 |
| JFR Junior Corojo by Casa Fernandez |
Earlier this month, Casa Fernandez announced plans for a line extension to its JFR line of cigars. This would come in the form of a 4 1/2 x 46 vitola known as the JFR Junior. The JFR line consists of two blends, the JFR Corojo and the JFR Maduro. The JFR Junior becomes the smallest frontmark to both of these blends. Today we take a closer look at the JFR Junior Corojo. Overall I found this to be a solid addition to the JFR Corojo line.
The JFR line stands for “Just for Retailers” and currently requires prior approval by Casa Fernandez to carry that cigar. For the most part this has been positioned toward brick and mortar retailers. It is intended to be a value-priced premium cigar. The JFR Junior Corojo comes in at an SRP of $4.20.
Without further ado, let’s take a closer look at the JFR Junior Corojo and see what this cigar brings to the table. For this assessment, we smoked some pre-release samples of the JFR Junior Corojo. Since these were pre-release samples, we default to our pre-review format to share our thoughts and perspectives. Once we sample some cigars that hit the retailers, we will revisit this cigar and provide an assessment rating and score.
Blend Profile
This is a Nicaraguan puro featuring Casa Fernandez’s Aganorsa farm tobacco:
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Corojo 1999 (Aganorsa)
Binder: Nicaragua (Aganorsa)
Filler: Nicaragua (Aganorsa)
Vitolas Available
The JFR Corojo and Maduro lines are both sold in the following sizes:
JFR Junior: 4 1/2 x 46
Robusto: 5 1/2 x 50
Piramide: 6 1/4 x 52
Super Toro: 6 1/2 x 52
Titan: 6 x 60
770LE: 7 x 70
Appearance
The JFR Junior Corojo has a medium brown wrapper that is almost dark caramel in color. There is a slight amount of oil on the surface of the wrapper. There are some visible veins on the wrapper, but the wrapper seams are well hidden.
The sample we smoked did not have a final band on it. The band on this cigar was a pre-release paper band.
Preparation for the Cigar Experience
Prior to lighting up my JFR Corojo, I went with my usual selection of a straight cut to start things off. After removing the cap, I proceeded with the pre-light draw. The dry draw provided a mix of earth with a slight amount of pepper and citrus. Overall, I considered the pre-light draw of the JFR Junior Corojo to be satisfactory. At this point, I was ready to light up this cigar and see what the smoking phase would deliver.
Flavor Profile
The JFR Junior Corojo started out with a blast of black pepper. In the background, a natural tobacco sweetness emerged. This natural tobacco sweetness is something that I would consider common to many corojo blends. Shortly after that some bread notes also emerged in the background. As for the retro-hale, I was definitely able to detect the pepper through the retro-hale.
By the five percent mark the pepper settled down and was on the par with the corojo sweetness. The bread notes also took on more of a creamy feel. As the JFR Junior Corojo moved through the first half, the bread and cream notes moved into the forefront. The corojo sweetness and pepper were close behind.
In the second half, I saw an increase in the pepper spice. The creamy and bread components remained. The sweetness diminished somewhat. This is the way the flavor profile held until the end. The JFR Junior Corojo remained flavorful until the end and displayed no harshness. The resulting nub was firm to the touch and cool in temperature.
Burn and Draw
Overall I found the JFR Junior Corojo to be a well-constructed cigar and this was reflected in both the burn and draw. The burn line remained relatively straight during the cigar experience. It required a few touch-ups, but nothing I would consider out of the ordinary – and the cigar never was in danger of canoeing or tunneling. The resulting ash was a salt and pepper color. The burn rate and burn temperate were ideal.
 |
| Burn of the JFR Junior Corojo |
The draw was excellent. It was not too loose and not too tight. Overall, it made the JFR Junior Corojo an enjoyable smoking experience.
Strength and Body
Overall I found the JFR Junior Corojo that delivered the right amount of strength and the right amount of depth to the flavors. I found the JFR Junior Corojo to be medium to full in terms of both its strength and body. Both the strength and body counter each other very nicely – with neither attribute overshadowing the other.
Final Thoughts
The JFR lines made their reputation on larger ring gauge cigars. In fact Casa Fernandez has positioned one of the vitolas, the JFR 770LE as the industry’s first 7 x 70 vitola. While bigger and longer smokes have been a lot of the focus of the industry, smaller and shorter smokes have also been getting a lot of attention. In terms of the JFR Junior Corojo, I found that this smaller, shorter size to be an excellent addition to the line. This is a cigar that I would recommend to a novice enthusiast looking for something a little fuller. It is also a cigar that I’d recommend to an experienced enthusiast looking for a smaller, shorter cigar. As for myself, the JFR Junior Corojo is a cigar I certainly would keep in my humidor and reach for a quick smoke.
Summary
Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Low
Strength: Medium to Full
Body: Medium to Full
Finish: Excellent
Source: The cigars for this assessment was provided by an authorized representative of Casa Fernandez Cigars. The samples received were in order to provide feedback. Cigar Coop is appreciative for the samples, but in no way does this influence this write-up.
