Quesada Oktoberfest 2014 Das Boot

The Quesada Oktoberfest line made its debut three years ago at the 2011 IPCPR Trade Show. The concept was to he idea bring a cigar to the table. that can be paired with malt liquor (aka beer). It was originally introduced in two sizes. Since then, the Oktoberfest line has become an annual release and has grown to six  vitolas and now one event only size. One thing I’ve found about the Oktoberfest is that with each year’s release, the cigars tell their own story. The 2014 releases continue to follow this pattern. Today, we take a closer look at the Quesada Oktoberfest 2014 in the Das Boot size. With four annual releases under the belt, Queasada Cigars has now established a solid line with this cigar – delivering an excellent flavor profile.

The Quesada Oktoberfest 2014 edition brought a big change in terms of the packaging.  A new band was introduced.   When the 2014 edition was announced, Terence Reilly of Quesada Cigars explained why this was done and how this ties into Oktoberfest being an annual release:

“This is our fourth year producing Oktoberfest and although the blend is the same every year, the wrapper is selected from a different crop year, thereby giving each seasonal edition its own unique flavor. However, because there was no way for the consumer to differentiate between years, we decided to re-design the packaging and bands so that moving forward each annual release will be distinctive. Aficionados will now know which release they are purchasing or have stashed in their humidors.”

Without further ado, let’s break down the Quesada Oktoberfest 2014 Das Boot and see what this cigar brings to the table.

Blend Profile

The blend components to the Quesada Oktoberfest line stay consistent from year to year.   As Reilly mentioned, the tobaccos do come from different vintages.

Wrapper: Dominican Cibao Valley
Binder: Dominican Republic
Filler: Dominican Cuban Seed Criollo & Olor Viso & Ligero

Vitolas Available

The Oktoberfest line was introduced in two sizes in 2011 with the Bavarian and Uber.  In 2012 the Das Boot, Kurz, and Kaiser Ludwig sizes were added.  2013 saw the addition of the Krone.  This year the event only Salomon Press, a unique box-pressed salomon size introduced on the Quesada 40th Anniversary line was added.

Das Boot: 6 x 52 (torpedo)
Kurz: 4 x 50
Krone: 5 x 43
Kaiser Ludwig: 6 x 49 (Box Pressed)
Bavarian: 5 1/2 x 52
Uber: 6 x 65
Salomon Press: 6 3/4 x 50/33  (Event Only)

A Connecticut Broadleaf version of the Oktoberfest called the Oktoberfest Dunkel was released in a 6 x 54 Toro as a shop exclusive to Smoke Inn in 2013.

Appearance

The Quesada Oktoberfest 2014 Das Boot has a dark chocolate colored wrapper.  As typical with the majority of all Quesada Oktoberfest cigars the wrapper is quite oily.  The wrapper seams and veins are both thin and the dark wrapper does a good job at hiding them.

The primary band has a shield design in the front. The shield has a blue background with gold trim. On the large shield is a smaller shield. This smaller shield has a white background with gold trim. On that smaller shield is a gold “Q” Quesada logo surrounded by orange, black, and gold stripes representing the German flag. Below the “Q” logo it says “Quesada Cigars” in gold cursive font. Above the smaller white shield is the text “QUESADA” and “OKTOBERFEST” with the latter in a gothic style font – both in white font. To the left of the white shield is the text “Made in the Dominican Republic” in white font. On the right side of the white shield is the text “Since 2001” – also in white font.  There is a gold wreath below the white shield. To the left and right of the large blue shield are the German flag stripes sitting on a blue textured background with gold trim.

Preparation for the Cigar Experience

Prior to lighting up my Quesada Oktoberfest 2014 Das Boot, I clipped the tip of the torpedo-shaped tip. As I typically do with Torpedo-shaped cigars I went about 1/2 down the tip to place the cut. Once the tip was removed, I proceeded with the pre-light draw. The dry draw provided notes of roasted coffee, earth, and some citrus-spice. Overall I considered the pre-light draw of the Das Boot to be satisfactory. At this point I was ready to light up the Das Boot and see what the overall cigar experience would have in store.

Flavor Profile

Right out of the gate, I detected the notes of chocolate, earth, and pepper that I have become accustomed to on the various Oktoberfest releases.  At the same time I picked up the unique quality of the Das Boot. With other Oktobrefest releases, I’ve detected citrus (Bavarian) or honey (Kaiser Ludwig) notes as sweetness.  With the Oktoberfest 2014 Das Boot, it was blackberry.  Meanwhile on the retro-hale, I was detecting a white pepper.

Throughout the first third, I found the blackberry sweetness became the primary note.  The chocolate and earth notes migrated back and forth between the forefront and background.  The pepper notes remained in the background.

In the second half, the pepper and earth moved into the forefront. The chocolate notes were now secondary. Meanwhile the blackberry sweetness floated between the forefront and background. Toward the end, the spice seemed to have a slight advantage. The resulting nub was soft to the touch and cool in temperature.

Burn and Draw

The burn of the Das Boot performed quite well. The burn line remained straight during the cigar experience requiring what I would consider to be a normal amount of touch-ups along the way. The ash was a salt and pepper color. There was some minor flaking along the way. Meanwhile the burn rate and burn temperature were ideal.

The draw also performed well.  The tip of this torpedo is well constructed and was not prone to getting smoke during the smoking experience.  The draw itself had a slight touch of resistance – which is something I like.

Strength and Body

From both a strength and body perspective, I did not find the Oktoberfest 2014 Das Boot to be much different than most of the sizes and vintages that have been released in the line.  Overall I assessed the Das Boot to be a medium to full cigar in terms of strength and body from start to finish. Throughout the smoking experience, I found the strength and body to balance each other nicely from start to finish.

Final Thoughts

As far as pairing a Quesada Oktoberfest with a beer, I’ve always felt this cigar blend has been one to stand on its own – and it’s not one that requires smoking with a beer. Once again, the Quesada Oktoberfest delivers a solid cigar. Of all of the sizes in the Quesada Oktoberfest line, the Das Boot is the one I had probably paid the least attention to. While the Kaiser Ludwig and Bavarian are still my favorite ones, the Das Boot was impressive. One note on the 2014 version of this line – this is as good a release of the Oktoberfest that I have seen since its inception three years ago. The Oktoberfest 2014 Das Boot is probably a cigar I’d recommend to a more seasoned cigar enthusiast, but wouldn’t discourage a novice from trying. As for myself, it’s a cigar I’d smoke again – and certainly worthy of a fiver.

Summary

Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Medium to Full
Body: Medium to Full
Finish: Good
Assessment: 3.0 – The Fiver
Score: 90

References

News: Quesada Oktoberfest 2014 Gets New Band, Adds Salomon Press For Events
Price: $8.50
Source: Purchased
Stogie Geeks Episode: Episode 53 – “Little Oktoberfest”
Stogie Feed: Quesada Octoberfest Das Boot