Cigar Review: EIROA The First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5

Earlier this year, Christian Eiroa’s C.L.E. Cigar Company announced the national release of EIROA The First 20 Years Colorado. It is the fourth blend under C.L.E.’s EIROA brand, and the second blend to carry the EIROA First 20 Years name. The story with this cigar is that company founder Christian Eiroa had always sought to create a blend with a specific shade of Colorado (reddish hue) wrapper in mind. The EIROA First 20 Years Colorado represents the end product of incorporating that wrapper into a Honduran puro blend which contains the Authentic Corojo leaf that the Eiroa family has become known for. Recently I’ve smoked the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado in the 50 x 5 (Robusto) size. This cigar represents a grand slam home run for C.L.E. Cigar Company. It is not only the company’s best release to date, but it is easily a cigar that ranks in the upper echelon of releases made by Christian Eiroa to date.

The EIROA brand was launched in 2013. This would be the first time the Eiroa family name would be carried on a cigar brand. The brand is intended to be a more premium offering in the C.L.E. portfolio. The first release would simply be called EIROA, a Honduran puro. One year later, the EIROA CBT, a triple maduro offering, would be introduced. The following year, 2015, would mark 20 years since the Eiroa family acquired Camacho Cigars – the company the Eiroa family took to new heights. It would also commemorate 20 years that Christian Eiroa had been in the cigar business. To commemorate the milestone, Christian’s father Julio Eiroa gifted him some very special tobacco he had been aging on his farm. Christian used the tobacco to create EIROA’s third brand – appropriately titled EIROA – The First 20 Years. The EIROA First 20 Years Colorado would follow, and this year the company turned it into a more widespread release.

According to C.L.E. Cigar Company, the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado is a limited production, on-going release. It was initially released to 50 retailers nationwide.

Without further ado, let’s break down the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 and see what this cigar brings to the table.

Blend Profile

Highlighted by the EIROA’s Colorado wrapper, the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado is a Honduran puro that includes Authentic Corojo from the Eiroa family’s tobacco farm. The cigar is produced at Christian Eiroa’s El Aladino factory in Danlí, Honduras.

[themify_box style=”light-green” ]Corojo tobacco traces its origins to Cuba and eventually made its way outside the island nation. The Corojo plant is one that has been susceptible to fungus and blue mold and as a result, it often has had lower yields. This led to the Corojo seed falling out of favor with many growers. Many other growers have worked with hybrid versions of the Corojo plant to mitigate this fungal and mold problem – most notably Corojo ’99. In 1997, Julio Eiroa began to work with the Authentic Corojo seed at his Honduran farm and by the year 2000, he reintroduced the tobacco into the U.S. market with Camacho. It is a staple of the brands under Christian Eiroa’s C.L.E. Cigar Company, as well as Julio Eiroa’s own JRE Tobacco Company.

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Wrapper: Honduran Colorado
Binder: Honduran
Filler: Honduran
Country of Origin: Honduras (El Aladino)

Vitolas Available

The EIROA First 20 Colorado is available in four box-pressed sizes. Each cigar is available in 20-count boxes.

46 x 6
50 x 5
54 x 6
60 x 6

Appearance

The Honduran wrapper to the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 is a medium brown colorado color with a slight, but not overpowering, red tint. Upon closer examination, there is some subtle mottling on the surface of the wrapper. The wrapper had a light coating of oil on it. This was also a very smooth wrapper surface that was almost void of any visible veins. In addition, any visible wrapper seams were on the thin side. The box press to this cigar was on the firm side.

The EIROA First 20 Years Colorado features a variation of the original EIROA First 20 Years band with a red, yellow, gold, and black color scheme. The upper part of the band has a red circle with gold trim at the center of the band. On the center of that circle is the text “EIROA” in large gold font. Surrounding the “EIROA” name are the words  “SALUD”, “AMOR”, and “PESATAS” in a smaller gold font. The remainder of the upper portion of the band has a pale yellow background. Sitting on that background above the circle is the text “Tradicion, Tabacalera” in gold font. There are gold adornments surrounding the circular background. To the left and right is a gold pinstripe pattern. On the left pinstripe pattern is a gold small rectangular nameplate design with the text “DESDE 1916” etched on its front.

There is a gold holographic-style background below the upper portion of the band. At the center of that holographic portion is a black oval with a gold “20” on it. Below that is a thick black stripe with the text “Series” in gold cursive font. A gold pinstripe is on the upper and lower portion of the black stripe. The upper and lower portion of the band as a whole also has gold trim.

Finally from the footer of the cigar to the band is a slightly pale yellow tissue wrap. On the tissue wrap is the text “The FIRST 20 YEARS Series” in gold font with the “20” in a larger font. Above that text is Christian Eiroa’s signature. Eiroa has been on the record stating his preference for tissue paper over cellophane to protect the cigar.

Preparation for the Cigar Experience

Prior to commencing the smoking experience of the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5, I removed the tissue paper covering from the footer area. I then proceeded to place a straight cut to remove the cap and commence with the pre-light draw. The dry draw delivered a mix of earth and cedar sweet-spice. Overall I considered the pre-light draw of the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 to be satisfactory.  I was now ready to light up the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 and see what the smoking experience would yield.

Flavor Profile

The EIROA First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 started out with a mix of earth, baker’s spice, cedar, and a touch of black pepper. The earth and baker’s spice moved into the forefront, where these notes were joined by some natural tobacco flavors. The natural tobacco had some fruit sweetness associated with it. The black pepper became a more distant note. Meanwhile, the retro-hale delivered what I would term as a mix of exotic spices.

During the second third, the earth and natural tobacco notes remained in the forefront. The baker’s spice receded into the background joining the black pepper and cedar. Some of the exotic spice notes present on the retro-hale were also present in the background.

The last third of the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 saw a return of the baker’s spice into the forefront. From time to time some of the black pepper made its way into the forefront. The natural tobacco also remained a primary note while the earth and cedar notes receded into the background. This is the way the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado came to close. The resulting nub was firm to the touch and cool in temperature.

Burn and Draw

I found the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 to be a well-constructed cigar and this was reflected on the burn and draw as both scored nicely. The First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 maintained a straight burn path and a relatively straight burn line from start to finish. The cigar did not require an excessive amount of touch-ups. The resulting ash had a silver-gray color and was on the firm side. Meanwhile, the burn rate and burn temperature were both ideal.

The draw to the First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 was not too loose, nor too tight. I did find this was a cigar that copious ample amounts of smoke. This was also a low maintenance cigar to derive flavor from.

Strength and Body

In terms of strength and body, I assessed both attributes of the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 to be in the medium range. Throughout the smoking experience, I didn’t find much variance in the intensity of either attribute. In terms of strength versus body, I found both attributes balanced each other very nicely with neither attribute overpowering the other.

Final Thoughts

I mentioned at the beginning that the EIROA First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 was a home run for Christian Eiroa and C.L.E. Cigar Company. It is one of the best cigars to hit retail shelves in 2017. Each time I smoked this cigar, I wanted to smoke more. To me, this cigar was a perfect storm – bringing excellent tobacco, a great blend recipe, and a well-constructed cigar all in one package. Most importantly, this cigar  delivered excellent flavor and had enough complexity to keep me interested. The flavors seemed to complement each other quite well. There seemed to be a variety of spice notes, but these spice notes never overwhelmed the blend.

The Eiroa First 20 Years Colorado 50 x 5 is a cigar I would recommend to a novice or experienced cigar enthusiast. As for myself, this is a cigar I would smoke again – and it’s one worthy of fighting Chuck Norris for.

Summary

Key Flavors: Natural Tobacco, Earth, Exotic Spices, Black Pepper, Cedar
Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium+
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium
Finish: Excellent

Rating

Assessment: 4.5-Fight Chuck Norris For Them
Score: 95

References

News: C.L.E. Cigar Company Unveils EIROA The First 20 Colorado
Price: $12.50
Source: C.L.E. Cigar Company
Brand Reference: EIROA

Photo Credits: Cigar Coop, except where noted.