As Miami Cigar and Company Vice President Jason Wood told us on Stogie Geeks, Nestor Miranda was quite pleased when he saw the plans for the revamped Nestor Miranda Collection. However, Nestor had one question – “what about my special sizes?”.  Wood assured Miranda that he had things covered.  As he explained to us, the special sizes – the Lancero, Ruky (perfecto), and Danno were slated for limited edition releases called the “One Life” edition. The first of these sizes, the Danno has just started to roll out to retailers. The Danno is a special 7 x 56 vitola named for the late Danny Miranda, Nestor’s son. This is the fourth time in six years there has been a Danno release. With the Danno 2015, the size is being rolled out across the three blends of the Nestor Miranda Collection: Connecticut, Habano, and Maduro. Today we take a look at the Nestor Miranda Collection One Life Edition Danno Maduro. Overall I have found the Nestor Miranda Collection Maduro to a a great blend.  Not only does this shine in the Danno format, but it also is one of the better Danno releases to date.

For the first time, the Danno pays homage in writing to the late Danny Miranda. Inside each box is this short write-up:

Every family has its prized possession and ours is the Danno. More than just a limited edition release, this cigar was created to celebrate the life of DANIEL LUIS MIRANDA, a man who left us too early, but whose values will never be forgotten.

There have been several iterations of the Danno. The Nestor Miranda Special Selection 20th Anniversary Danno was the first release in 2009 .The 20th Anniversary was made available in a Nicaraguan Habano Rosado and a Nicaraguan Habano Oscuro wrapper blend. This was followed up in 2010 by the Nestor Miranda Special Selection Danno 2010 using a Nicaraguan Habano Oscuro wrapper. A special retail exclusive cigar was made for Buckhead Cigars in Atlanta, Georgia. This one was called the Nestor Miranda Special Selection Danno 2010 Buckhead Edition. The Buckhead Edition used the same core blend as the Danno 2010, but would utilize an Ecuadorian wrapper. In 2012 came the Nestor Miranda Special Selection Danno 2012 using a,San Andres Mexican maduro wrapper – a cigar that was the Cigar Coop #26 Cigar of the Year for 2012.

Wood told us on Stogie Geeks that in 2016 and 2017 plans are to roll out Miranda’s other special sizes – the lancero and the Ruky, so it might not be until 2018 when we see another iteration of the Danno.

Without further ado, we turn our attention to the Nestor Miranda Collection One Life Edition Danno Maduro and see what this cigar brings to the table:

Blend Profile

Nestor Miranda Collection – Maduro (Red)

Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Peruvian, Nicaraguan, Dominican
Country of Origin: Nicaragua (My Father Cigars SA)

For completeness, we list the other blends in the Nestor Miranda Collection. These cigars are made in Esteli, Nicaragua at the My Father Cigars factory.

Nestor Miranda Collection – Connecticut (Blue)

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan, Dominican, Honduran
Country of Origin: Nicaragua (My Father Cigars SA)

Nestor Miranda Collection – Habano (Green)

Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan, Honduran, Brazilian
Country of Origin: Nicaragua (My Father Cigars SA)

Vitolas Available

The sizes across all three of the Nestor Miranda Colleciton blends are consistent. The Danno blend was optimized for the 7 x 56 size. The Danno is available in 20 count boxes. The total production of the Danno is 1,000 boxes per blend.

Danno: 7 x 56 (Limited Production)
Corona: 6 x 46
Robusto: 4 1/2 x 50
Toro: 5 1/2 x 54
Gordo: 6 x 60

Appearance

The Nestor Miranda Collection One Life Edition Danno Maduro’s Connecicut Broadleaf wrapper has a classic roasted coffee bean wrapper color. There is some oil on the surface of the wrapper, but there is a slight ruggedness to this wrapper often associated with Connecticut Broadleaf. There are some visible veins and visible wrapper seams. The cap is finished with a small pig-tail.

The band is a modified version of the band of the regular production Nestor Miranda Collection. This band consists has a black background with fire engine red and chrome in the color scheme. The Nestor Miranda Colleciton logo consists of a red-colored interlocking N, and M that also contributes to the shape of the wrapper. Below the logo is the text “ONE LIFE” in chrome font. Below that text is the “EDITION” in a smaller chrome font. To the left of the logo is the text “NESTOR MIRANDA COLLECTION” in landscape mode which each word on a separate line surrounded by a thin red pinstripe. To the right of the logo is the text “MADURO” in chrome text on a red background. To the far right siting on the back of the band is a smaller interlocking N and M Nestor Miranda Collection logo in chrome color. There also is a red stripe at the bottom with chrome pin striping. Siting on that stripe is the text “DANNO” in chrome font. Just below that is the text “2015” in smaller chrome font.

Preparation for the Cigar Experience

As opposed to pulling off the pig-tail cap, I went with my usual choice of a straight cut to remove the cap. Once the cap was removed, I moved on to the pre-light draw ritual. The dry draw provided a mix of mocha, earth, and some cedar notes. Throughout the dry draw, the mocha notes varied between a black coffee flavor and a sweet chocolate note. Overall I considered this to be a very good pre-light draw. At this point I was ready to light up the Danno Maduro and see what the smoking phase would have in store.

Flavor Profile

The start to the Nestor Miranda Collection Danno Maduro provided a mix of white pepper, earth, and unsweetened cocoa. As the cigar progressed through the first third, the unsweetened cocoa notes developed some sweetness and became more of a mocha note combining qualities of coffee and chocolate. The mocha and earth notes became the primary flavors.  The white pepper receded into the background. On the retro-hale, I detected a combination of both white and black pepper.

During the second third, the mocha flavors took center stage and the sweetness from this maduro was definitely showcased. The earth notes receded into the background for a while before returning back to the forefront by the second half. Meanwhile, the white pepper notes increased in the second third.

By the last third, the white pepper spice moved into the forefront and eventually displaced the mocha and earth notes as the primary flavor.

Burn and Draw

The burn of the Nestor Miranda Collection Danno Maduro performed quite well. The burn path remained straight with no meandering. The burn line itself had some minor jaggedness, but this was more cosmetic than anything.  The resulting ash had was nearly white in color. The ash itself was tight and firm – coming off the cigar in clean chunks. There was some minor flaking toward the latter parts of the smoking experience. The burn rate and burn temperature were ideal.

The draw to the Nestor Miranda Collection Danno Maduro was not too loose, yet not too tight. The was quite a bit of smoke production from this cigar. Overall, it was a low maintenance draw from start to finish.

Strength and Body

One thing I liked about the Nestor Miranda Collection Danno Maduro is how it progressed in terms of strength and body. I found the strength level to start out on the upper end of medium.  There is a gradual progression of strength with this cigar. By the second third, the strength is medium to full.  The strength increase remained gradual. By the last third the Danno crossed into full strength.

The body increased somewhat quicker. It also started out in the medium range. By the middle of the first third, the Danno Maduro was in the medium to full-bodied range. Once the cigar moved into the second half it was operating at full-bodied where there still was an increase in body.

In terms of strength versus body, I gave a slight edge to the body throughout the smoking experience.

Final Thoughts

This is a very nice addition to the Danno series, and it ranks as one of the better Nestor Miranda Collection releases since the re-launch back in 2014. One thing that particularly impressed me is that for a cigar 7 inches in length, this cigar maintained flavor right until the end – not running out of steam whatsoever. I also liked how this cigar built up in strength and body along the way. While this won’t deliver any revolutionary maduro flavors, it does deliver some very good ones. This is a cigar I’d probably steer to a more seasoned cigar enthusiast. As for myself, this is a cigar I would definitely reach for and smoke again. It’s a cigar certainly worthy of a box split.

Summary

Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Medium (Start), Medium to Full (Second third), Full (Last third)
Body: Medium (Start), Medium to Full (Middle of first third), Full (Second Half)
Finish: Excellent
Assessment: 3.5 – Box Split
Score: 90

References

News: Nestor Miranda Collection Danno 2015 set to Launch
Price: $12.00
Source: Cigars Provided by Manufacturer
Stogie Geeks Podcast: Episode 144, Episode 145
Stogie Feed: Nestor Miranda Collection One Life Edition Danno Maduro  (Episode 144), Nestor Miranda Collection One Life Edition Danno Maduro (Episode 145)