When it comes to Crowned Heads cigars I usually stick with their limited edition offerings because I think they are just a step above what is offered in their regular production lines. They generally offer reasonably priced sticks and the Meat & Three is considered a budget stick that can be obtained for around $6 to $7, much like the Juarez.

This cigar pays homage to meals in Nashville where you can get a hearty meat and three sides for a great price. I personally love finding great budget blends that don’t break the bank but sometimes that combo is hard to find.

I did this review in a different way, I smoked it blind to remove bias. I wrote the review and then smoked it two more times knowing what the cigar was for updates.

OVERVIEW

VITOLA: Robusto
SIZE: 5″ x 50

ORIGIN: Nicaragua
FACTORY: TacaNicsa

WRAPPER: Ecuador
BINDER: Nicaragua
FILLER: Nicaragua

STRENGTH:Medium to Full

SOURCE:
Crowned Heads

ENVIRONMENT

WHERE:
Outside

WHEN:
August 1, 2025

DRINKS:
Water

WEATHER:
Sunny and cool

HOW MANY CIGARS SMOKED:
3

PRODUCTION

RELEASE TYPE Regular Production

ORIGINAL RELEASE DATE February 2025

TOTAL PRODUCTION
Typical Box Size: Packs of 10
Production Totals: UNK

VITOLA BREAKDOWN
o Robusto (5″ x 50)
o Toro (6″ x 52)

BAND DESIGN

There isn’t much to the band but what would you expect from a budget stick? It’s a no frills design experience much like ordering some of the best southern food you’ve ever tasted from a gas station. It’s a straight piece of paper with the Crowned Heads logo and in bold, slightly serifed font, Meat & Three. The design looks a bit like butcher paper and with the red it definitely gives a meaty feel.

PRE-LIGHT OBSERVATIONS

CONSTRUCTION

The cigar appears quite rustic overall. There’s a double cap that is kind of neatly placed with tight seams. There’s some mottling on the cigar with spots of gray, green, lighter, and darker browns. The body has a little bit of tooth on it, but you can’t really feel it when you run your finger over it. There are some soft spots in the body, and towards the head of the cigar, it feels super and hard. There might be a really big vein in the binder.

AROMA

The aroma presents some very light scents. The first one is a floral scent, followed by a hint of barnyard and a touch of chocolate. On the foot, the aroma becomes much stronger, with more earthy tones coming in. There are some light baking spice smells but it still has a lot of that floral scent is almost like potpourri. Some very faint chocolate and cedar notes pop in and out as well.

COLD DRAW

There’s definitely a restriction on the cold draw I’ve noticed. While you can still get some airflow, it feels a bit tighter overall. As far as taste, it resembles how it smells—floral notes combined with apple and cinnamon in the background. You get woody notes in the mix but overall it is very mild with no spicy scratching sensation on my throat.

SMOKING EXPERIENCE

LIGHT & DRAW
Cut: Punch
Fire: Torch

Right away, the cigar lights up, and notes of cedar emerge, accompanied by a subtle earthy undertone. The most prominent note is undoubtedly leather, with a hint of sweetness on the backside, reminiscent of chocolate. The retro features smooth, mostly woody notes with a faint black pepper in the background. The finish is like a savory, buttery, and creamy something, though I can’t quite place it. Initially, I was overwhelmed by the leather, but as I burned through the cigar, I noticed a more complex development of flavors. The draw is open with little restriction. If this is a budget offering from Crown heads, it is leaps and bounds better than the Juarez.

SMOKE

The smoke output is good. You get a lot of smoke out of each draw even despite having a smaller punch hole. I usually opt for a straight cut, but since I am in the process of moving, I find it easier just to have a lighter with a punch on the bottom so I just don’t have to keep looking for stuff. The punch is great, no restriction, and a bunch of smoke coming off of each draw. There’s definitely an earthy room note coming off of the foot of the cigar and it smells like a little bit like sweet tobacco, but definitely more of a dark and earthy room note.

FIRST THIRD
>> Leather, Espresso, Cream

The draw is excellent, and the smoke output remains consistent. You can see a lot of the tooth remnants in the ash, which is a bit wavy but no concerns at this point.

The dominant note in the cigar is the leather described when you light it up. After that, you get a bitter espresso with a thick cream and a subtle sweetness. The retro is still fairly smooth, steadily intensifying black pepper notes. It stings your nostrils a bit, and besides earth, you get a lot of that cedar on the retro.

The finish of the cigar is where it truly shines. Sure, the leather and espresso are great notes upfront, but it’s the aftertaste that really sets it apart. It’s not bitter, earthy, or gritty. It’s creamy and savory, with a buttery texture. There’s a faint hint of a woody note, but it’s so luxurious that it feels like I’m eating a pastry or something like a croissant. There’s not much sweetness on the finish, but it’s intriguing because every draw ends in this incredible blend of flavors.

SECOND THIRD
>> Leather, Bitter Chocolate, Cream

The burn continues to straighten out. It’s not the straightest burn, but I haven’t had to correct it, so I’m not complaining. The draw remains flawless, and the smoke output is still adequate. Everything in the cigar is really balanced. It’s not overly heavy smoke, nor is it a super tight or super loose draw. I would say the same thing about the flavor, but it’s not that way at all. The upfront flavor continues to be leather, but it’s a bit sharper in the second third. After that leather, there’s a peak of bitterness that I would describe as like pour of coffee from a mocha pot. I’ve always found mocha pot coffee to be not as sophisticated as a shot of espresso, but just more bitter. And if you don’t do it right, it can get just a little too burnt and taste even more bitter. The retro continues to hold the same notes of black pepper and cedar. The finish rides off of that bitterness and turns into a cream and butter mixture with some bitter chocolate on the back end that isn’t sweet. It’s not as savory as the first third, but it still exists. The flavors are still very nice, even with the bitterness in there. It’s not an unpleasant bitterness, and it’s actually really interesting because of the transition to cream.

FINAL THIRD
>> Woods, Cappuccino, Earth

The burn remains fairly straight, and the draw is perfect. The smoke output is consistent. I have no complaints about the construction, even though there are some soft spots and harder spots found on the cigar in the beginning. In the last third, there’s a slight shift where the bitter espresso with a hint of bitter dark chocolate moves to the forefront, and then it transforms into that prominent leather. The retro still has a touch of woodiness, but the spice level is slightly reduced, and there’s a bit more earth than in the other thirds. The finish in the last third is a bit more bitter. After that, it transitions into a warm cappuccino with a damp earth that lingers on the palate. It’s actually quite pleasant, despite the bitterness. I feel like the entire cigar led to this point where you get a bold yet soothing ending. It’s like eating a savory pastry while drinking a strong mocha coffee.

RATING & FINAL THOUGHTS

FLAVOR PROGRESSION

The flavor progression in the cigar is great, even though there wasn’t much variation. The dominant note was leather, and there were many pleasant undertones that remained consistent throughout the cigar and gradually changed as it progressed. From savory beginnings to a more creamy middle, and finally moving to a creamy bitter end, it was a logical progression. I’m honestly surprised that this is considered a budget stick from Crown Heads when it definitely outperforms many other cigars that I’ve smoked in recent history. It’s a great addition to the Crown Heads brand.

BURN EXPERIENCE

The construction of the cigar is solid, even though it didn’t feel so solid initially. Even when I opted for a punch cut, the draws for each cigar were perfect. I never really had to touch it up, except for one sample, where I did touch it up once.

RATING BREAKDOWN
0.68 / 0.80 … Craft & Aesthetic
0.39 / 0.50 … Pre-Light Characteristics
0.50 / 0.50 … Lighting Process
6.92 / 7.70 … Smoking Experience
0.49 / 0.50 … Personal Enjoyment

COMPLIMENTS & CRITIQUES

A stick that punches above its weight class.

Crown Heads offers some fantastic cigars. Personally, I always keep one Crown Heads cigar in my humidor to throw in my rotation. Usually, it’s a limited-edition offering, especially the Las Calaveras. I was surprised to see that it was considered a budget cigar because I didn’t know much about it before smoking. This is a cigar that I would recommend to anyone to try and keep as a daily smoker. It’s a great cigar to relax with for sure.

One thing I consider in my reviews is price. I’m not a rich man and I’m not going to spend $30 on every cigar I smoke. With the Meat & Three, I can buy a five-pack for under $30 in the Robusto vitola, and it honestly out performs so many other budget offerings out there.

It’s a cigar that I would want to smoke all the time. Great job from Crowned Heads!

SIMPLY STOGIES RATING: 8.98 / 10.0

Cigar Review: Meat & Three by Crowned Heads Robusto