Blind Review: Perdomo 10th Anniversary Maduro
In 2020, Perdomo cigars announced their 10th Anniversary line. One of these blends is the 10th Anniversary Maduro, a Nicaraguan puro that dons a six year old wrapper which has been aged for fourteen months in bourbon barrels. In addition, the 10th Anniversary lineup includes Connecticut and Sungrown wrapper blends which will be reviewed later this year. I’ll be interested to smoke them, because smoking this maduro blind was a surprising experience. Read on.
Blend Specifics
- Cigar Reviewed: Perdomo 10th Anniversary Maduro Epicure
- Wrapper: Nicaraguan maduro
- Binder: Nicaraguan
- Filler: Nicaraguan
- Size 6″ × 54 (Toro)
Appearance and Construction
The Perdomo 10th Anniversary Maduro wears a veiny slightly dark box-pressed wrapper with a bit of tooth to it. To the touch the cigar is spongy with a cap that appears slightly off center. The foot of the cigar smells of cedar, sandalwood and leather. The gauge is rather thick and adds to the cigar’s large and weighty appearance.
Flavor and Smoke Characteristics
As I clipp the Perdomo with a straight cut, the cap comes off askew, tearing a bit of the wrapper and leaving a piece hanging. With another slight clip I correct the head of the cigar as best I can. Taking a dry draw produces cold Spanish cedar and some sweetness. I toast the foot of the cigar using my torch lighter and as I take a puff, leather and spice came on full blast like a punch in the face. This doesn’t last long as the cigar peters out and needs a relight. I gently remove the ash and take another light that ends up bitter, grassy and quite unpleasant. The retrohale tastes of milk chocolate and oak with a short finish when blowing out of the nostrils and mouth.
The burn line on the Perdomo 10th Anniversary Maduro is wavy with a flakey grayish white ash. Once again the cigar goes out and another relight is necessary. What ensues is an airy smoke with cocoa and bitterness. The body is in the medium range with espresso and bakers chocolate on the finish despite needing another relight. I detect dry oak as I relight the cigar as well as that bitter espresso which seems out of balance with the other flavors. Another retrohale delivers black pepper and earth that leaves a tingling sensation as the smoke exits. The more intense flavors, falling short on the palate, seem accentuated when contacting the olfactory receptors.
In the last third yet another relight is needed—extremely frustrating! The cigar’s ability to maintain combustion causes the flavors to become muddled and harsh. As a result, the burn line continues to waver. The last few puffs of leather and earth continue with another short, lackluster finish. An anticlimactic cigar.
Conclusion
For a cigar that was aged in old bourbon barrels I would have expected some more sweetness coming from this smoke. The bourbon barrel influence was rarely noted and I was surprised to receive such harsh treatment. Instead, the Perdomo gave off more bitter notes than anything else. That coupled with constant relights made for a frustrating smoking experience. At its best the Perdomo 10th Anniversary Maduro delivered more pronounced flavors through the retrohale.
I would suggest trying many of the other varieties Perdomo has to offer and skip the 10th Anniversary Maduro.