I guess ATL Cigar Co is on my mind after the big news of their combining forces with Luciano Cigars. I have a couple ATL Cigars left to try so I reached for the Magic. Last time I tried reviewing a cigar from the Luciano Cigar Factory while hunting I had success. I figured I ought to try again. I’m hunting off the ground instead of the saddle this time because some hunting pressure kept me out of the area I planned on going and the trees where I ended up have lost all their foliage. It’s unseasonably warm and the pressure is up, so I don’t expect to see much, so this cigar will help entertain me.
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: Luciano Cigar Factory
Wrapper: Mexican San Andres
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Vitola: 6 x 54 Sublime
Price: $10.60 MSRP
Release Date: October 2021
Company Website: www.atlcigar.co
I really like the color choice on the band of this cigar, especially against this dark chocolate wrapper leaf. The cigar is heavy and firmly packed. It smells like fruit punch and cacao. The cold draw echoes some of the fruit punch and that’s about it. First light is medium-full bodied smoke with medium flavors of a sweet earth, some meatiness, and like an interesting leafy green type note that’s a cross between vegetal and grassy. The retrohale is like a damp, grassy, earthy flavor with a little bit of sweet pepper. Midway into the first third the draw has shifted away from the meatiness and leafy greens towards more earth, milk chocolate, and some spices. The retrohale, however, has remained pretty consistent. Hitting the second third the chocolate has flipped to French vanilla. Further into the second third the French vanilla is not at the forefront, but still subtly present. The draw is fuller with some cream, dark roast coffee, spices, and citrus tang. The retrohale has remained surprisingly consistent with the initial flavors. The performance has been flawless. Hitting the secondary band the body and flavor are closer to full. The draw has taken on some oily wood to join the citrus, coffee, cream, and spices. Nearing the primary band the citrus has subsided, along with much of the cream. It’s primarily dark roast coffee, wood, and baking spices, with just a touch of brown sugar sweetness and pepper. The retrohale is starting to see an uptick in pepper, along with the addition of earth, leather, and cacao. Into this final third I believe the strength has creeped up to medium plus. I am feeling it a little bit. Coming to an end at an hour and 23 minutes the performance has remained flawless throughout. The draw has gone towards more of an earthy, woody, peppery profile. The retrohale has plenty of pepper with some sweetness, wood, and spices.
Overall Experience
Overall this cigar was pretty good. The profile was rich and flavorful. There were some transitions in flavor - some subtle, some more obvious, which kept it moderately interesting. I will say that with cigars this rich, the profile can get a little “muddy”. I wouldn’t say it was out of balance, but all the flavors were rich and wanted to be at the forefront. This bodes well for creating a flavorful cigar, but not for creating a more nuanced cigar - at least in my opinion. At any rate, it performed perfectly and I think it would suit a lot of smokers. If you like stuff from the Luciano Cigar Factory, this is absolutely a safe bet for you.
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