Initial Thoughts
I initially came across this H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez when I stopped in and visited my local Casa de Montecristo store here in Nashville. It had been open for awhile and I had yet to make it’s acquaintance so I figured it was time to stop in and check it out. When I popped in I talked to the general manager Larry and asked his recommendation on some cigars, he pointed me to this H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez and a few others. Ultimately, I decided this was the cigar for me.
A little bit about the project and the blend. This isn’t the first time that Altadis has tapped AJ Fernandez to participate in a collaboration with them. In fact it wasn’t even the first time of the year for them to collaborate. They have worked on a Monte by Montecristo blend as well of a few others.
This H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez features some tasty tobaccos in the blend though and I was very excited to give it a try. For the wrapper they used an Ecuadorian sumatra leaf. Nicarguan corojo 99 for the binder and some filler leaf. Then rounded it out with Dominican leaf in the filler. One of my favorite things about this cigar is the price point. You can find this thing for $7-8! It comes in 3 vitolas – Churchill, Robusto, and Toro (which is what I’m smoking for the review). Let’s dive in and see what all this cigar has to talk about.
Looks
First off this packaging ‘pops’ the turquoise blue color of the H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez really stands out on the shelf. I noticed it when I came in the humidor and give it a quick glance. I thought it was interesting that’s exactly where the general manager pointed me back to. So good job of using a unique color to help stand out on the shelves.
Secondly, looking at the band they utilize the same turquoise blue on the primary band. The secondary band uses a very traditional looking band with a nice cream color and gold stamp with the name AJ Fernandez on it. I also love how they use the turquoise as a pin strip on the secondary band to make it all come together. If there is one that thing that Altadis does really well, I feel like it’s their packaging. Even if you don’t like any of their cigars I think you can agree that their packaging is always very well done.
Smoking
Well it’s time to light this thing up. Right out of the gate this H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez lit up perfectly and was burning incredibly well. I was choking on some smoke right away. So maybe the draw was a little bit too open. This cigar just has smoke bellowing out of it though which was great. It was nice to get a aroma of what going on inside the tobacco. Unfortunately, I was enjoying the cigar so much that I forgot to take pictures during this time so you’ll just have to take my word on it.
Flavor
Now, let’s get into the exciting part of this H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez! The flavors were actually fantastic. I didn’t know what to expect I have only smoke a couple of AJ Fernandez’s blends in the past needless to say I was pretty happy with the overall experience.
On the foot of the cigar I’m hit with a lot of earthy notes and soft wood. Some hints of cedar and spice appear overall. On the palate I’m picking up a lot of grassy notes similar to what I find on a Davidoff cigar. What I loved about this cigar is that it built into a nice full bodied cigar with lots of black pepper notes and hints of leather. Deep down in the flavor profile I kept hitting on something that was registering as a citrus note, could have been cherries as well.
Overall though this H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez was very well balanced with the flavor profile and I enjoyed the toro vitola I always feel that the Toro’s give off a great flavor profile and length for the total smoke.
Would I Buy It Again?
Absolutely.
Is It an Every Day Smoke?
Quite possibly, at $7-8 a stick should be easily affordable.
Would I Buy a Box?
Quite possibly.
Conclusion
Honestly, go pick up this cigar. I had heard the announcement that they were rolling it out, but other than that there wasn’t much fan fare around it. I personally loved it and I think it will hit most smoker’s palate really well. I also think it hits your wallet in a good spot. It doesn’t cost too much and it’s a great overall experience. So well done to Altadis & AJ Fernandez I think you all did a great job with project!
If you have smoked the H. Upmann by AJ Fernandez we’d love to hear your thoughts about the blend down below!
