I received a pair of these in the Christmas give away last week.
I was planning on letting these sit for a while but a few others said they were ready to smoke now so I gave it a go last night.
Very nice aroma, nice and firm to the touch. Very dark wrapper, almost maduro dark, reminded to me instantly of the JdN Antano.
The cut - I cut everything at home with cigar scissors and I have come to learn a lot about a cigar by how it cuts.
Well this cut produce at 3/4 inch flap of wrapper telling me I probably should have let it rest some more. The burn matched that 3/4 inch in unevenness until about halfway but it did catch up. But these are just cosmetics.
One more thing about the burn, I was standing outside in the cold so I just let the ash go. Sort of flaky and grey I didn't expect it to hold long but it was a good 2 inches before it finally let go - impressive for a corona.
Taste wise it started out with a little pepper which again brought up thoughts of the Antano or some kind of Pepin - but it smoothed out quickly. I got a lot of natural woody flavors which reminded me of the RP Vintage series or maybe a Padron 3000 natural (but not as harsh).
It definitely mellowed out after the first inch and stayed firmly in the medium-full range the rest of the way. The best part of this cigar for me was the flavors at the nose on exhale, some cedar with a little sweetness.
Strength wise I would say somewhere along the lines of the JdN Cellebracion, Punch Uppercut - maybe the Perdomo 2. A nice spot where I think both mild and full fans could enjoy this smoke.
I was sipping on a little Bacardi Select which may have dulled my tastes a bit but it paired well with the Esencia.
Bottom line, would I buy it?
Yes
, if I could find it at the right price (not really sure what these are retailing for).
I don’t frequent B&M’s very often but there is one on the list of retailers near me (Watch City in Waltham) and I will make it a point to look for one next time I stop there.