Today I would like to offer another review of a Carolina Blue Cigars product. Carolina Blue Cigars was founded in 2016, by Christopher Moore in the Dominican Republic. The company is based out of Huntersville, NC. and is partnered with Tabaclera El Puente (known as the Cigar Bakery), in the Villa Gonzalez Region of the Dominican Republic.
As explained on the company’s website:
“This was a great achievement for the brand to have an opportunity to collaborate with a factory possessing such esteemed credentials and history within the cigar industry. Tabaclera El Puente has been in operations over 10 years; but its history dates back over four generations. The factory is under the leadership of a dynamic trio; Eladio Santiago, Victor Infante, and Cesar Alvarez, all of whom began their careers as cigar rollers in the industry.“
Today we take a look at the Carolina Blue Limited Edition Solomon which is expressed in a (6 1/4 x 54) figurado that comes packaged in 20-count boxes carrying a MSRP of $12.00/cigar.
The Carolina Blue Limited Edition Solomon has a blend described by the company as:
Wrapper – San Andres
Binder – Olor Dominicano
Filler – Dominican (4 factory grown leaf of Ligero Viso and Seco)
Pre-Light Examination
The cigar is a nicely constructed figurado that is cloaked in a milk chocolate brown wrapper that showed a few blemishes and noticeable veins along with decent oily sheen. The cigar was packed solid with a firm feel from head to foot. The foot is rolled to a narrow tip and the cap is applied with a blunt point.
Two bands adorns the cigar. The primary band is a special die cut format and proudly displays the company’s logo using a black, gold, and powder blue motif. The secondary band is placed just below and uses the same motif declaring this as a “Limitada”.
Running the barrel along the nose, I picked up a pleasant baking spice aroma along with a touch of natural tobacco sweetness. With the figurado tip in play I can not talk about the aroma off the foot.
I sliced the cap on a 45 degree angle, like I do with a torpedo, belicoso, and other similarly shaped cigars. Once cut, I gave it some cold draw puffs, which I can not say much about restriction because of the narrow tip, but the flavors included notes of light pepper and earth.
With the pre-light examination out of the way, I reached for my single flame torch to ignite the tip of the cigar, which took to the flame well. I drew in the first puffs of cedary smoke. A pleasant start to the journey for sure. Follow along as I burn this one to ash.
Cigar Review Notes
- Deliciously rich cedar notes off the first puff
- Solid white ash begins to form
- Full volume of smoke once it burns past the tip
- Slightly pasty on the palate during the first inch
- Woody notes join the mix
- Sweet spicy aroma wafts off the foot
- Slightly jagged burn but never needs the flame again
- Aroma shifts to a pleasant fruit note
- Light spice notes form deep midway
- Cocoa and nut nuances enter near the end of the second third
- Aroma shifts once again to a floral sensation
- Citrus peel notes finish the journey in the final
- Medium in Strength
- Total Smoking Time was just a tad over 2 hours
Final Analysis
The Carolina Blue Limited Edition Solomon was an excellently constructed and fine burning figurado that I found to be a rather pleasant 2 hour plus smoking experience. Medium in complexity, it was very aromatic with shifting aromas throughout the burn and offered equally satisfying flavor that transitioned well from foot to nub. It had a solid core of palate pleasing cedar notes through the journey. The solid white ash just kept growing puff after puff, eventually falling beyond the midway point and then picked up again down to the nub. This certainly worth picking up a fiver of and I feel would be enjoyed by both new and experienced cigar enthusiasts alike. I rate this a 91.
Point Deductions: (-1) Flat Burn Cone; (-1) Mild Jag in the Burn; (-2) Slightly Pasty on the Palate in start
Bonus Points: (+1) Extreme Ash
