Back in April, I had the pleasure of reviewing for you, the Cattle Baron Cowboy cigar. It was short corona that performed admirably. Shortly after that review, I got some more vitolas of this new brand and today we turn it up a few notches as I review the big daddy of the line – The Trail Boss.
A quick re-cap on Cattle Baron Cigars. They currently have a single blend described as:
- Wrapper – Nicaraguan Habano
- Binder – Dominican
- Filler – Dominican Seco, Nicaraguan Viso
This blend is available in 5 different vitolas each packaged in 20-count boxes:
- Little Doggie (4 x 36)
- Cowboy (4.5 x 44) MSRP $8.25
- Bull (4.5 x 58) MSRP $9.30
- Stockyard (5 x 52) MSRP $8.75
- Trail Boss (6 x 54) MSRP $9.30
So here we go with the breakdown of the Cattle Baron Cigars Trail Boss.
Pre-Light Examination
The Cattle Baron Trail Boss is a stark contrast to the Cowboy I smoked a couple of months ago. While the Cowboy was a pleasant and short smoke, the Trail Boss, is just as it’s name denotes – the largest vitola in the Cattle Baron Cigars portfolio.
Right out of the gate, the Trail Boss has a fine sheen to its medium brown muscular body along with a few veins running along the barrel. It is a heavy and solid cigar in the hand. A well applied cap completes the construction.
Like all Cattle Baron Cigars, the Trail Boss has a single band that brands the cigar. It uses some fun graphics, including a sideways horseshoe that engulfs the letter “B”. Together they represent Cattle Baron. Below that is an image of running Steers. The band is finished with the phrase “Cattle Baron” at the bottom.
As I ran the Trail Boss along the nasals (I know that is a weird image in your head, so get it out of there), I picked up spice along the barrel and pungent, fermented leaf note off the foot.
Taking out my double blade Xikar cutter, I sliced the cap straight across the shoulder and preceded to take some cold puffs off this beefy cigar. There was a nice restriction to the draw and it offered a hint of sweetness and growing red pepper. The sweetness was starting to taste more like honey as I rolled it about enjoying the cold draw.
As I enjoyed the Cowboy previously, it was time to hit the Trail Boss with the dual flames of my torch lighter. I made sure to roll it gently between my fingers as I held the flame about an inch from the foot, warming it up until it took to the flame. A few puffs of pepper laden smoke and giddy-up folks we are on our way! I was feeling nostalgic the day I smoked this, ergo the reason for this classic child’s book about life through the eyes of baseball.
Cigar Review Notes
- Pepper notes hit on the first puffs
- Natural tobacco sweetness is picked up off the head of the cigar
- Savory spice starts to build, adding to the profile
- Medium grey ash is forming on top of a fairly thick char line
- Cocoa aroma wafts off the foot adding to the enticement of the journey
- The first third rounds out as a smooth smoke with a mild cinnamon spice and undertone of sweetness
- Slight off burn develops as it moves into the second third
- The ash is hanging tight and solid
- Nut enters in the early part of the second third
- As the ash finally fell, it revealed a well centered and good looking burn cone
- Nuances of fruit and spice fill the profile
- The aroma shifts to more of a nut
- Making its way into the final third, there are earth notes and the savory notes re-emerge
- Smoke has been cool, smooth, and full volume through the journey
- Spice increases as the aroma shifts to a maple nut
- Sweetness rounds it out down to the finish
- Medium in Strength
- Total Smoking time was 1 hour and 40 Minutes to the nub
Overall, the Cattle Baron Trail Boss offered a flavor profile similar to the Cowboy but with some accentuated notes of cinnamon and sweetness. The smoke was smooth and cool all the way to the end. From a construction viewpoint, the Cattle Baron Trail Boss had a small off-burn early on that did need a mild touch-up and then back on the trail it went, never looking back. This certainly worth picking up a fiver to add to the rotation. I rate this a 93
Point Deductions: (-1) Off Burn; (-1) Medium Grey Ash; (-1) Mild Touch-up
