Smoked: Pichardo Clasico Sumatra

Smoked at: West Chester, Ohio

Pichardo Clasico Sumatra toro is enveloped in a smooth Sumatra wrapper with barely noticeable veins, except for one large aorta on one side. The blood bank would be delighted. This is a medium body, medium strength stick, start to finish.

Oak, leather and pepper greet you on the first several puffs. It takes a few minutes for some initial bitterness to tamp down. That allows more mellow notes of coffee, milk chocolate, bread/toast and almonds/walnuts to emerge. The wood, leather and pepper still dominate the flavors. Retrohale is harsh amping up the pepper and some earthiness, steely slate/flint.

The draw is loose – could use more resistance. The burn line was dead even until the halfway mark, then it went wobbly with a small wrapper flaw. Nothing major. A few touchups evened it out again. The ash is a flaky and drops off after about ¾ inch but it held up to that length consistently. This cigar does produce a ton of smoke. It has to be violating a few EPA regulations. I do like solid smoke output, but this is wild. The smoke is so thick it’s like a clear day in Gary, Indiana. This is a fast burning cigar. I’m contacting Guinness. It may challenge for the record for fastest burning toro to date.

Pichardo Clasico Sumatra is a decent cigar. There just wasn’t any complexity to it – very basic flavors. A shade above meh - a very average cigar at best. I still have the Fiat Lux and The Dreamer on the “would like to try” wish list so I haven’t given up on Luciano.