Humo Jaguar – by Miami Cigars

At the 2011 IPCPR trade show, all I kept hearing about was the large amount of Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper cigars – and yes this is true.  What I did not hear much about was what I consider a renaissance in Honduran tobacco.   Honduras has been growing and exporting tobacco in premium cigars for many years.  In fact, it has been used in a lot of high quality cigars.  However, in the past few years, Nicaraguan tobacco has really become the rage in the tobacco industry and with good reason – namely it makes for some great cigars.  In my opinion, I believe the Nicaraguan surge in tobacco has probably been at Honduras’ expense.  However, this year (and especially at IPCPR), I’ve seen a lot of cigars bringing back Honduran tobacco – and its resulting in some of the top cigars of the year.  This brings us to Miami Cigars’ Humo Jaguar – an all Honduran puro.   In a lot ways, this cigar showcases the renaissance in Honduran tobacco and why it is still viable for some great cigars.

The Humo Jaguar cigar derives its name from the cigar festival in Honduras that bears the same name.   Each year various cigar makers enter a best in show competition.  It turns out that a blend by Nestor Plasencia won the 2011 competition and as a result this blend is now being distributed by Miami Cigars.

Let’s take a look and see what makes this cigar worthy of winning such a competition.

Blend Profile

As mentioned, this is an all-Honduran puro.  Here are some more specifics.

Wrapper: Honduran Oscuro (Viso Priming)
Binder: Talanga (Honduran)
Filler: Honduran Cuban-Seed

Vitolas Available

At the time of this assessment, the Humo Jaguar is available in three vitolas.

Robusto: 5 x 52
Corona Gorda: 6 x 52
Gigante: 6 x 60

Preparation for the Cigar Experience

For this cigar experience, I selected the Robusto vitola.   I went for my usual straight cut into the cap and then proceeded with the pre-light draw.  The initial flavors were a nice mix of cocoa and pepper.  It wasn’t an overly complex dry draw, but satisfactory in my book.   It was now time to fire the Humo Jaguar up and see what it would bring to the table.

Flavor Profile

The initial draws of the Humo Jaguar brought about notes of pepper, leather, and cocoa.  Early on, the pepper was more prevalent through the nostrils.  The pepper was more noticeable on the tongue on the after-draw.  Shortly after, I picked up a nice mix of oak with touches of hickory and mesquite.  At the same time the cocoa notes transitioned to more of a classic coffee flavor.  By the ten percent point of the smoke, the hickory subsided and the coffee and leather were the primary notes. The oak and pepper provided a complementary flavor.  This flavor profile would hold through most of the first half of the cigar.

The second half of the Humo Jaguar saw the pepper become more of a primary note.  In fact, the second half of this cigar experience provided a nice dose of spice.  The oak notes held in the background and at times I could detect that touch of hickory/mesquite resurface.   The finish was a little rough, but not harsh.  The nub provided was firm and cool.

Burn and Draw

I would expect a competition winning cigar to have high scores in this area – even after it has been sent to a company for distribution.  No issues with the Humo Jaguar here.   The burn was excellent – requiring minimal touch-ups and burning at an ideal rate and ideal temperature.  The draw was flawless – making the Humo Jaguar a joy to smoke.

Burn of the Humo Jaguar

Strength and Body

When I was at IPCPR, I had heard this was going to be a cigar on the full strength and full-bodied side.  For the most part, I believe this was the case with the Humo Jaguar.  It definitely falls into the full strength end from a nicotine profile standpoint.  As for the body, the flavor notes definitely have some depth to them.  I felt for the majority of the smoke, the Humo Jaguar was still on the upper-end of the medium to full range of the spectrum for body.  By the last third, the Humo Jaguar did cross into full-bodied territoty.

Final Thoughts

Overall, the Humo Jaguar was a very good smoking experience.  It brought a lot of those classic old school flavor notes.  It wasn’t the most complex cigar, but it did deliver an experience worthy enough to be assessed “memorable” in my book.  I would still hesitate on giving this cigar to a novice cigar enthusiast unless they can handle a fuller cigar in terms of strength and body.   In terms of experienced cigar enthusiasts, I even think those who love Dominican and Nicaraguan smokes will really like what this Honduran puro brings to the table.  This cigar would be one I’d smoke again and even  buy a box. 

Summary

Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Low
Strength: Full
Body: Medium to Full (Full in last third)
Assessment: Memorable

Source: The cigar for this assessment was purchased from Outland Cigars in Charlotte, North Carolina.