At the 2012 IPCPR Trade Show in Orlando, Florida, PDR Cigars launched a new line of cigars known as the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada. The line gets its name from PDR Cigars owner Abraham Flores with 1975 representing the year he was born. The A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada is an all-box-pressed offered that was launched in two blends – Capa Habano (Habano Ecuador wrapper blend) and Capa Maduro (Habano Ecuador Maduro blend). Recently, I’ve had an opporunity to smoke the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Capa Maduro in the SP52 (Robusto) size. Overall I found this to be an excellent cigar and one of the more underrated blends in the PDR Cigars portfolio.

In terms of the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada line, this has been a line that garnered PDR Cigars quite a bit of commercial acclaim. Back in 2014, the A. Flores Serie Privada Capa Habano was rated as Cigar Aficionado’s #10 Cigar of the Year. As a result, the Capa Maduro line has flown a little more under the radar because of the notoriety the Capa Habano had with the rating.

Without further ado, let’s take a closer look at the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Capa Maduro SP52 and see what this cigar brings to the table.

Blend Profile

In addition to the Habano Ecuador wrapper, the remainder of the blend incorporates Nicaraguan and Dominican tobaccos. The cigars are made at Flores’ PDR Cigars factory in Tamboril, Dominican Republic.

Wrapper: Habano Ecuador Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan Habano
Filler: Nicaraguan Habano and Dominican Corojo
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic (PDR Cigars Factory)

Vitolas Available

For both the Capa Maduro and Capa Habano versions of the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada line, each is available in the following three box-pressed sizes rolled entubado style. The cigars are available in 24 count boxes.

SP52: 5 x 52
SP54: 6 x 54
SP58: 7 x 58

Appearance

The Habano Maduro wrapper of the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Capa Maduro SP52 has a dark roasted coffee bean color to it. Upon closer examination, some darker marbling can be seen on the surface. There is also some oil visible on the surface. While there are some visible wrapper seams, any visible veins were not the thin side.

There are two bands on the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Capa Maduro. The primary band has a blue design with all the font in gold. At the center of the band are two concentric ovals. In the middle of those two ovals is the text “1975”. Above those concentric ovals is an ovular wedge with the text “A.FLORES” arranged in a curved font.  Below concentric ovals is an ovular wedge with the text “SERIE PRIVADA” – also arranged in a curved font. Toward the top of the band is the text “FABRICA PDR CIGARS”. Toward the lower part of the band is the text “REPUBLICA DOMINICANA”. On the left and right side of the ovular design is a white background with gold pinstripes.  There are three gold medallions sitting on that pinstripe background on each side of the band. The band is finished with gold and blue trim. On the far left is a white rectangle with the PDR star logo and the text “PDR CIGARS” in dark font arranged in landscape mode. On the far right is a small blue PDR star surrounded by gold circular design.

The secondary band sits just below the primary band and is mostly blue in color. On the center of the band is gold nameplate-like design surrounded by a gold pinstripe on each side. On that nameplate is the text “CAPA MADURO” in blue font. Just below the name play is the text “EDICION ESPECIAL” in gold font. The lower part of the band has a thick gold foil design.

Preparation for the Cigar Experience

Prior to lighting up the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Capa Maduro SP52, I went with my usual choice of a straight cut. Once I successfully clipped the cap, I moved on to the pre-light draw. The cold draw produced a mix of coffee and earth. There was also a slight woody note and a touch of natural tobacco sweetness. Overall I considered this to be satisfactory pre-light draw. At this point, I was ready to light up the Capa Maduro SP52 and await what the smoking has would have in store.

Flavor Profile

The A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Capa Maduro SP52 started off with notes of coffee, generic wood, white, pepper and a slight blackberry note. As the Capa Maduro SP52 moved through the early stages I found the coffee and blackberry notes became primary early on. Meanwhile wood and pepper notes became secondary. On the retro-hale, I picked up a black pepper note (which differed from the white pepper I got on the tongue).

Throughout the first third of the Capa Maduro SP52, the coffee and blackberry notes alternated in intensity as to what was the primary note. By the second third, the blackberry joined the pepper and wood notes in the background and the coffee became the sole primary note.

By the latter part of the second third, the spice of the Capa Maduro SP52 increased. I noticed as the spice increased it had more of a cedar component as opposed to the white pepper. By the last third, this cedar was on-par with the coffee notes. There was still some pepper and blackberry in the background. This was the way the smoking experience of the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Capa Maduro SP52 came to a close.  The resulting nub was cool in temperature and firm to the touch.

Burn and Draw

The burn scored quite well on the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Capa Maduro SP52. The burn path remained straight from start to finish. The actual burn line was on the sharp side for most of the smoking experience. The ash was not overly tight, but it was not a loose flakey ash either. The combustion was excellent as I found the Capa Maduro SP52 had an ideal burn rate and ideal burn temperature.

I found the draw perform quite well. While this was more of an open draw, I wouldn’t call it a loose draw. One thing I also found is that the Capa Maduro SP52 had a nice level of smoke production throughout the smoking experience.

Strength and Body

From a strength perspective, I didn’t find the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Capa Maduro SP52 to be a powerhouse. I assessed the Capa Maduro S52 as being on the upper end of medium strength. On the hand, when the retro-hale was factored in, I found flavors of the Capa Maduro SP52 to be skewed toward full-bodied. In terms of strength versus body, I found the body had the edge throughout the smoking experience.

Final Thoughts

Sometimes with full-bodied smokes I find them to be either too heavy on both the sweetness and /or the spice. In this case, the A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Capa Maduro SP52 is going to strike a nice balance between those components without going overboard on either – and I like that. I’ve also found the 5 x 52 box-pressed robusto to be an excellent representation for this blend.

As mentioned up front while the Capa Habano blend garnered a lot of attention, the Capa Maduro should not be overlooked. This is a cigar I’d recommend to an experienced cigar enthusiast. It’s also a nice cigar for a novice to “graduate” to something on the fuller side. As for myself, this was an enjoyable smoke. It’s one I would smoke again, and it’s one worthy of a box purchase.

Summary

Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Medium
Body: Full
Finish: Excellent
Assessment: 4.0-Box Worthy
Score: 91

References

News: PDR Cigars Announces Release of the A. Flores Serie Privada
Price: $9.75
Source: Cigars Provided by Manufacturer *
Stogie Geeks Podcast: Episode 170, Episode 173
Stogie Feed: A. Flores 1975 Serie Privada Maduro SP52 by PDR Cigars (2015), A. Flores Serie Privada Capa Maduro SP52 by PDR Cigars (2015)

* PDR Cigars is a sponsor of Cigar Coop and Stogie Geeks