Blackened M81 Robusto

Purchased: 3 Singles

Price: $15.49 ea (yeah a bit pricey)

Store: West Coast Cigars

Buy again? Already have.

Box worthy? Yes.

I’m normally a little leery of celebrity collaboration cigars. For instance, the Knuckle Sandwich was good and even though it was chosen as one of the top cigars for CA, I don’t know if it was $20 good. Frankly though I thoroughly enjoyed it, I’d probably go to an AJ Fernandez cigar before I pick up another one of those. And I’d spend no more than half of the price for a great cigar.

But there’s something different about this Blackened M81. It just hits all the right notes for me. It’s nutty, it has a bit of burnt oak and cedar, there is a subtle sweetness to the smoke, and amazingly enough, there’s only a hint of creaminess. I love this cigar!

I first got three of these just to try them out and was blown away by the first one. But I reserved judgment until I smoked my second. And now I am on my third, and I decided to write about it. Also after I finish the second one, I bought five more at a Drew Estate event at West Coast cigars.

Yeah I probably paid 30 to 40% more than what I could get them online but the cigars were there. I also picked up 5 Undercrown Maduros, which is another cigar that has really blown me away.

I don’t know why I haven’t smoked more Drew Estate cigars up until recently. It’s probably because there are so many great cigars out there that I just haven’t gotten around to it. But now that I have finally had a few Drew Estate cigars, it looks like I’m going to have to explore the brand a lot more.

Circling back to the m81, this is a nicely complex cigar that switches flavor profile throughout the smoke. I’m an inch in as I write this and in addition to the flavors that I mentioned above, there’s now some black and white pepper spice that has entered the fray.

This cigar reminds me of smoking a really good Cuban cigar. There’s no particular flavor that stands out but there’s a lot there. The stick produces a lot of smoke but the strength is medium at best.

Starting the second third now some fruit and citrus have been added to the mix. Strength and body have also increased just a tad past medium. By the way, nicotine has been almost non-existent. The burn line on this one has been a little bit wonky. In the first third I had to make a fairly major correction as one side of the cigar wanted to burn a lot faster. But as I have gotten into the second third, the burn has been a little better. It’s still crooked but not that bad.

Did I mention that this cigar is packed? It is packed but just like a great Padron, the draw is easy. Don’t know how they achieve that but it’s pretty incredible.

Halfway in and I’m now getting hints of toasted nuts and marzipan. The finish is full of toasted cedar and a little earthiness that’s helping to ground the profile. Unfortunately the burn angled off again so I had to make another correction. But that’s the only issue I’ve had with this and frankly it’s not enough to make me give it negative marks because the taste of this cigar is so spectacular.

As I get into the final third, the spiciness picks up. It’s a little stronger this time than when it first presented itself, but as with any great cigar it is not overpowering. It’s just there.

As I’m now deep into the final third, I believe this is the sweet spot in the cigar. The smoke has become velvety and rich in texture. Strength is amazingly at just over medium. I still haven’t gotten any huge nicotine hit.

Interestingly enough, there’s now a kind of mineral finish, akin to the finish after chewing on some blood sausage. Some people might call this metallic, but I have always associated it with blood. It is a flavor that is either an acquired taste or, in my case, one that I grew up with eating traditional Filipino dishes that had pig blood in them. It’s a taste I actually enjoy.

Charred oak is now making itself known. And there’s the espresso! Dark chocolate shows up on the finish.  The burn has slowed down significantly, forcing me to slow down my puff rate. That’s a good thing because it is allowing me to savor all the flavors.

By no means is this been an in your face flavor bomb even though I have identified several notes. As I mentioned above, this smokes like a good Cuban cigar where there is a lot of flavor on offer but there’s nothing that is in your face. This is the kind of smoke that I appreciate.