“You with your switchblade posse /
Iʼll get my guns from the South /
Weʼll take to the yard like a cockfight /
Four kicks whoʼs strutting now?”– Four Kicks (Kings of Leon)
Jon Huber, Crowned Heads Co-Founder, noted that – “These are the words that were the inspiration behind Crowned Headsʼ first cigar brand release, ‘Four Kicks.'”
That was back in 2010 -2011 when Crowned Heads was founded and the Four Kicks was the first cigar in the new company’s portfolio. Now a decade later, Four Kicks continues to be an evolutionary cigar blend for the company. Over the years, the company also released various Limited Edition “Mule Kick” blends for the line.
The year 2020 brought yet another new blend for the Four Kicks. Actually, it is an old blend that Crowned Heads and Ernesto Perez-Carrillo had created for the original Four Kicks. The tasting team decided it was not the one they were going forward with, it was however, the blend that Ernesto thought should have been the inaugural blend. So here we are a decade later, and we now get to taste what Ernesto tasted.
The blend for the Four Kicks Capa Especial is described as:
- Wrapper – Ecuadorian Sumatra
- Binder– Nicaraguan
- Filler – Dominican and Nicaraguan
The Four Kicks Capa Especial is expressed in three vitolas and comes packaged in 24-count boxes:
- Corona Gorda (5.6 x46) MSRP $8.65
- Robusto (5 x50) MSRP $9.35
- Sublime (Toro) (6 x54) $9.95
For this review, I sampled three samples of the Four Kicks Capa Especial Sublime, which I purchased as part of the Stogie Press mission to Keep The Lights On.
Pre-Light Examination
The Four Kicks Capa Especial is a dark brown cigar that has some significant veins that run through the barrel. The wrapper has some marbling in the color and a bit of an oily sheen. Running my finger along the barrel I noticed a mild tooth on the wrapper leaf and with a gentle squeeze I felt the firmness of the packing. The cigar is finished with a triple cap.
Two bands adorn the cigar. The primary band uses the standard Four Kicks gold logo but this time it is printed on a bright blue background that pops out on the dark background of the cigar. A secondary footer band declares this as a Crowned Heads product using the company’s black logo on a gold background.
Running the barrel along the nose, I was greeted with a fragrant baking spice note while the foot exuded enticing notes of mild cocoa and nut.
I sliced the cap straight with my double blade Xikar cutter and proceeded to give the cigar a few cold draw puffs, I found the restriction to be just fine and my flavor sensors detected bright raisin and pepper notes. I rolled it about some more and enjoyed the pre-light sensation.
It was finally time to warm the foot and start the journey. I used my triple flame torch to bring the foot to an nice orange glow and drew in the first peppery puffs of smoke. Follow along as I burn the Four Kicks Capa Especial to ash.
Cigar Review Notes
- First light hits with pepper on the nose
- Cinnamon and sweetness develops on the tongue
- Light grey ash forms on thick wavy char line
- Sweet cream aroma wafts off the foot
- Ash fell in a decent chunk revealing a slightly off centered ash cone
- Spice and cream notes grace the palate moving into the second third
- Coffee notes fill in for a delightful mix with the cream
- The sweetness lays gently on the background
- A hint of floral joins the profile deep in the second third
- A tasty nut adds to the pleasure as the spice increases moving through the final
- Medium in Strength
- Total Smoking Time was 1 hour and 40 minutes
Final Analysis
The Crowned Heads – Four Kicks Capa Especial Sublime – was a moderately complex and enjoyable cigar that offered a shifting array of flavors and aromas. Balanced in its approach, it had a decent core of sweetness, which I expected from the Sumatra wrapper along with a undertone of spice to keep the palate interested from foot to nub. Construction wise, it was quite decent, with just a mild wave in the burn and slight off centered burn cone once the ash dropped. This is one I would certainly buy another 5 pack of and even look to add some of the other vitolas in the line to my collection. I rate this a 93.
Point Deductions: (-1) Wavy Burn; (-1) Off Centered Burn cone
Bonus Points: (+1) Complex and Balanced
