Black Works Studio Intergalactic Robusto

Oveja Negra Brands has a deep portfolio consisting of Black Label Trading Co., Black Works Studio, Emilio, and Dissident. The Black Works Studio line is an extension of Black Label Trading Co. and, according to the website, “focuses on artisanal qualities of small batch cigar making.” The “BLK WKS” portfolio is comprised of both core products and limited release products. All of the BLK WKS cigars are, however, produced in limited vitolas and 100 box batches. The Intergalactic marks the first limited release for the company in 2022. 

According to an IG post from James Brown, creator of Black Label Trading Co. and member of Oveja Negra:

    “Intergalactic is a unique cigar for Black Works Studio. I would consider it in a more traditional wheelhouse in terms of its overall profile with a definite Oveja Negra twist. The blend starts with bold spice followed by herbal and cedar notes. The Finish is a balance of different layers. The spice and earthy notes of the Nicaragua filler tobaccos are gently brought together with the creamy, subtle sweetness of the dark Sumatran wrapper. This cigar is both bold and subtle all at the same time.” 

I have been intrigued by this blend since its release as I do, generally, enjoy cigars from Oveja Negra and am a fan of Sumatran wrapped cigars. 

Country of Origin: Nicaragua

Factory: Fabrica Oveja Negra

Wrapper: Dark Indonesian Sumatra

Binder: Ecuadorian Habano

Filler: Nicaragua

Vitola: 5 ½” x 50 Robusto

Price: $10.50 MSRP

Release Date: January 2022

Company Website: www.ovejanegracigars.com 

Expectations 

I’m very excited to see what James does with a Sumatran wrapper. I expect his usual big and bold profile, but look forward to some of the alleged subtlety. I anticipate full bodied smoke with full flavors that cover earthiness, leather, wood, spices, pepper, and hopefully some cream and sweet sugar or fruits. I don’t really expect the strength to creep above medium. 

Prelight Characteristics

I like the rounded closed foot. As always the case with Black Label Trading Co. and Black Works Studio, I like the band's design. The color choices, artwork, and font are always on point and fitting for the style of the company. The wrapper is definitely a darker brown shade than many Sumatran wrappers. It is quite veiny and has a nice looking triple cap with a pigtail. The cold draw has prominent cocoa nibs and a faint paint-like taste. The cigar smells of damp barnyard and cedar. 

First Third

Right away the smoke is super full in body and flavor with a ton of somewhat tannic wood and earth, along with some vegetal components and subtle black pepper on the finish. The retrohale has some pepper sting but with a lot of bread and syrupy sweetness. About a half inch in the smoke is quite oily. The flavors are holding true. Passing halfway in the first third the body and flavor have come down a touch, though they’re still full. It’s performing wonderfully so far. The tannins from the wood have faded, but there’s still a woody component to the flavor. There’s a very subtle corn syrup like sweetness that goes into the finish. It goes well with the black pepper that’s still in the finish. The first third comes to an end with the ash dropping and no mentionable changes. 

Second Third

Going into the second third the retrohale has changed substantially. It's a berry like sweetness upfront with a smoked meatiness on the finish. It’s still performing okay, but starting to require more frequent puffing. Hitting halfway there’s a bread crust like note coming in and the wood has become more distinctly like oak. At the end of the second third the only flavor change is a bit more baking spice. It’s still showing plenty of oily earth and oak. I do need to do a little touch up on the burn. 

Final Third

The fruit and meatiness in the retrohale has dropped out. It’s now more wood forward with some toast, a touch of sweet pepper, and some very dark brown sugar like sweetness. Hitting the band point the cigar went out on me. I relit it and now there’s a very bright citrus note on the draw. Passing the band it’s getting more earthy and the citrus has faded. There’s still some baking spice and pepper in there. Coming to an end there’s no further changes to the flavor profile. The cigar performed well from the relight to the end. 

Overall Experience

I enjoyed the cigar, though I didn’t see as much subtlety as I anticipated. Most of the time the profile had a few contributing flavors that were all fairly distinct and forward. Overall the cigar was full bodied and full flavored with primarily wood, earth, baking spices, and pepper. There were moments of different types of sweetnesses like citrus, fruit, and syrup. There were also times that there was some toast added and the wood became more distinctly oak. So I would say the cigar was fairly dynamic throughout and kept my attention. The performance, overall, was pretty good and the one hour and 49 minute smoke time was pretty long for this Robusto. I think this was a good offering for the first limited edition of the year for Black Works Studio. If you can find these still, it’d be worth trying one.

Feel free to reach out to me with questions, concerns, criticisms, or just to talk at @guitarsandcigarsfarm on Instagram, or via email at trevor@whiskeyandwhitetails.com.


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