Cigar Review Rethink: Micallef A

Small Batch Cigar

Micallef, there is a lot to unpack with this brand. Full disclosure, I like the Micallef / Gomez Sanchez Family cigars, every one I have smoked I have enjoyed. I have had the chance to chat up their team at the PCA this year. If we are looking at the beginning of an end to the current cigar mini-boom this is a company that will make it. They have an amazing team and are not running a cigar company, they are running a company that produces amazing cigars. Amazing cigars, that’s where Gomez Sanchez Family comes in. A chance meeting due to Joel and Edel Gomez Sanchez’s car issues led to them spending three days with Al Micallef, oh to of been a fly on that wall.

OVERVIEW

VITOLA:   Gran Toro
SIZE:   6-3/4″ x 54

ORIGIN:   Nicaragua
FACTORY:   Micallef Cigars S.A.

WRAPPER:   Nicaragua
BINDER:   Sumatra
FILLER:   Nicaragua & Dominican Republic

STRENGTH:   Medium

SOURCE:   
Micallef

ENVIRONMENT

WHERE:   
Cabin on the River

WHEN:   
Early Evening

DRINKS:   
Coffee

WEATHER:   
81 and sunny

HOW MANY CIGARS SMOKED:   
3

PRODUCTION

RELEASE TYPE  Regular Release

ORIGINALLY RELEASE DATE  March 2020

TOTAL PRODUCTION
Typical Box Size:     Bundles of 20
Production Totals:  Unknown

VITOLA BREAKDOWN
o  Gran Toro  (6-3/4″ x 54)

BAND DESIGN

Sporting the blue, red, and gold dual bands, the large band carries the Micallef family crest as well as the “Handmade by the Gomez Sanchez Family” on the left side and Fabrica De Tabacos, Esteli Nicaragua.

PRE-LIGHT OBSERVATIONS

CONSTRUCTION

The cigars appear on the Oscuro side of Maduro, oily and delicious.  Firm all around with no soft spots. It seems almost perfect.

AROMA

Pre-light aroma was typical tobacco with a hint of sweetness.

COLD DRAW

Even and smooth cold draw, just the right amount of resistance.

SMOKING EXPERIENCE

LIGHT & DRAW
Cut: Straight
Fire: That same old twelve-dollar Vertigo

Initial tasting notes from the light. Dark Cocoa/Coffee/Graham Cracker

SMOKE

A generous amount amount of smoke is produced throughout the entirety of the cigar.

FIRST THIRD
>> Dark Cocoa/Coffee/Graham Cracker

The first third has just the right blend of Dark Cocoa, roasted coffee, and a sweetness of Graham Cracker that makes for an enjoyable smoking experience.

SECOND THIRD
>> Dark Cocoa/Coffee/Graham Cracker

The first third has just the right blend of Dark Cocoa, roasted coffee, and a sweetness of Graham Cracker that makes for an enjoyable smoking experience.

FINAL THIRD
>> Dark Cocoa/Coffee/Graham Cracker

The first third has just the right blend of Dark Cocoa, roasted coffee, and a sweetness of Graham Cracker that makes for an enjoyable smoking experience.

RATING & FINAL THOUGHTS

FLAVOR PROGRESSION

The flavor progression was nonexistent the exact same flavor profile was exactly the same in each third. The dark Cocoa, Coffee, and Graham Cracker all varied just slightly but not very much at all.

BURN EXPERIENCE

None of the cigars smoked for this review required a relight or touchup. All of them burnt evenly with no issues whatso ever.

RATING BREAKDOWN
0.70 / 0.80 … Craft & Aesthetic
0.40 / 0.50 … Pre-Light Characteristics
0.50 / 0.50 … Lighting Process
7.00 / 7.70 … Smoking Experience
0.40 / 0.50 … Personal Enjoyment

COMPLIMENTS & CRITIQUES

GUESS WHAT YOU’RE SMOKING?.

From the cold draw to the first light all the way to the nubby end, this was a solid smoke throughout, Dark Cocoa, Coffee, and Graham Cracker.

The three flavors I found in the cigar are a perfect blend for any cigar smoker, easily identifiable and just as easily enjoyable. The burn was even and ash held together nicely.

You may believe that you caught a editing or reviewing error as all thirds were exactly the same in this review. Well, jokes on you, it is not an error. They were EXACTLY the same. How could this possibly be you ask? Well read on…

Turns out that other than the wrapper and binder, this bad boy is a machine made cigar stuffed with nothing more than short filler! Now don’t get me wrong, that is not a bad thing in this case. Everyone thinks short filler equals crap-stick, but they forget thing like the Drew Estate Papas Fritas. The Papas Fritas is made from the trimming of the Liga line from DE, and is proof of concept for a good short filler cigar. I do not know where the fillers for the A come from but they are a high quality tobacco that is to be enjoyed by anyone. I have been tricking my friends by gifting them one and letting them get half way through it before telling them it is a six to eight dollar, machine made short filler. All of them have been shocked, and all of them have purchased several sticks, or even bundles. Give it a try, you will not regret it i promise you.

SIMPLY STOGIES RATING:  9.0 / 10.0

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