Curivari Seleccion Privada Maduro

Purchased: 5 X Magnificos (6 X 60)
Price: $37.99
Store: CigarPlace.biz
Buy Again: Yes
Box Worthy: Yes
Experience Rating: 96

I must admit that I wasn’t too excited about this stick when I first smoked one. Compared to the Reserva Limitada, it seemed bland. But not one to dismiss a stick based on a single experience, I decided to let the rest of them sit for another month or so before smoking another. That did the trick. I smoked the first one about three weeks after receiving it, but it turns out that it needed a bit more rest. And that rest has completely transformed the cigar! And that excited me because I have yet another Curivari to fall in love with.

First of all, it’s just a beautiful cigar. It has smooth wrapper with small veins and barely visible seams. It’s hefty as well, packed with the tobacco, making the cigar very firm with no soft spots. Katman’s original review on this called it “rustic” at the time, but it’s so much more refined than ten years ago.

At light up, I was greeted with a classic Nicaraguan burst of black pepper and wood. Then coffee, cedar, and a touch of baking spices came into play with what I can only describe as a sensation of “meatiness.”

As I get deeper into the first third, there’s a constant red pepper spice on the tip of my tongue, but it’s gentle, just letting me know it’s there. The smoke has taken on a luxurious cream consistency. I’ve been waiting for cacao to show up and it finally did. The coffee has become more espresso-like. There are lots of subtle flavors like marzipan, toasted nuts, chrysanthemum tea, toast, and burnt sugar, but nothing distinct. That’s cool because it’s all about a shifting palate of flavors right now. Strength is a solid medium with nary hint of nicotine.

It has taken me a little over thirty minutes to get through the first third. This is a slow burner for sure! I’m smoking outside and there’s an occasional light breeze so the burn line has been a little wavy. It has only misbehaved once, requiring a quick correction, but since then it has been reasonably straight.

As I get into the second third, while the background transitions are still occuring, coffee, nuts and cream have seemed to form the foundation. The spice is still there, but much more subtle, moving back to the rear of my mouth. To be honest, I’m loving the nutty quality right now. It goes from roasted cashews to hazelnuts to almonds. I mentioned marzipan earlier. That sneaks its way into the smoke on occasion. Imagine those on a bed of espresso and cacao beans. That’s my experience right now.

I get to the halfway point fifty-five minutes in. I’m a little surprised that the burn sped up a bit. And no, I’m not smoking it too fast as the cherry is nice and even. I think it could be because of the light breeze. But I also had to make another slight correction so that speeds things up a bit.

As I hit the second half, everything comes together. Smoke production has picked up. The red pepper spice has shown up again and moved back to the front of my mouth (my lips have a slight tingle that I’m loving). Espresso and cream are the predominant flavors with that gorgeous nutty element on the finish. Mind you, this happened fast. It’s as if the cigar drew me in with the first half to show me different possibilities. Once I hit the second half, the cigar revealed itself, ripping off its covers to reveal what was being concealed. And what has been concealed is truly delicious.

As I hit the final third, spice becomes king. It is a distinct red pepper spice akin to hot paprika with a similar dryness. The smoke is thick and creamy and redolent with espresso and dark, roasted cacao bean. There is no sweetness. Strength is close to full body now. But despite that, there’s not much nicotine.

I’m loving the spice. It’s all over my tongue right now. And the coffee has gone from strong black coffee to cappuccino, creamy, but not as creamy as a latte. The amount of smoke the cigar is producing right now is amazing. It’s super thick and white. Strength is full now and not one bit harsh. There are no more transitions. What I’m getting is everything at once. That could be overwhelming, but the onslaught of flavors is balanced by the creamy finish.

BTW, total smoking time is just short of two hours!

UPDATE: Almost 6 months have passed since I smoked the cigar I reviewed. It’s even better with notes of molasses, burnt sugar, and malted milk balls. Pretty amazing. And yet I now feel that these should be aged at least a year from receipt. I purchased a box soon after this review and they will sit for several more months before I smoke any.

I’m usually not into Gordo vitola cigars, but there are some exceptions such as this or the Perdomo Bourbon Barrel Aged Maduro. That said, I’ll soon be getting a box of these and the Eminentes (5.5 X 52) pretty soon. And truth be told, since these are no longer in production, I’m going to have to stock up.

As an aside, Curivari is an enigma in the cigar industry. They don’t seem to do any marketing. Their website has never changed. They apparently don’t have any reps. They’ve somehow survived purely on word-of-mouth advertising. It’s good because it keeps their overhead low and they can sell their products at much lower prices than their competition.

Paul Stulac operates this way. But at least with Paul Stulac, he keeps his website reasonable current, so you know what he has to offer. Contrast that with Curivari. The only way to find out about their different lines is through word-of-mouth or perusing the stock of online retailers. And even then, I feel as if I don’t have the full picture of what they have on offer. Admittedly, it’s a bit frustrating because I love their cigars so much.

Take, for instance, the Seleccion Privada and Reserva Limitada Cafe Noir lines. Yes, I can find them online, but from what I understand, they’re no longer in production. I found that out from Reddit thread! That bummed me out because those two cigars are on top of my favorites list. Luckily, plenty of retailers still carry them, but once they’re gone, they’re gone. Oh well, I know it’s a first world problem… But I do wish Curivari did a bit more to make themselves known.