MOST IMPORTANT RELEASE?
Any cigar brand’s first release is important, for sure. It sets the tone…or to put it in Stoicism parlance…it is the foundation of a brand. Vance Taylor’s choice of Kelner Cigars S.A.S. is a very good one. The Justice is a great introduction for people into the brand. When we sat down with Vance Taylor for an upcoming Simply Stogies Podcast (releasing April 1, 2025), Vance stated that he wanted Stoic Cigars to be approachable. The Justice is certainly approachable, though, maybe not for new smokers. The Justice starts out heavy on pepper and spice. It calms down in the first third, and slowly ramps back up in the final third. What held the Justice back from cracking the 9’s, was its lack of nuance. The bold flavors needed more sweet and subtle flavors to compliment them. That doesn’t mean that the Justice isn’t a fantastic cigar, quite the contrary. This is a cigar that you should go find and try immediately!!
*Site sponsor Small Batch Cigar carries Stoic Cigars
