The 2nd cigar I will be smoking as part of my cigar challenge is another from the cigar brand Arturo Fuente.
CGars Ltd offer the ‘Arturo Fuente Don Carlos – Eye of the Shark Cigar‘. These particular cigars aren’t referenced in my Cigar Companion book, but the name ‘Shark’ immediately draws my attention. I am a fan of large ring gauges, so I really want to aim for approx 50 and above when purchasing cigars as part of the challenge ahead.
The stats:
Length: 5 1/4″
Ring Gauge: 52
Strength: Medium – Full
Tasting notes:
“A rich, African Cameroon wrapper over vintage Dominican filler give way to flavours both complex and refined. The slightly sweet flavour produced by the select African Cameroon wrapper is in perfect balance with the savoury aroma. Flawless construction, a hallmark of Tabacalera A. Fuente, ensures an even burn and smooth draw, unquestionably among the world’s most elite cigars.“
I see the Eye of the Shark was Cigar Aficionado’s Cigar of the Year in 2017.
Interestingly this cigar was released as a tribute to the legendary creator Don Carlos Fuente, Sr, who passed away in 2016.
It looks like the son Arturo Fuente Carlito Fuente Jr. has since taken over his father’s reign.
This guy looks like he is quite a legend, check out the merchandise on his website… this little figure of Carlito made me laugh.
Follow this guy’s Instagram feed at https://www.instagram.com/arturofuentecigars/
My experience:
I have been really looking forward to smoking this cigar, it’s the first time I’ve felt like that in a long time – which makes me think this cigar challenge is a great idea for me – getting me out of my comfort zone trying all these new cigars.
The cigar was much smaller than I expected on arrival, wrapped inside a plastic wrapper with a barcode on the back.
At first I thought this was a box-pressed cigar, but upon further research ‘the bottom half is pressed and the upper half tapers into a regular, rounded belicoso—a demi-press’.
I usually smoke my cigars on my balcony, at this time of year it’s a bit cold, but the perfect place to relax and watch the world pass by. For this cigar, I paired it with Jack Daniel’s Gentleman Jack whiskey and coke. Probably not the best pairing, and open to recommendations.
So, what did it taste like? I honestly couldn’t tell the difference between this cigar and the Arturo Fuente Opus X Perfection X that I tried previously. It was a nice smoke. Again I didn’t taste any particular flavours, which disappointed me, as people always seem to mention this when I watch cigar reviews on YouTube. Maybe again, I’ll start to notice this as I try different cigar brands and different strengths.
I did find that my mouth kept catching the cigar band as I drew from it, which made me remove the band quicker than I usually would.
It was definitely well wrapped as the ash stayed around for quite some time.
My rating: 7 out of 10
A nice smoke – but was hoping to get a little more from it then I did, after reading all the hype about it online.
Next up… the Ashton VSG Robusto.
London Cigar Smoker 