Cohiba Black Robusto Crystal

Score: 9.0

Backstory: Developed by distinguished cigar master, Daniel Nuñez, Cohiba Black premium cigars are made by hand in the Dominican Republic. Each cigar sports a U.S. Connecticut Broadleaf aged 50% longer on the plant for a bolder taste. The fillers are hand-selected Dominican and Mexican tobaccos that have been tercio aged in palm leaf bales, with a "sweeter" tasting, sun-grown Dominican Piloto Cubano leaf binder, also tercio-aged for three years.

Señor Nuñez does it again. A beautiful, dark, oily U.S. Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper makes this cigar really easy on the eyes. The pre-lit experience was particularly sweet taste and scent. Now there are certain things you just expect from a Cohiba, and those expectations are generally high. So here goes:

My Cohiba Black Robusto Crystal sample had superb construction all-around. The foot lit perfectly and the first few puffs were surprisingly mild to this smoker's palate. (Did they mistakenly mislabel a Macanudo Maduro? ;-)  The cigar burned well, too. The smoke was exceedingly  smooth, creamy, and full-flavored, yet medium in body with a soft finish. The flavor was primarily cedary with some sweet spice and caramelized flavor undertones.

Overall, a relaxing cigar that maintained a perfect balance of flavor throughout. Due to its extra long-aged mellowness, this cigar should appeal to cigar smokers of all experiences. I think I prefer this Cohiba Black series to the original Cohiba Dominican with the Cameroon wrapper.

Appearance: 9
Construction: 9
Burn: 9
Draw: 9
Aroma: 9
Flavor: 9
Final Score: 9.0