The Last Barbarian is the latest creation from Sinistro Cigars. Originally introduced to a limited audience back in the summer of 2021, the cigar had its national debut at the 2022 Premium Cigar Association (PCA) trade show in summer of 2022. Like the company’s Last Cowboy release in 2018, the Last Barbarian pays tribute to historical figures that shaped human history and the future.
The company describes the blend of the Last Barbarian as:
- Wrapper – Dominican maduro
- Binder – African Cameroon
- Filler – Dominican medio tiempo, Nicaragua and Pennsylvania (ligero), Nicaraguan (seco)
The Last Barbarian is expressed in 2 vitolas, each packaged in 20-count boxes:
- Robusto (5 x 52) – MSRP $10.00
- Toro (6 x 54) – MSRP $12.00
Tabacalera El Artista in the Dominican Republic is the factory of choice for this a and a number of other Sinistro Cigar products. For this review I sampled 2 of these cigars, one was the limited 2021 release and the other was the official 2022 production release, both of which I received from the company for the purpose for reviewing on Stogie Press.
Pre-Light Examination
The Sinistro Cigars – The Last Barbarian is cloaked in a dark brown and marbled wrapper that exhibits some veins throughout the leaf. The cigar feels firmly packed from head to foot. A triple cap finishes the presentation.
A single light grey marble and black band adorns the cigar that boldly displays the blends logo – The Last Barbarian. The center has an image of sword and axe wielding barbarian. The left and right sides of the band display the Sinistro Cigars logo.
Running the Last Barbarian along the nose, I noted rich floral notes along the barrel and off the foot. There is also a hint of earth in the background.
I opened the cap perfectly with my CigarMedics Baller cutter and proceeded to give it some cold draw puffs that graced the palate with notes of buttery toast and pepper. The more you cold puff the more pepper you note. The draw was just on the tighter side of the restriction scale.
Using my single flame torch I warmed the foot to an even orange glow and drew in the first peppery sensation of the journey. Follow along a I burn this barbarian to ash!
Cigar Review Notes
- Initial light is peppery especially on retro hale with a slight hint of leather
- Floral notes quickly join the mix
- Smoke output is fine
- Tangy notes add to the early profile
- Ash is a bit flaky
- A light grey ash forms on top of a wavy thick char line
- Butter cracker notes appear- moving into the second third
- Earthy notes with a touch of cream to balance it out
- Ash fell revealing a flat but centered burn cone
- Spice notes build up midway
- An off burn developed but I left it be and the burn gracefully recovered with no touch up
- Continued leather notes with an added charred oak takes it down to the final
- Medium In Strength
- Total Smoking Time was 1 hour and 30 Minutes
Final Analysis
I found the Sinistro Cigars – The Last Barbarian to be quite an interesting cigar with its rich floral notes in both in the pre-light and burn. Though not overly complex it had pleasant transitions that were well balanced through the journey. I especially enjoyed the butter cracker notes in the second third and the leather an charred oak notes in the final. The construction did exhibited a wonky burn, especially ner midway when it developed an off burn that would normally require an touchup, but in this case, the burn eventually found its way and with out having to hit the flame to the cigar and then eventually carrying a long ash. This worth grabbing a fiver of and check out the experience. I rate this a 92.
Point Deductions: (-1) Wavy Burn; (-1) Off Burn but did not require a touch up; (-1) Flat Burn Cone; (-1) Flaky Ash
Bonus Points: (+1) Long ash down to end; (+1) Well Balanced
