This is a review by Charlie Freeman, a frequent Fine Tobacco NYC event guest and a personal friend of mine. Enjoy the review, and drop a comment if you have thoughts!
In New York you can find just about any kind of cigar from around the world. You can even find Cubans if you know where to look. But lately I’ve been keen to find something that can only be found in New York itself. So what better place to start than with the Montecristo New York Connoisseur Edition? As the name suggests, this is a one-of-a-kind stogie that can only be found within the one-of-a-kind city whose name it bears.
Blend Specifics
- Wrapper: Ecuadorian
- Binder: Nicaraguan
- Filler: Dominican
- Vitola: Corona Gorda, Box-pressed
- Dimensions: 6 x 60
Aesthetics, Construction and Feel
Before I have a chance to grasp this 6 x 60 behemoth in my hand I find myself drawn to both its size appearance and construction. Aside from a few subtle irregularities, the New York Connoisseur Edition’s box-press construction gives it a skyscraper-like appearance, fitting in perfectly with the Freedom Tower and Empire State Building when I hold it up against the New York skyline at the Hoboken Waterfront. To top it all off, the stick is completely soft spot-free; a sign of meticulosity on the part of the makers, to whom I tip my hat.
While the wrapper is smooth and oily to the touch and contributes much to the stogie’s skyscraper aesthetic, there are also some minor caveats. The wrapper is noticeably veiny and contains a few small cracks. Hence the big question: will these minor kinks prove to be enough hinder the smoke experience? Let’s find out!
Flavor and Smoke Characteristics
Upon lighting up I am quite pleased to be greeted by a smooth, well-balanced draw and a fairly thick cloud of smoke; a promising sign for the long journey ahead. Unfortunately, this journey contains a few roadblocks. Starting with a sizable crack that forms on the back not long after the light-up, the New York tends to canoe, most likely due to the aforementioned minor cracks throughout the wrapper. The result is my having to manually maintain the stick by rotating it and evening it out with matches.
Additionally, the New York has to be puffed regularly, with the smoke cloud becoming thinner as the interval between puffs becomes longer. About halfway through the ash becomes noticeably uneven, limping at an angle as seen in the image. However, there is an important silver lining in this particular kink. The box-pressed construction has resulted in a sturdy stogie that holds the ash quite well, right up to the last quarter of the stick, to be precise. This feature becomes all the more significant in light of my constant rotating and maintaining of the stick.
Finally, despite the wrapper showing signs of unraveling, the final quarter makes for a good finish as the stick begins to breathe more freely.
In terms of flavor the New York Connoisseur is quite consistent with pleasantly few surprises. From draw to nub this Monte delivers a rich smoke that wets the palate and is dominated by essences of coffee and oak wood. The draw is smooth, placed in a comfortable middle ground between creamy and leathery.
The Final Verdict
First and foremost I must make one thing clear: I bought this particular stick about two weeks before finally having the opportunity to smoke it. Thus it is quite possible that the smoke could have been even better than it already was, had I smoked it at an earlier time. That being said, the Montecristo New York Connoisseur Edition is an enjoyable medium-bodied smoke that does much justice to the city for which it is named. I highly recommend this cigar for any smoker who lives in or visits the city I am proud to call my home. It will be among the highest of high notes in your New York experience.
Final Grade: A-
Tips for a Perfect Smoke Experience
- When smoking a creamy and oaky stogie such as this, one should never do so without a cappuccino in the opposite hand.
- A good way to bring out the coffee flavor more is to counteract it with something sweet. To take a culinary queue from our good friends the French, place a grape on top of a cracker adorned with brie cheese and enjoy the ride.
Update: we’ve created a top-three list of our favorite cigars from Montecristo. You can see it here.