Initial Thoughts
The review of this Sobremesa Torpedo Tiempo is coinciding with our week of reviewing the Cigar Saveur Sampler Box & Giveaway. This cigar was the first on the list, and honestly the most anticipated smoke out of all 4. I haven’t had this one yet and I’ve heard some great things. With Steve Saka behind the helm I was very excited to give this cigar a whirl. For those of you that may not know. Steve Saka was behind a lot of the blends that came out of the Drew Estate & Liga Privada lines. He left Drew Estate a couple of years ago and after his 2 year non-compete was up he came back onto the cigar scene with the Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust and Sobremesa is his freshman release under his new company.
Steve gives some great insight to the name of the blend on his site:
Sobremesa, “over the table”, has no precise English translation, perhaps because there is no cultural equivalent in the US. It is an idiom used among the Latin culture to describe the leisurely time spent tableside after you have finished dining, but before you rise. It is the experience of lingering casually with family and friends in conversation, relaxing, drinking, smoking, and enjoying each other’s company. Sobremesa is one of life’s simplest, yet greatest pleasures.
Sobremesa will be continuously crafted, however the pace of its production is being dictated by the tobaccos themselves and therefore will be limited in its availability via Select Purveyors for the foreseeable future.
He also gives extensive information behind the blend, which is actually very rare in the industry to pull back the curtain to what is contained in each blend. Typically manufacturers will say ‘Dominican or Nicaraguan’ for the filler. I love that Steve puts it all out there:
Wrapper: La Meca Ecuador Habano #1 Rosado
Binder: Matacapan Negro de Temporal
Filler: Nicaraguan Gk Condega C-SG Seco, Nicaraguan Pueblo Nuevo Criollo Viso, Nicaraguan La Joya Esteli C-98 Viso, Nicaraguan ASP Esteli Hybrid Ligero, USA Lancaster County Broadleaf Ligero
Looks
This Sobremesa Torpedo Tiempo is a 6″ x 54 torpedo. Strong build and a nice dark chocolate wrapper. It has lots of texture to it and minimal seams are visible.
Function
I used my Xikar RG60 to cut the head at an angle like I do with all torpedoes. I just like how the smoke rolls out of it. I think it’s a better way to smoke them, but I could be wrong, it’s happened before. The dry draw is a bit tight but I hope it opens up once it gets some fire to it. The filler is packed very well, minimal bounce back when squeezed.
Smoking
Throughout the entirety of the smoke I had very little issue with the draw. The wrapper had some touch and go issues where it wasn’t burning razor sharp but it self corrected without having to touch it up. So no harm, no foul on my end. I was surprised that this cigar didn’t give off more smoke. I had an inkling that it might bellow smoke similar to the Ligas but nonetheless it didn’t and I was fine with that.
Flavor
Now, the all important part, the flavor profile! Pre light on the nose I picked up a good dose of spice, and mint. Followed with some subtle notes of milk chocolate followed with faint tones of leather. Very complex from the outer wrapper.
Once I got the cigar lit I instantly picked up the pepper, it was a solid black pepper with hints of mint and anise all the way through. Most of the time it was spice and some earthy notes here and there. I was actually surprised I never got that leather note back from the pre light aroma. There were waves of that creamy chocolate, but the most dominate note was that black pepper spice.
Would I Buy It Again?
You betcha.
Is It an Every Day Smoke?
Well this is individually priced at around $12-14, so probably not.
Would I Buy a Box?
Certainly. I think it’s worth it.
Conclusion
Overall, I’m very impressed with the Sobremesa Torpedo Tiempo. I didn’t know what to expect, but I had high hopes knowing that this cigar had Steve Saka’s fingerprints all over it. I would say it definitely lived up to the hype. Even though that hype came out at last year’s trade show. This cigar should certainly be a contender and hang around for awhile. I’m a big fan and hopefully I can find some more around Nashville. I certainly want to pair this with a sweet rum or a soft wheated bourbon. I think that spice would instantly clash with a higher rye bourbon or whiskey.
Don’t forget, we’re partnering with Cigar Saveur to give away a Sampler box that contains this Sobremesa Torpedo Tiempo. All you have to do is go here and enter: http://www.stogiesontherocks.com/giveaways/cigar-saveur-box-giveaway/
