Initial Thoughts
I haven’t smoked too many cigars from the La Gloria Cubana line up. I obviously have never reviewed one on this site. The few that I have smoked I have enjoyed, but I can’t remember their exact name. I just remember the band. So when Travis from Famous Smoke Shop reached out to me about reviewing this new line of cigars that they released, I jumped at the opportunity. He said he would send me a few samples to smoke and just write about what I experienced and I’m doing just that.
I’m always interested in the story behind specific branding and marketing of a new product. With this La Gloria Cubana Gilded Age having such a dominant band and an obvious theme I wanted to know where they came up with the idea. There has to be some sort of connection right? So I dug around and found a press release that told me everything I needed to know.
The concept behind the brand is an homage to the classic era in American history when Lady La Gloria, La Gloria Cubana’s symbolic logo, lived.
That’s pretty simple isn’t it? It makes perfect sense. I love how they tied the new product in with the presence that LGC has already established. I think it’s a good mixture and it makes it easier to jump into the marketplace. This La Gloria Cubana Gilded Age is available in four different vitolas: Churchill, Magnum, Robusto, and Toro. If you read all the way to the end, then you can enter for a chance to win an entire box of the toro vitola. Don’t just skip to the end though, well I guess you can if you want to. Let’s jump into this review this gigantic Churchill that they sent me and see what’s going on with this cigar.
Looks
Because I got samples of the Churchill vitola, I’m not sure what I noticed first, the band or the size of the stick. Holy smoke I always forget how big Churchills are until I hold them. They’re not my go to size, but I do enjoy them. I have a feeling it’s going to be about a 2 hour smoke, luckily for me it’s incredibly humid outside and if I sit out for 2 hours then I’ll prolly shed at least 10 lbs in water weight. Who knew smoking cigars would help you lose weight!
Taking a look at the band on this La Gloria Cubana Gilded Age you instantly notice the size of it. I’m not sure if it’s the same size on the Churchill as it is on the rest of the vitolas, but this thing is massive. It’s an Art Deco style band which is the style that was all the rage during the ‘Gilded Age’ apparently. That’s why they’ve used it for this specific cigar, and I think it looks pretty darn good if I do say so myself. At the top of the band you’ll notice the traditional LGC logo inside of a circle, and then all around it there is a gold color that fills the rest of the band. There are a few thin black lines, not to be confused with Thin Red Lines, just want to make that clear. Towards the bottom of the band there is a classic font, that I’m assuming is Art Decoish, I’m not really up on my art styles, but it definitely reminds me of a the time back in the roaring 20’s or 40’s. Whichever it is, basically this font reminds me of Jazz music and the Great Gatsby. So yeah, whatever time period that was. Apparently it was the Gilded Age.
The cigar looks beautiful once you get passed the size. There is a nice vein that runs the course of the wrapper. It’s not bulging out, but it is noticeable. This Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper has a nice dark brown color to it. A few shades darker and it might be confused as a maduro. There is a tiny bit of tooth on the wrapper as well which I’m looking forward to see if it peeks its head out on the ash. I think that just about covers everything that there is to look at the cigar right now. Let’s hop on into how it functions.
Function
Looking at a Churchill I’m always amazed at how well they are rolled. To me it’s just an enormous size, and I can’t imagine how someone rolls that. I’m also always worried about how it’s going to draw. For me the larger sized cigars always seem to have draw issues. Maybe I’m just not used to puffing on them hard enough to draw the air through the barrel. I’m not sure, but I’m hoping I don’t have issues with this La Gloria Cubana Gilded Age.
Taking a look at the foot of this cigar it appears to be well constructed and properly filled with the filler tobacco. I gave it the ole pinch test up and down the barrel to test it’s bounce back and everything appeared to be in working order. So I’m ready to nip the cap and get this thing going.
After my initial cut on the head, the dry draw wasn’t as open as I wanted it to be. So I gave it another chop and it opened up a little more. Still not quite where I wanted it, but good enough to get started. The draw was a little stiff so I wasn’t able to pick out too many flavors during the dry draw so I figured it was time to go ahead and light it up and see if it opened up anymore.
Smoking
I made sure to really toast the foot on this La Gloria Cubana Gilded Age. It’s a big cigar and I want to get it going on the straight and narrow early on, and hopefully it will hinder any burn issues down the road. The first third of this cigar took a while to get going. I was having trouble drawing air through the barrel and the combustion on the wrapper wasn’t burning as quickly as I hoped. It was burning perfectly even, just not as fast and I had hoped for. I always like the foot to burn a little faster to get me into the heart of the cigar where it really opens up. This was just taking a little longer than I prefer. Not a big a deal, just personal preference.
Once I got about half an inch into the cigar, it began to open up a little more and the air flow improved. The burn was absolutely perfect and now that it was drawing better I have a good feeling about where this cigar is heading. As I continued through the first third, which took me about 45 mins I was able to hold an ash well over an inch. Of course I didn’t a picture of it before it fell. The good news is the ash fell from about three feet in the air and didn’t obliterate when it hit the ground. It actually stayed intact which to me is always a good side of great construction.
The second third was more of the same on this La Gloria Cubana Gilded Age. It began to really open up and the smoke output was perfect. Draw was exceptional and it made this Churchill burn a little quicker. Not too fast though, I wanted to make sure and lose all 10lbs of water weight before I’m done with this stick though.
During the final third, this stick stayed smooth and consistent with the burn line. Never got out of line and the draw was exceptional all the way through. I was glad it finally opened up after the initial third, it made this Churchil much more manageable. If it would have had draw issues the entire time I probably would have tossed it after the first third. I can’t smoke a cigar for 2+ hours that’s difficult draw. That’s like standing in line at the DMV. Just downright painful.
Flavor
I’m not sure exactly what flavors were huge back in the days during the Gilded Age, but I’m curious if the tastes on this stick line up with those. They probably don’t, but it’s always fun to try and find out! During the pre light I nosed the foot and the barrel of this La Gloria Cubana Gilded Age, and I picked up a little hint of sweetness, but mainly dirt and earth notes. They were very pleasant and aromatic though which to me is a good sign. During the pre light I also picked up a bit of spice on the lips which got me excited and I could presume there was some Nicaraguan ligero in the filler (which I ended up being right about).
Once I set the flame to this cigar I instantly picked up some woodsy notes. Very similar to the smell of campfire, except I was tasting it inside my mouth. Which probably sounds a little odd, but it was actually very tasty. The woodsy / earthy notes dominated the first third. There were hints of spice on the retrohale with some floral notes as well, but the most common flavors carried throughout this third.
During the second third this La Gloria Cubana Gilded Age began to show it’s complexity. The spice picked up, especially during the retrohale and hit hard at first and then finished with a bit of sweetness. The woodsy / earthy notes have dissipated from flavors in the mouth and were mainly noticeable in the aroma now. With the spice building I began picking up on a savory note that I really enjoyed.
The last third continued the trend on the spice and at this point that’s the dominant note. I can’t really pick up on the earthy notes anymore. The spice isn’t overpowering like the Ashton ESG, but it’s definitely there and blocking out the other flavors during this final third. To me this cigar never really built past a medium body. There was a good dose of flavors, but the ‘strength’ was more medium bodied.
Would I Buy It Again?
Yeah, I believe so, just not in the Churchill size.
Is It an Every Day Smoke?
Potentially, it has a good price point, but I couldn’t smoke a Churchill everyday.
Would I Buy a Box?
Possibly, I’d like to see how the Toros and Robustos smoke before I decide on a box though.
Conclusion
A solid 9 out 10. Great construction, great flavors, very enjoyable cigar. As I’m sure you know by now, I’m just not a big cigar kind of guy. So having to sit and smoke on the same stick for 2+ hours doesn’t exactly appeal to me. I enjoyed it, but I still would prefer a smaller sized cigar.
Ok, so now onto the giveaway. Travis, the same guy that sent me these samples wanted me to do a giveaway of an entire box of these La Gloria Cubana Gilded Age cigars in the toro size! So, you know the drill, fill out the Rafflecopter below and you will be entered to win! Best of luck to everyone!
