I’m back in the garage on a woodworking project after a couple month hiatus. I decided to get back on this guitar body ashtray. Once I got the grain filler on and I had to wait for it to dry, I hopped over onto my Stratocaster that I’ve been meaning to finish refretting. For this session I grabbed the 601 La Bomba Warhead VII from Espinosa Cigars. This is the first Warhead I have tried. The idea behind the project is to release a strong, limited blend under the 601 La Bomba line, which is already touted as a strong cigar. This iteration of the Warhead is a Nicaraguan puro, utilizing a first for me - Nicaraguan Broadleaf. I am intrigued by the cigar, but also a bit concerned anytime I smoke something that’s main purpose is strength.
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: San Lotano Factory
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Broadleaf
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Vitola: 7 x 50 Churchill
Price: $10 MSRP
Release Date: September 2021
Company Website: www.espinosacigars.com
I am a big fan of cigars with foot bands only, however, this band is a bit too cheesy for me. This Churchill has a dark, toothy wrapper with a slightly spongy box press. The cigar smells like sweet grapes, earth, and a little ammonia. The cold draw is fruit punch and cream. First light is medium-full bodied smoke with full flavors of a slightly salty charred wood, a bit of leather, earth, and sweet pepper. The retrohale has much of the same, but adds a molasses like sweetness. About an inch in there’s a citrus becoming pretty prominent on the draw. There’s still some salty wood, leather, and pepper. The performance has been great so far. Coming to the end of the first third there’s still plenty of citrus and wood, but the leather and pepper have been replaced by some baking spices and brown sugar. Passing halfway the cigar is still performing flawlessly. The draw has dropped a lot of the citrus and brown sugar but is holding onto some baking spices and wood. The saltiness is showing back up as well. Entering the final third the strength is going to start ramping up I think based on some flavor changes. The profile has become a bit more robust, oily, and tannic; there's also some pepper heat creeping into the finish. Coming to an end at two hours and 5 minutes the flavor profile continued to become more oily and peppery until the end without much else changing except the strength ramping up enough to creep into the full range. The performance was stellar throughout the entire smoking experience.
Overall Experience
Overall I thought this was a solid cigar. It was bold and robust, but had nice layers of flavor that gave it some nuance. I enjoyed the salted wood with the leather, earth, spices, and underlying sweetness. The final third definitely became stronger so I would be prepared for the nicotine kick. Beyond that, I think this is a recommendable cigar for anyone who enjoys darker, more robust flavor profiles with some underlying notes to keep it interesting. Interesting to note, between the time I finished the cigar and compiling these notes into a review, I have been kind of craving this cigar again when I have been in the mood for a more robust, stronger cigar. That solidifies my “recommendable” note and makes me think I should grab some more if I see them.
Feel free to reach out to me with questions, concerns, criticisms, or just to talk at @guitarsandcigarsfarm on Instagram, or visit my website www.guitarsandcigarsfarm.com.