F55 Quattro
Sitting in my local brick and mortar shop here on the Space Coast of Florida I was looking for something new to try. My tobacconist, Brook from Paradise Cigarz in Rockledge FL suggested I give the F55 Quattro from Boutique Blends Aging Room Small Batch Blends a spin. Brook knows my palate well and this was going to give me a nice run for the money. I accepted his suggestion and decided to take the Quattro home for some after dinner enjoyment.
Aging room is famous for naming their cigars with letters and numbers to signify the date that they created the blend. The F55 denotes Friday the 55th day of the year. Of course if you want to know the year you have to go check the calendar and figure that out. So 55 would be February 24. Searching past years you will note that the 24th of February fell on a Friday in 2012. So there you have it, The F55 was conceived on February 24th of 2012. The F55 Quattro was introduced at the 2012 IPCPR.
Now for the review.
The F55 Quattro is a small batch cigar blended with Dominican filler and binder encased in a rustic looking milk chocolate brown 2003 Sumatra wrapper.The wrapper has tooth too it but no heavily visible veins. It is double banded with the classic Aging Room main band stamped with the F55 in blue and foot band identifying it as the Quattro. It has a neatly applied triple cap. Sniffing the foot I got a sweet tobacco and pepper scent from it. The pepper actual brought on a sneeze or two. The Quattro was the first box pressed cigar for the company. “Quattro” meaning four, refers to the fact that it is box pressed not that it is related to Audi who makes the Quattro automobile.
The F55 Quattro comes in 5 vitolas:
- Concerto: 7 x 50
- Vibrato: 6 x 54
- Maestro (Torpedo): 6 x 52
- Espressivo: 5 x 50
- Stretto: 4 1/2 x 46
For this review I smoked the Vibrato. Clipping the cap I gave it a dry draw and picked up some sweetness and a touch of pepper. I fired it up and was hit with a wild shot of pepper right out the gate. Maybe the F55 Quattro is like the Audi. I guess I should have expected this from the dry draw and earlier sniff. The pepper clears my nostrils and opens them up for a grand smoking experience. About an inch into the burn the pepper mellowed out. Deep into the 1st third it presented a dry cocoa powder flavor with a touch of tang.
Getting into the 2nd third the F55 shifts into a higher gear as the strength builds up. There is a pleasant sweet aroma coming off the foot at this point. The ash was a mix of white and dark grey. The draw is excellent. As it burns through the second third there are delicate notes of coffee coming into the profile. The smoke is full and flavorful at this point and the aroma is a sweet cocoa.
Moving into the last third the flavor changes to more of a nutty and cedar taste with a roasted nut aroma coming off the foot. This change was quite unexpected but delightful to say the least. As it shifts into the final run the F55 Quattro offers up its remaining shot of spice just in case you needed some more nasal cleaning.
Overall this was a delectable cigar that I would judge as a solid medium body smoke. The flavors were full and transitioned well without any bitterness. The burn was excellent and the ash held for a good third of the cigar before falling. I have recently purchased more of these and look forward to smoking them soon. This a cigar that would pair well with a dark rum.
F55 Quattro
– Boston Jimmie
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