This cigar started as a lounge exclusive offering at a shop in Haiti, and at the beginning of this year AJ Fernandez brought it to the U.S. I stopped at Best Cigars in Pennsylvania and purchased two of them on the recommendation of the clerk. He said he could not keep them on the shelf so, naturally, I had to try it. This cigar hasn’t really been on my radar because a lot of the shops around me don’t carry it, so I was grateful to have the opportunity to grab these. The AJ Fernandez factory in Nicaragua caught on fire in April causing significant damage. Luckily, no injuries were reported but I know that has to be devasting for AJ and the employees.Â
OVERVIEW
VITOLA:Â Â Toro
SIZE:Â Â 6″ x 52
ORIGIN:Â Â Nicaragua
FACTORY:Â Â Tabacalera AJ Fernandez Cigars de Nicaragua S.A.
WRAPPER:  Mexican San Andrés
BINDER:Â Â Nicaraguan Corojo
FILLER:Â Â Nicaraguan
STRENGTH:Â Â Medium
SOURCE:Â Â Â
Manufacturer
ENVIRONMENT
WHERE:Â Â
Outside
WHEN:Â Â
July 21, 2025 @ Noon
DRINKS:Â Â
Bourbon
WEATHER:Â Â
Sunny with a light breeze
HOW MANY CIGARS SMOKED:Â Â
2
PRODUCTION
RELEASE TYPE Â Regular Production
ORIGINALLY RELEASE DATE Â January 2025
TOTAL PRODUCTION
Typical Box Size:Â Â Â Boxes of 20
Production Totals:Â Â Unknown
VITOLA BREAKDOWN
o  Toro (6″ x 52)
o Robusto (5″ x 54)
o Gordo (6″ x 58)
BAND DESIGN
The band is very literal to the name. There is a goat head on it. The gold foil on the main band does not match the gold foil on the AJ Fernandez band. The font on the main band the cigar is sans serifed while the second band uses a serifed font that gets lost on the red background. Design wise, and I say this coming from a graphic design background, not the best choices were made. At any rate, from a distance it looks fine and provides a bold, but elegant, feel to the cigar.
PRE-LIGHT OBSERVATIONS
CONSTRUCTION
This stick looks great. It is a milk chocolate color with a little bit of tooth that is barely visible. The veins are minimal. Some of the seams on the cigar are not as tight, but there is no major flaws in the body. There is a double cap that’s neatly applied at the top of the cigar and it’s a very soft box press. The firmness when squeezing the cigar is consistent throughout the entire stick. There is a little bit of mottling on the wrapper with some dark spots all over the cigar.Â
AROMA
The cigar is very pungent and not in a bad way. It is a very sweet smelling, barnyard almost; like if you have a field of wildflowers with a barn in the middle of it. There is a bit of a sour smell that reminds me of apple cider vinegar and then some some damp earth and woody notes. On the foot, you get a lot of more mineral and earth with a little bit of black pepper mixed with clove.
COLD DRAW
There’s definitely some restriction on the cold draw. Overall, there are very strong cedar notes with some dark chocolate. Not noticing a lot of spice just a woody cedar note that comes through that is very approachable. I am most concerned about the tight draw at this point but I expect it go away as soon as it is lit.Â
SMOKING EXPERIENCE
LIGHT & DRAW
Cut:Â Straight
Fire:Â Torch
Right off of light up, you get a lot of char. Following the char you get a little bit of black pepper spice, but it’s does not present a bite on the palate. There are definitely some smoother notes following the spice like smooth chocolate mixed with a little bit of oak and some sugar cane on the backend. The retro is a tad spicy, but not offensive. It’s almost like the cigar can’t figure out if it wants to be spicy or flavorful, like paprika. There are a lot of woody notes on the retro as well, and overall it is very smooth. The finish is smooth as can be with a nice mix of cinnamon and chocolate with no one flavor really jumping out at you. It is a very tame flavor at this point but so far so good.
SMOKE
There’s a ton of smoke coming off the cigar but it is not super thick. It isn’t super chewy and the smoke dissipates fairly quickly. My personal preference is having a thick chewy smoke that really lets you know it’s there, but that isn’t for everyone. The draw is perfect on the cigar with just a little bit of resistance. It smokes great. The Goat leaves a very pleasant room note that is not crazy strong and is very aromatic. It brings me back to that floral barnyard note that I smelled on the body of the cigar prior to lighting it up.Â
FIRST THIRD
>> Cream, Caramel, Bitter Coffee
The draw is awesome. The burn is a little wavy which is consistent with the other sample that I smoked. As far as flavor, the first third is interesting. It’s creamy, that is the first thing I notice on the first third. It is almost like smoking a Connecticut but with a deeper flavor. There is cream with a little bit of hay, but right behind that is a bunch of chocolate and earth with a little bit of spice. It’s like a really creamy caramel kind of like like a Cow Tail candy. The retro gets a little bit spicier with the inclusion of black pepper, but is closely followed by a wave of woody notes. The finish is like drinking a bitter coffee mixed with a ton of cream. It lasts around 10 seconds before dropping off and leaving some woody note remnants on the palate.
SECOND THIRD
>> Cream, Black Pepper, Cedar
The burn continues to be wavy, but I haven’t had to make any corrections so no issues there…despite me dropping the cigar on the ground. As I said before, the smoke isn’t as plentiful as I would like but I view that as a personal preference. A lot of spice comes out in the second third, with more black pepper on the forefront mixed with that cream that I described in the first third. The spice in the retro decided what it wants to be when it grows up, ramping up to a cayenne in the beginning then toning down to a black pepper. The finish is still really creamy, but it’s not as sweet as the first third. The bitter coffee I described before is still very present. The trailing woody notes are stronger and last right up to the next draw. Not a ton of variation in this third, still a pleasant smoke, just a bit more spicy with a longer finish.
 FINAL THIRD
>> Caramel, Cream, Citrus Peel
More waviness in the last third, but the draw continues to be flawless and opens up a little more. There is also a lot more smoke with each draw. There is a transition into the last third where the spiciness from the second third tones down and you get more of the cream again. This is a great cigar for someone that likes to stay in the medium realm or is stepping out of their Connecticut comfort zone. While there are some spikes of spice, they are relatively short-lived. The caramel cream sweetness comes back but it feels stronger this time. It’s just a little bit sweeter, a little bit creamier, and richer in flavor. The retro is a good mix of oak, cream, and white pepper. The finish has a lot of cream and cedar notes coming through. There is a sharp bitterness in the beginning of the finish, but it really mellows out. It’s like a bright orange peel type of type of sharpness. It’s really interesting. The last third absolutley sold me on The Goat.
RATING & FINAL THOUGHTS
FLAVOR PROGRESSION
The flavor progression of this cigar is good. Not great, but good. There is no point when I smoked either of the samples that really turned me off and I really liked the the creamy base that the cigar had to offer. With variations of the same flavors coming, going, getting stronger, richer, and getting softer, this was a cigar that kept me interested. I would not say the flavors knocked my socks off, but I enjoyed the transitions, especially in the last third.Â
BURN EXPERIENCE
The construction of each of the samples was good other than the waviness of the burn, which is common with box pressed sticks. There were a few times where the draw just didn’t offer up a lot of smoke and I felt like I needed to take a double draw to get the kind of smoke I wanted out of it. Towards the second half of the stick the smoke would amplify and the draw was always very consistent.
RATING BREAKDOWN
0.60Â / 0.80 … Craft & Aesthetic
0.40Â / 0.50 …Â Pre-Light Characteristics
0.45Â / 0.50 …Â Lighting Process
7.21Â / 7.70 …Â Smoking Experience
0.46/ 0.50 …Â Personal Enjoyment
COMPLIMENTS & CRITIQUES
- Great flavor in the last third
- Nice draw throughout the entire smoking experience
- Waviness in the burn
- Bad design choices
AN EXCLUSIVE WORTHY OF REGULAR PRODUCTION
I really enjoyed The Goat. It is honestly a good cigar for anyone to smoke. It bridges the gap between bold and mild while offering interesting variations. If you’re ever on the fence about smoking a more mild cigar or a a nice bold maduro, this is the perfect balance between the two in my mind. It offers just enough spice and enough creaminess to keep people that enjoy both types of cigars happy. I’m glad I took the recommendation of the guy at the cigar shop. Minus the waviness in the burn, this is one of the better medium body sticks that I’ve smoked in recent history.
