Information:
Country: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Ecuador
Filler / Binder: Special Blend / Indonesia
Length: 6”
Ring: 58
Cost: ???
Background: Garo Cigars has made the move away from
their original branding to something more modern in an effort to create a
powerful brand image. Their original lines that we sampled here at The Cigar
Broskies were the Garo Double Habano and the Garo Habano Vintage. Both were stand up smoked for a bargain
price.
However they wanted to
go in a new, bolder direction. So they moved out of the shared space they were
using within another factory, got their own place, and elevated Dr. Garo’s son
and daughter as the leaders / face of the company going forward. This transformation
brings in a new, fresh feel to the brand but it also allows them to have more
control over their product offerings. Their social media presence has increased
via twitter, Instagram, facebook, and Pinterest. They have even revamped their own website.
In the end it gives
Garo Cigars a new identity and a new outlook. We expect big, bold things from
the rebranded Garo Cigars.
Appearance
(0-20):
Lyricsninja: A nice, richly colored maduro wrapper
greets you on this stick. Its silky exterior shows some great quality, with
nice even coloration. Along the band was a small noticeable imperfection of
note. The banding, as pointed out in the background section, is completely
revamped to give a new image to Garo Cigars. While it may not be one I would
immediately gravitate toward, it’s simple and sophisticated enough that it can
provide a backbone to the future offerings and won’t turn off perspective
buyers. This one is black banded with the silver embossed logo, surrounded by
the fleur-de-lis. Score: 17/20
Kollarism: If you’ve had a Garo
before, then you will notice the new band and branding that is associated with
their current line. While there is
nothing flashy about the branding or cigar appearance, you will note the
different direction that they are moving in.
The cigar itself is a dark brown color, with some a few large veins in
the wrapper. Personal preference, I
would have liked to see a more elaborate band to grab someone’s attention. Score: 16/20
Construction (0-20):
Lyricsninja: Obviously the small imperfection along the
band takes a hit in the construction area, but thankfully it didn’t have an
adverse effect on the smoking experience overall. It has a double cap that
looks good, no excess debris on the cut, and only some small veins throughout.
The one note I do want to make is my stick wasn’t tightly packed at a few
points, and it was noticeable when giving a light squeeze to the cigar. It had
no effect on the draw, which was perfect, but the ash at times was inconsistent
when pertaining to how long it would hold on. Score: 17/20
Kollarism: Aside from
the initial looks of the smoke, the rest of the cigar was overall pretty darn
good. While the wrapper had some veins
in it, they played no role in how the cigar burned. Actually, the burn was as close as you can
get to perfect. The burn line stayed
straight the whole time, the ash coiled tightly and didn’t fall off until I
tapped it off, and the draw was right on point.
Very good indeed. Score: 19/20
Strength (0-20):
Lyricsninja: Most information on this cigar points to it
being in the medium range, and that’s primarily where it sits. At its peak, you
will see a slight poke into the full realm, but for the most part it sticks
down the middle. It really works well when balanced with the flavors. Score: 18/20
Kollarism: This one
probably sat right in the medium med-full range, depending on your
tolerance. There was some heft, but this
smoke was more about the flavors than the power. Score: 17/20
Flavor (0-20):
Lyricsninja: Honest disclosure, the tobacco, when smelled
before lighting, smelled a little young. It didn’t hurt the flavors, though I
imagine some aging might help to enhance them even further. Upon sparking it
up, there is a blast of pepper that remains for about the first half inch and
fades quickly into a slightly bitter coffee flavor. The coffee becomes slightly
sweeter and takes on a hazelnut profile, keeping a bit of spice on the
retrohale. The majority of the stick keeps the same coffee-esque backbone, but
there are slight nuances of leather, chocolate, a little creaminess, and
eventually a more pronounced bitter element. Everything works well in unison
and transitions without issue. Score:
18/20
Kollarism: My initial
reaction to the cigar was, “is that pepper oil?” I’m not sure if the cap of the cigar was
cured with pepper oils similar to how the Cu-Avana Punisher is, but it was
quite spicy on the tongue even before lighting the cigar. The spice stuck around for the first ½ inch
or so, and then subsided into a bitter chocolate flavor, complimented with
nuts. As the cigar progresses, the
flavors mellow out with a bit, and add in a leathery element. The final third really ramped back up into
the chocolate flavors, and was quite good. Score:
17/20
Value (0-20):
Lyricsninja: Its tough when you don’t have the pricing to
give a fair review of the value, but I can confidently say if this fell in the
$6-10 range, it would be something I would pick up on occasion. It’s a decently
big stick at 6x58 and can contend well with others at that pricepoint. Given that
our guess on the pricing is right… Score:
17/20
Kollarism: This one
is tough to judge, as I have not seen pricing on it. I would probably place this in the $6-8 range
for a strong value. $8-10 would be something that I might pick up, and anything
over that would be hard to justify due to the sheer amount of quality smokes at
the price point. Scoring is based off of
$6-8. Score: 17/20
Additional
Notes: Smoked at Cigars
International.
Overall (0-100):
Lyricsninja: The new look is sophisticated and sleek and it gives a nice
starting point for Garo Cigars. Where there was a minor construction issue or
two, the flavors worked well enough to make up for it. The core bitter coffee
flavor works well with the hint of nuts that you get when smoking it and is
well balanced with the cream, spice, pepper, leather, and chocolate. The only
real variance we have is the value question, which could shift the review up or
down a few points. It’s a solid buy regardless though, and worth a try. Score: 87/100
Kollarism: Overall, I
think this is a very good start for Garo with their new direction. The cigar was very well put together, flavors
were there, and there were no glaring problems.
Again this is personal opinion, but I wish we had something a little
flashier for the new branding. I’m not
one to pick up a smoke only because of the looks, but I do believe it is
subconsciously a factor with novice and veteran smokers. Score: 86/100
Combined
Score: 87/100
The final word: Garo has worked to
revamp their image into something much more powerful and this stick is a move
in the right direction. The flavors are solid, construction and strength are on
the money, and the new marketing is there. We look forward to giving the Garo
Adamas a whirl for next week’s review, and can’t wait to see what other smokes Garo
Cigars has in store for us.
Construction (0-20): There was a slight oily sheen to the outside. Feeling along the stick, there were no spots that lacked or had excessive tobacco. The cap is night and tight and the initial cut revealed very little debris. Airflow was nearly perfect, though I would consider it slightly tight on the draw. After smoking it for a bit, the airflow opened up that slight bit that it was lacking and was virtually prefect. The same can’t be said of the ash, which did not keep consistent lines. Still, the ash itself did hold on for nearly two inches each time, so the overall packing and rolling of the cigar was on point.
