Initial Thoughts
I’ve seen this cigar out on the shelves for quite a while, and I’ve smoked one or two before this review. I picked them up by winning a game at a Drew Estate event with Jeff the Animal Tennell. The game you ask, his infamous Klackers dice game. I don’t really remember smoking those at the time so I was excited to really sit down and concentrate on this blend and take in all it has to offer.
A little back story on the My Uzi Weighs a Ton according to Jonathan Drew. This cigar is a partnership between Subculture Studios & Joya De Nicaragua, much like the MUWAT Kentucky Fire Cured. “Utilizing San Andreas Negro Wrapper, Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade Binder and hearty Brazilian Mata Fina Filler, coupled with Nicaraguan fillers provided by JDN” that’s the DNA of the cigar. During one of the last blending sessions from Cigar Safari trip in 2010 is when Jon said the cigar came to fruition. He believes it is best experienced in the 6×60 vitola. I wasn’t brave enough to try the 6×60 so I opted for the 5×60 instead. My favorite part of the backstory on this cigar is how it got the name. Initially Jon was just calling the cigar “The Uzi”. When he went back to pick up a bundle of 50 sticks he lifted it and said “Damn, My Uzi Weighs a Ton”. Boom, marketing and branding at it’s best. Well I think it’s time to hop into the review and see if this cigar lives up to it’s name.
Looks
The San Andres Negro wrapper on this My Uzi Weighs a Ton is very dark. It has a very similar coloring to that of the Liga Privadas. This wrapper isn’t as velvety as those coveted ones on the LPs though. The wrapper on this cigar is fairly smooth I can see and feel a few veins up and down the barrel of the stick. There is a nice consistency to the coloring and texture though.
The one thing that will probably catch your eye more than anything with this cigar is the band. It’s big and in your face. The black background does blend in with the wrapper slightly so it does mute the noise just a bit. However the big bold font is screaming from this band. It brings the noise to say the least. This has always been the first thing that I noticed about this cigar and I’m sure I’m not the only one. The font is in a silver / charcoal color and is a nice contrast to the black background. Not incredibly subtle, but it gets the job done and gets the brand in your face.
Function
This My Uzi Weighs a Ton comes in at 5×60 and is larger than most of the cigars I typically smoke. I always like to make sure that the filler is packed well and has some nice bounce back as well. I can’t find any soft spots or lack of filler up and down the barrel of this particular cigar so I’m good to go on that. The foot looks nice and well packed.
Because this is a larger ring gauge cigar I make sure to use my punch cutter because my normal cutter wouldn’t do the job. I’ve actually become a big fan of the punch now that I’m using it more often. The dry draw on this stick is perfect. Very little resistance and the air comes through the barrel very easily. I think I’ve exhausted my pre-game notes and I think it’s time to put some fire to it.
Smoking
I tried the ole 3 match lighting method on this My Uzi Weighs a Ton and it didn’t want to take off initially. I had to keep touching up around the foot. There was one trouble spot in particular that just didn’t want to light. Once I took care of it, we were off and running.
The first third burned perfectly. The draw was just fantastic and smoke was pouring out. Exactly how I wanted to experience this cigar. The ash held on forever it seemed like. I finally dropped it off around the 1 1/2″ mark. I wanted to keep going with it, but I knew my chances of getting ashy crotch were getting higher every second. The rest of this cigar burned really well. The ash continued to grow and hold on. It was a nice solid white & gray ash that has perfect burn curls to it. The ash on this cigar reminds me a lot of the ash on the Headley Grange. Couldn’t ask for a better smoking experience with this stick.
Flavor
We’re finally here, everybody wants to know about the flavor of this My Uzi Weighs a Ton. During the pre-light inspecition I picked up a strong sweet tobacco note on the foot. It’s like I just opened up a jar of pipe tobacco and stuck my head in. Moving down the barrel I pick up some faint hints of leather and tiny notes of earth along the way.
Once I get the cigar lit the flavor profile changes immensely. I start to pick up a heavy char akin to campfire. It’s completely different than what I was picking up on the pre light. On the retrohale there is a strong nutty flavor. It’s like eating a big mouth full of peanuts without the salt. It’s a nice savory note and then all of a sudden it dissipates into this spicy note at the end.
The second third brings about some change. The spice that was there initially has been pushed to the back burner. A creamier note starts to build and I can’t help but keep thinking that its like the nougat from a 3 Musketeers candy bar. But then the nutty / savory note comes back and I’m thinking, well this might be a Snickers bar. Either way, it’s pretty damn delicious, or I’m hungry one of the two.
I was really digging this My Uzi Weighs a Ton up until the final third. I felt that the cigar’s flavor profile shifted a little too much for me. I began picking up a strong bitter note. I initially thought it was a tarry build up so I purged the cigar to try and get rid of it. However, that didn’t seem to help. The bitterness was fairly prevalent and reminded me of a bitter overly vinegar BBQ sauce. Some people love a vinegary BBQ sauce. However I am not one of those people so this section of the cigar brought me down a little bit.
Overall this My Uzi Weighs a Ton is a nice medium-full bodied smoke that definitely hits you with some flavor changes throughout the entire smoke. Very interesting and quite different from the MUWAT Kentucky Fire Cured. It’s interesting to see them side by and try to figure out all the differences between the flavor profiles of each.
Would I Buy It Again?
I think so. The price is in my wheelhouse, but I would like to smoke it again and see if that final third was a fluke or by design.
Is It an Every Day Smoke?
Ehh, not at this size.
Would I Buy a Box?
Potentially. I’m interested to see how these bad boys would age.
Conclusion
Overall, I really enjoyed this My Uzi Weighs a Ton minus the final third. It was great up until that point for me personally. Others may love that transition of flavor, but for me, it was no buenos. I would say that you need to go pick one up for yourself and try it out. I personally don’t think I’ve had too many cigars like this one. The depth of flavors from this cigar were very unique and I love the transitions between thirds as well. I think it was very well done and it definitely exceeded my expectations.
