My Father Cigars, acquired the famed Fonseca brand from the Quesada cigar family in 2019. Once acquired, My Father Cigars made the decision to revamp the blend along with the branding of Fonseca for a 2020 release. The brand itself, is over 100 years old, originally founded by Don Francisco Fonseca in the 1890’s in Cuba. The new Fonseca blend, by My Father Cigars will be a Nicaraguan puro that will be uniquely different from the previous Quesada blend, which was constructed of leaf from the Dominican Republic, Mexico, and the US.
The company describes the blend as 100% Nicaraguan leaf all grown on Garcia family farms:
- Wrapper -Shade-Grown Nicaraguan Corojo ’99
- Binder – Nicaraguan
- Filler -Nicaraguan
The My Father Fonseca is expressed in six vitolas and and come packaged in 20-count boxes. The Cosacos vitola will also be packaged in 5-count tins and will be covered with tissue paper as were the original Cuban Fonsecas. The company also notes that the Cedros vitola will be covered in cedar.
- Belicosos (5 1/2 x 54) – MSRP $10.60
- Cosacos (5 3/8 x 42) – MSRP $7.75 (5-count tin MSRP $39.00)
- Petit Corona (4 1/4 x 40) – MSRP $7.00
- Robusto (5 1/4 x 52) – MSRP $9.50
- Toro Gordo (6 x 55) – MSRP $11.20
- Cedros (6 1/4 x 52) – MSRP $11.00
I purchased five of the My Father Fonseca robustos and sampled two for this review.
Pre-Light Examination
The My Father Fonseca is a silky smooth, dark tan cigar, that has some noticeable veins running through the barrel. The cigar is solid to the touch with no noticeable soft spots. A well applied cap finishes the presentation.
Two bands adorn the cigar. The primary band is classic My Father Cigars, using an ornate design. The Fonseca Logo is proudly displayed in the center of the band. The black words “MY FATHER” are printed below on a pink background. The bottom of the band declares this as a “FONSECA” using gold leaf on a pink background. Each side of the band has an image of Don Francisco Fonseca printed in an aqua blue background. The band is simply gorgeous with a lot to tell. There is also a gold footer band.
Running the My Father Cigars Fonseca across the nose, I detected a baking spice like aroma along the barrel and a nutty foot.
I proceeded to slice the cap straight across the shoulder of the cigar with my double blade Xikar cutter and took a few cold draw puffs that told me it was nicely restricted and offered enticing pre-light notes of butter, nut, and cinnamon spice. With such a pleasant pre-light, I gave it some more cold draws treating my palate to flavors.
It was time to fire it up and burn this one to ash. I could have cold puffed this even longer but I need to get to the rest of the review. So follow along as I warm the foot with my double flame torch lighter and draw in the first puffs of a developing dark chocolate nuance behind a cinnamon spice burn.
Cigar Review Notes
- Initial light brings a developing dark chocolate and medium cinnamon spice set of notes
- Full volume of thick creamy smoke fills the palate
- A light grey ash forms on a thin and slightly wavy char line
- Malt notes along with a natural sweetness enter to continue intriguing the taste buds
- Cedar notes enter at the start of the second third
- Ash fell beyond the first third, revealing a decent and centered burn cone
- Slight off burn develops after the ash fell and the ash is getting a tad flaky
- Dry cocoa powder nuances along with a light cinnamon back note enter
- Sweetness develops moving through the second third
- Leather and mild spice take control in the final third down to the nub
- Medium to Full in strength
- Total Smoking Time was 1 hour and 30 minutes
Overall, I don’t recall smoking the Quesada Fonseca, but the My Father Cigars revamp was a pleasurable and flavorful cigar from foot to nub. The medium to full strength cigar started with a developing dark chocolate and cinnamon sensation. The flavors continued to evolve and transition in a well balanced 90 minute journey. It did have a slight off burn, after the ash fell, and the ash got a tad flaky in the second half. This is worth picking up a box and maybe let some rest and see how they age. I rate this a 93.
Point Deductions: (-1) Slight Off Burn; (-1) Flaky Ash in Second half
Bonus Points: (+1) Buy a Box
