Agile Cigar Reviews replace what we termed “Assessment Updates”. The concept is the same, but the name is different. Agile Cigar Reviews use a lightweight, shorter format. These will never take the place of our comprehensive reviews. They are only used on blends we have previously assessed. This might be a blend we are re-scoring or providing a score for a first time. It might be a blend we are looking at in a different size. Today we look at the Eiroa CBT Maduro 11/18 from CLE Cigar Company. This is a cigar we assessed several times in different sizes, most recently in February 2016 in the Robusto size.

Wrapper: Maduro
Binder: Maduro
Filler: Maduro
Country of Origin: Honduras (El Aladino)
11/18: 6 x 48/54/48

The Eiroa CBT Maduro 11/18 is a frontmark that was first made exclusive to Butthead’s Tobacco Emporium in Danbury.

In 2014, CLE Cigar Company released the Eiroa CBT Maduro. This is the second cigar under CLE’s Eiroa line – a line that pays homage to company founder Christian Eiroa’s family. The CBT Maduro is an all maduro cigar and this plays into the name of the cigar. CBT stands for Capa, Banda, and Tripa – which translates to wrapper, binder, and maduro. In the case of the CBT Maduro, all three of these tobacco components are maduro. This isn’t the first time Christian Eiroa has done an all maduro cigar as he created the Camacho Triple Maduro back in his Camacho line.

The 11/18 vitola is somewhat a staple to cigars made by Eiroa. The shape of the 11/18 is almost a cross between a toro and a figuardo. The size stems from Eiroa’s days at Camacho Cigars.  The 11/18 got its name from the birthday of Eiroa’s mother (November 18th).  Eiroa carried the size over to when he formed C.L.E. For Butthead’s this is not the first exclusive size of an 11/18 vitola. In 2013, the shop received the C.L.E. Plus 11/18.

I found the Eiroa CBT 11/18 to be a medium strength, medium to full-bodied smoke. The cigar will deliver notes of coffee, earth, cedar, and subtle “maduro sweetness” (which I describe as a cross between natural tobacco and dried fruit). During the first half of the CBT 11/18, the coffee notes demonstrated a “mocha quality” with some chocolate mixed in.

In terms of the Eiroa CBT blend, I feel it is one of those blends that really respond well to aging. I’ve had this CBT 11/18 aging for about 11 months and I think it continues to get better. The 11/18 size is also a fun one to smoke. It’s a cigar I’d recommend to a more experienced cigar enthusiast, but would not discourage a novice from trying. It’s definitely worthy of a box split.

Summary

Key Flavors: Coffee, Chocolate, Earth, Cedar, “Maduro Sweetness”
Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium+
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium to Full
Finish: Good

Rating

Assessment: 3.5-Box Split
Score: 91

References

Previous Assessment: Eiroa CBT Maduro Robusto by CLE Cigar Company
News: n/a
Price: n/a
Source: Buttheads Tobacco Emporium (Prior to August 8th)
Brand Reference: Eiroa