Long Live Life...and cigars

Cigar Reviewed: Viva La Vida

First time writing a review on here and not the last. Figured it would be good to start with a brand new cigar to me, AJF Viva La Vida.

Smoke Date- 9/7/21

Size- Robusto

Location- Garage

Drink- Raspberry Seltzer

This is a cigar that has been on my radar for quite some time. I have seen may posts online about it but it never has crossed my path until it showed up in Smoke Inn's COTM club. Part of the reason I love that club is the wide variety of smokes that are delivered and more often than not they are on my list of cigars to try.

First Impression

The band is fun and whimsical. I have always been a fan of jesters going back to my ski/snowboard hat which was a jester (yes...I thought it was cool). The wrapper was dark chocolate brown with some oil to it. The construction was spot on with no flaws or visible seems. Normally I do a straight cut, but I decided to give it the crown cut (2 V cuts) this time. Occasionally when I do this, the cap almost explodes leaving me with a bad time but on the Viva La Vida it worked out just fine. Draw was slightly snug and the cold draw was oily with pepper, leather and some meatiness.

Light up and First Bit

Right away off of the light up, it was hit with pepper, meat, leather, more pepper, and then a strange vegetal flavor. Was almost like a cross between a pepper and something else. I couldn't put a finger on it. Luckily it went away pretty quickly. From light up to the band, it was pretty consistent. Pepper, leather, wood and some natural tobacco sweetness. I didn't really have to think much about it or worry about re-lighting it as it chugged along.

Band to the End

After the band came off, things changed slightly. A lot of the flavors shifted from their definitive profile to one singular flavor. Nothing really stood out as the star flavor, but more of a balance in a good cigar. It took about an hour to smoke a robusto size and was quite enjoyable. There may have been a slight strength kick at the end because after I got done, I had a wicked headache. The room wasn't spinning or anything, but just enough to make things uncomfortable.

Overall it was a pretty good cigar. Would I rush out to purchase a box, probably not. Would I pick up a 5 pack to enjoy one from time to time, sure.