Amendola Family Cigar Co. recently released their latest line of cigars – “The West Side Story” – at TPE 2023 in Las Vegas. The West Side Story is the first in a series of brands which will pay homage to their New York roots. The West Side Story is a true New Yorker as it was blended and rolled at the Martinez Cigar Factory based in Manhattan. The West Side Story comes in two different blends in the same 20-count box and are aptly named “Switch Blades” and “Baseball Bats”, which were inspired by the two gangs in the West Side Story film.
For this review I sampled one of the West Side Story Baseball Bats which I received from company owner Jeffrey Amendola, for the purpose of reviewing on Stogie Press.
The Amendola Family Cigars – West Side Story Baseball Bats has a blend described as:
- Wrapper – Mexican San Andreas
- Binder – Indonesian Sumatra
- Filler – Nicaraguan and Dominican
They are expressed in a single (6×52) Torpedo vitolas and come packaged in 20-count boxes with an MSRP of $14.00/cigar. It should be noted that the boxes contain 10 of the Baseball Bats and 10 of the Switch Blades.
Jeffrey describes this blend as:
“Cloaked in a toothy Mexican San Andreas wrapper accompanied by an Indonesian Sumatra binder and Nicaraguan/ Dominican fillers. The West Side Story barbed bat is named that for a reason as it boasts strong and hearty flavors. This slugger hits you in the face from beginning to end.“
Pre-Light Examination
The West Side Story Baseball Bats exhibit a slightly rugged, dark brown wrapper that has some bumps and veins throughout. The cigar is packed firmly to the touch and it has a nicely finished torpedo cap.
Two bands adorn the cigar. The primary band utilizes a metallic red, white, and black motif with the Amendola logo proudly centered on the band. The phrase N.Y.C Series is printed in script on the bottom while the back or i should say the far right side of the band has an image of the statue of liberty. The secondary band defines this as the West Side Story using the Amendola logo as the “O” in the word Story. To the left and right are crossed barb wired baseball bats signifying the blend.
Running the cigar across the nose, I quickly noted enticing cocoa notes off the foot while the wrapper has a hint of earthiness to it.
I used my CigarMedics Baller cutter to open this one up perfectly and gave it some cold draw puffs that delivered a finely restricted draw with notes of butter, black pepper, and earth.
I used my single flame torch to warm the foot to an even orange glow as I drew in the first puffs of rich peppery smoke that certainly opened the nasals on the retrohale and tingled the tongue. Follow along as I burn this Baseball Bat to ash.
Cigar Review Notes
- Rich black pepper notes start the journey
- Light grey ash forms on top of a thick char line
- Peppery toasted cracker aroma wafts off the foot early in the burn
- Earthy notes join the early profile
- Full and thick smoke volume fills the palate
- Cocoa notes begin to form after an inch of burn
- An off burn developed entering the second third which required a touch-up
- Once the solid ash fell, it revealed an off centered burn cone
- Aroma shifts a to earthy/tarry note
- Sweet and tangy citrus notes develop towards the midway point
- Spice begin to build in the background
- Burn has been more behaved and strength has moved up to medium to full
- Dark chocolate notes swirl into the mix deep in second third
- Mouth watering smoke so far
- Spice notes increase mix moving toward final and are predominate at this point to the end
- Medium to Full in Strength
- Total Smoking Time was 1 hour and 45 Minutes
Final Analysis
The Amendola Family Cigar Co. NYC Series – West Side Story Baseball Bats offered a terrific array of evolving and transitioning flavor throughout the 1 hour and 45 minute journey. It hits you hard in the start with rich black pepper notes on the nose and tongue and then develops into quite a tasty smoke. I enjoyed the cocoa and dark chocolate notes and also the mouth watering citrus notes. The burn was a bit wonky in the first half, but after a touch up it behaved well through the second half. This worth grabbing a fiver of. I rate this one a 91.
Point Deductions: (-1) Wavy Burn; (-1) Off Burn; (-1) Touch Up Required; (-1) Off Centered Burn Cone
Bonus Points: (+1) Complex and Balanced
