Each year on the eve of the opening of the IPCPR Trade Show and Convention, an opening night reception is held. In 2017, General Cigar Company was the host of the event. General Cigar not only put on a gala opening reception, but used the event to launch two new products under its Macanudo Inspirado line: the Macanudo Inspirado White (a Connecticut Shade cigar) and an all-new version of the Macanudo Inspirado Black (a Connecticut Broadleaf maduro cigar). The opening night reception not only gave attendees a chance to try the new Macanudo before the show opened, but provided a true gala-like launch that often is missing in the U.S. market. Today, we take a closer look at one of those cigars – the Macanudo Inspirado White in the Robusto size.

It was back in 2014 when the Macanudo Inspirado line was launched for the European market. At the time there were two cigars: the Macanudo Inspirado Orange which featured General Cigar’s Honduran OSA wrapper that was produced in Honduras; and the Macanudo Inspirado Black which featured a dark Connecticut Habano wrapper produced in the Dominican Republic. Two years later the Macanudo Inspirado Orange and Black made it to the U.S. market. At the time, Inspirado Orange was positioned as a brick and mortar exclusive while Inspirado Black was positioned for internet catalog customers.

To some extent, the Macanudo Inspirado line was delivering cigars that outside the milder cigars that most of the Macanudo line had built its reputation for.  In 2017, General decided to add a somewhat milder offering under the Inspriado line and that’s the profile Macanudo Inspirado White was intended to fulfill  At the same time, Macanudo Inspirado Black received a new blend and the new offering would now be made available to brick and mortar retailers – thus keeping a maduro offering under Inspriado.

Since the release of the Macanudo Inspirado White and Black, the General Cigar has added a fourth blend, the Macanudo Inspirado Red – designed to be the fullest offering in the Inspirado line.

Without further ado, let’s break down the Macanudo White Robusto and see what this cigar brings to the table.

 

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend Profile

The Macanudo Inspirado White is a four-country multi-national blend highlighted by a proprietary Ecuadorian-grown Connecticut Shade wrapper that is aged six years. The blend also features an Indonesian binder. The fillers consist of Mexican San Andres and Nicaraguan Condega leaves aged four years as well as a Nicaraguan Jalapa leaf aged two years.

The one interesting footnote about this cigar is that it does not contain Dominican tobacco. While there have been other Macanudo releases without Dominican tobacco, it still was a bit surprising to me.

Unlike Macanudo Inspirado Orange which is produced in Honduras, the Macanudo Inspirado White comes out of the General Cigar Dominicana factory in the Dominican Republic.

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
Binder: Indonesian
Filler:  Mexican, Nicaraguan (Condega and Jalapa)
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic (General Cigar Dominicana)

Vitolas Available

The Macanudo Inspirado White is available in three sizes. Each is presented in 20-count boxes.

Robusto: 5 x 50
Toro: 6 1/2 x 50
Churchill: 7 x 48

Appearance

The Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper of the Macanudo Inspirado White Robusto was quite pristine. It had a light caramel brown color to it. The wrapper was smooth with some oil on it. There were some thin visible veins and some thin visible wrapper seams. This Connecticut Shade wrapper seemed slightly thicker than most Connecticut Shade wrappers.

As one would expect, the band of the Macanudo Inspirado White has a primarily white color. The band itself also has a silver trim. There also is a thick silver stripe going through the center of the band. On the center of the band is the text “MACANUDO” in black font. Just below the silver stripe is the text “Inspirado” in darker gray scripted font. Behind the band is the new Macanudo logo in silver font. The band also has some additional older Macanudo logos in a watermark stamp-like design.

PERFORMANCE

Preparation for the Cigar Experience

I commenced my experience with the Macanudo Inspirado White Robusto by placing a straight cut to remove the cap. After the cap was clipped, I proceeded with the pre-light draw ritual. The dry draw delivered a mix of cream and wood with a slight amount of citrus. I considered this to be a satisfactory pre-light draw. At this point, I was ready to light up the Macanudo Inspirado White Robusto and see what the smoking phase would have in store.

Flavor Profile

The start to the Macanudo Inspirado White Robusto delivered a mix of cream, classic wood, cedar, and black pepper. There definitely was a distinction between the classic wood and cedar notes in the early stages. It didn’t take long for the cream and wood notes to become primary. The cedar and black pepper settled into the background and were quickly joined by a lemon-like citrus note. Concurrently, the cedar and black pepper were present on the retro-hale.

Throughout the first third, the cream and wood notes alternated in intensity. Toward the latter part of the first third, the separation between classic wood and cedar ended. The cedar notes increased in intensity and eclipsed the classic wood.

During the second third of the Macanudo Inspirado White Robusto, the cedar and cream notes in the forefront now were alternating in intensity. The citrus note that emerged in the first third transitioned to more of a lemon-rind flavor and now delivered some bitterness. The lemon rind quickly emerged as a close secondary note. As the cigar burned through the midway point, the cedar notes took control as the primary note and there was a slight increase in the black pepper.

By the last third, the cedar notes remained the primary flavor with the pepper and lemon rind notes secondary. The creaminess that was prominent during the first two-thirds had pretty much dissipated. This is the way the Macanudo Inspirado White Robusto came to a close. The resulting nub was slightly soft to the touch and cool in temperature.

Burn and Draw

The Macanudo Inspirado White Robusto had little trouble maintaining a straight burn path. The burn line had a slight bit of jaggedness along the way, but for the most part, this was cosmetic and really didn’t increase the frequency of touch-ups. The resulting ash was skewed toward the firmer side. This was an ash that was mostly light gray in color. Meanwhile, both the burn rate and burn temperature maintained ideal levels.

The draw to the Macanudo Inspirado White Robusto also performed quite well. This was a draw that struck a nice balance of resistance and openness. This was not a difficult cigar to derive flavor from.

Strength and Body

The Macanudo Inspirado White Robusto is a cigar that is mild to medium in strength and body. There was a slight increase along the way and toward the end, both attributes came close to moving into medium territory. The strength and body balanced each other nicely, with neither one overshadowing the other.

From an intensity standpoint, I would say this isn’t the mildest Macanudo, but it’s also not anywhere near one of the bolder ones like Macanudo Inspirado Red, Macanudo 1968, and Macanudo Cru Royale.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

The best way I can sum up the Macanudo Inspirado White Robusto is that it is not a bad cigar, but it wasn’t one that had any wow factor. There were times that this cigar served up some of the bitterness that Connecticut Shade cigars are known for. While I consider bitterness to be a part of an overall flavor equation, there were points during the second third that the bitterness threw the Inspirado White Robusto’s balance off.  Over the past year, there have been some very good Connecticut Shade wrapper cigars that have been released, but this cigar falls somewhat short of many of them. At the same time, it competes within its own brand with a classic such as Macanudo Cafe – which I would reach for over the Inspirado White. Still it’s not a bad cigar and at $6.49, it’s priced very well; so my recommendation is to try the cigar first and see if it’s your wheelhouse.

Summary

Key Flavors: Cream, Cedar, Classic Wood, Black Pepper, Citrus, Lemon Rind
Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium Plus
Strength: Mild to Medium
Body: Mild to Medium
Finish: Very Good

Rating

Value: Try a Sample
Score: 88

References

News: Macanudo Inspirado White and Black Get High Profile Launch at 2017 IPCPR
Price: $6.49
Source: General Cigar Company
Brand Reference: Macanudo

Photo Credits: Cigar Coop