Diamond Crown Julius Caeser

A lot of times when I mention Diamond Crown cigars, I seem to get mixed reactions: “Super Premium Cigar”,  “Too Expensive”,  “Not full enough for me”.  I’ve always found this line from J.C. Newman to be a very solid line.   When last year, Newman announced that the “Julius Caeser” was going to be added to this line, I was more than excited.   The question would be – how good would these cigars be?   It took me a while, but I was finally able to track down this cigar.   It might have taken me about six months since its release, but it was more than worth the wait.   This was one of the better cigars I’ve had in 2011.

First up, I did not misspell the name “Caeser”.  It is spelled “er”.   The cigar is technically named after “J.C. – aka Julius Caeser” Newman. – the founder of the J.C. Newman Cigar Company.   It is meant to commemorate the 135th birthday of Newman and the company’s 115th anniversary.   The cigars are made by Tabacalera A. Fuente in the Dominican Republic.  The Julius Caeser cigars are currently only available at select 55 Diamond Crown lounges right now.   This was why it took me a while to get one of these.

Let’s take a closer look and see why this is such a special cigar.

Blend Profile

The Newmans did not release a lot on this blend.   As I’ve written a lot on this web-site, I know that some folks look at that as a negative, but I think it creates some intrigue and excitement.   Remember according to some, curiosity killed the cat.

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Havana Seed
Binder: Central American Tobaccos
Filler: Central American Tobaccos

Vitolas Available

The Diamond Crown Julius Caeser is available in four vitolas:

Churchill: 7.25 x 52
Pyramid: 6.5 x 52
Robusto: 4.75 x 52
Toro 6 x 52

Preparation for the Cigar Experience

For this cigar experience, I selected the Toro.  I placed a straight cut through the beautiful cap and then began the pre-light ritual.   The dry draws gave me wood and coffee with a hint of pepper in the background.  It wasn’t a terribly exciting pre-light draw, but it wasn’t bad.   Therefore, it was on to toast the foot and begjn the smoking experience.

Flavor Profile

The cigar had a much of a woody taste upon the initial draws.  It didn’t take long for some sweetness to emerge on the Julius Caesar.  I have the sweetness as a cross between sugar cane and honey.  The sweetness is not overpowering, but it is just enough to give the cigar a good taste.   As the smoke progressed about 10 percent through, I noticed the sweetness was slightly morphing more into more of a citrus/lemon-like sweetness.   In addition, there were also some coffee and cream flavor notes present.

As the second third of the smoke started, I detected pepper notes that could best be described as a cross between red and white pepper.  Like the sweetness earlier on, it is not overpowering.  The citrus-sweetness and coffee notes were definitely in the secondary category.  The wood and cream notes had pretty much diminished.

As the smoking experience of the Julius Caeser enters the last third, another note soon came into the picture – this time flavors of nut.  The nut flavors can best be classified as almond in my book.   It is the almond, coffee, pepper, and citrus sweetness that are the notes that will be present until the end.   The nub was a little softer and warmer than I would have liked, but the finish was not harsh.

Burn and Draw

The burn on the Diamond Crown Julius Caeser was excellent, however this is one of these cigars that has a bit of loose draw.   I mention this because if you are one of these people (like I am at times) who tend to draw a cigar hard, you will get a hotter burn.  This is the type of cigar where you will want to take your time smoking this one.   This experience documents my second smoke of the Julius Caeser and I can tell you it makes a difference to slow down.  Plus if you slow down, you will really experience the complexity this cigar has to offer.

The ash was a beautiful white and gray.  There was some flaking, but nothing major.

Strength and Body

This is one of these cigars where there is something for everyone – namely novice and experienced cigar enthusiast.   The strength isn’t overpowering and neither is the body.  This clearly falls into the “Medium” category for both categories.

Final Thoughts

When I do my Cigar of the Year countdown, I usually consider cigars from Thanksgiving of the previous year to Thanksgiving of the current year I am counting down.  This allows me to use the month of December to countdown the cigars.  I mention this because I do feel this will be a factor in my end of the year countdown.  No doubt, I really enjoyed this cigar – it was my favorite of the Diamond Crown line.  It had a lot of complexity and great balance.   Yes it’s a little pricey (figuring depending on vitola and where you are taxed – about $13.00 to $18.00), but I’d recommend this to others and would love a box for my collection.

Summary

Burn: Excellent
Draw: Good
Complexity: High
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium
Assessment: Memorable