Espinosa Habano La Zona Toro
A long week of work and I decided to relax this evening with a Espinosa Habano La Zona cigar. These cigars were the first to be manufactured in Erik Espinosa’s new “La Zona” factory in Esteli, Nicaragua. The tribute to which is adorned with a label at the foot of the stick. Now of course we know it is made with Nicaraguan tobacco but the actual blend is not being revealed by Erik. I guess I am ok with that. Their site declares:
“The colonel will never reveal their 11 herbs and spices.”
One thing is for sure, this 6×52 Toro is a well constructed cigar no matter what’s inside. If you are gonna be the 1st stick from your new factory , you better look good and taste good! And Erik Espinosa knows that, he not only labeled the foot with La Zona but also designed a new and bright label for the barrel itself.
Examining the Habano La Zona, one will notice it wrapped in nice smooth deep chocolate brown Habano leaf. It is oily and waiting for me to light her up, especially after resting in my humidor for the past 2 weeks, after the long trip back from the dry arid heat of Las Vegas. Running it across the sniffer, I get hints of lightly burnt toast and a draw that offers notes of sweet hay.
I toss some fire on the foot and there is a taste of roasted almond with a toasty undertone. The La Zona Habano develops a nice white ash and the wrapper has an oily sheen to it. The smoke is creamy and coats the palate well.
The draw is perfect and the burn is just a tad wavy but quickly catches up. About an inch into the burn there is a touch of fruit as this it is turning out to be a very smooth smoke. The ash was tight but it did fall around an inch and half. Near the end of the first 3rd there was some light spice developing on my lips and tongue mixed in with those wonderful fruity notes. As I moved into the 2nd third, there was some black pepper developing that woke up my palate. I will note that the ash dropped about every inch and a half, so next time I will know better and wear my smoking jacket. I always try to tame the stick but the La Zona Habano was taming me here. I surrender and lean back and just enjoy the smoke.
The fruit and spice continued through most of the stick and it finished on the last 3rd with hints of cocoa that took me down to the nub.
I enjoyed the over one hour smoking experience of the La Zona Habano. This is a medium to full body cigar that carried with it a complex flavor profile that both the beginner or experienced smoker would enjoy. I paired this with a glass of ice water and some Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band on the turntable.
Espinosa Habano La Zona