When Robert Caldwell launched Caldwell Cigar Company in 2014, he went to market with three lines known as the Caldwell Collection. These lines consisted of Eastern Standard, The King is Dead, and Long Live the King. As the Caldwell portfolio grew, these lines have begun to emerge as full brands within the Caldwell portfolio. The 2018 IPCPR Trade Show saw Eastern Standard release its fourth line with the Eastern Standard Habano and Long Live the King release its third line with the Long Live the King MAD MOFO. As the “MAD” in the name indicates, this would add a maduro offering under the Long Live the King line. It was originally launched as the MF, but was changed later to MOFO (you can guess what that means). Today we take a closer look at the Long Live the King MAD MF in the Corona size.

As we noted, there are three blends under the Long Live the King line. The original Long Live the King line is known for being a Dominican Corojo-centric blend. The second release came in 2016 with Savages, a more limited offering highlighted by a Habano wrapper featuring an entirely different blend. With the Long Live the King MAD MOFO, it also isn’t simply a Long Live the King blend with a maduro wrapper, but one that also uses a very different mix.

Without further ado, let’s break down the Long Live the King MAD MOFO Corona and see what this cigar brings to the table.

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

The blend to the Long Live the King MAD MOFO is a five-country multi-national blend. The cigar is highlighted by the use of a San Andres Mexican maduro wrapper. In addition, the blend uses a binder from Indonesia and fillers from the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Pennsylvania. As with the offerings that fall under the “Caldwell Collection” umbrella, production is handled out of the Tabacalera William Ventura factory in the Dominican Republic.

Wrapper: San Andres Mexican
Binder: Indonesian
Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan, U.S.A Pennsylvania
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
Factory: Tabacalera William Ventura

Vitolas Offered

Long Live the King MAD MOFO is presented in ten-count boxes (the original Long Live the King line was packaged in 27-count boxes). The cigars are available in four sizes. The line is described as a limited production.

Corona: 5 3/4 x 43
Belicoso: 5 1/2.x 52
Toro: 6 x 54
Magnum: 6 x 60

Appearance

The San Andres wrapper of the Long Live the King MAD MOFO Corona had a dark chocolate color. There was a light sheen of oil on it. The wrapper had a slight ruggedness that is often seen on San Andres wrappers. There were some visible wrapper seams and some thin visible veins present. The cigar itself was finished with a tiny pig-tail on the head.

There are two bands on the Long Live the King MAD MOFO. The primary band is a variation of the original Long Live the King band. It features the sketch of a young man with a large gold-colored crown on his head on an ivory-colored background. The sketch is surrounded by a blue frame with the text “CALDWELL” on the right side of the frame in gold font. The left and right side of the band has an ivory background with gold adornments above and below it. On the ivory-colored background is the text “Long Live” and “the King” in blue cursive font on the left and right side respectively. The band itself is finished with blue trim.

The secondary band rests just below the primary band. It is blue with gold pinstripes on the top and bottom. The sample we smoked still had the old t “MAD MF” name in a gold cursive font, but it has since changed.

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw

As opposed to trying to pull off the small pig-tail cap of the Long Live the King MAD MOFO Corona, a straight cut was used to commence the cigar experience. This removed both the cap and pig-tail simultaneously. At this point, it was time to transition to the pre-light draw. The dry draw of cigar delivered a mix of earth, cedar, and a slightly bittersweet chocolate note. I found this to be a satisfactory pre-light draw. At this point, it was time to light up the Long Live the King MAD MF Corona and move on to the smoking phase.

Tasting Notes

The Long Live the King MAD MOFO Corona started out with a quick spurt of red pepper. This gave way to earth, cedar, and mineral notes. Shortly afterward a slight bittersweet cocoa note surfaced. As the Long Live the King MAD MOFO Corona moved through the early stages, the earth notes took a slight edge. The earth notes had somewhat of a musty component to it, which I found worked in favor of the .end.. Meanwhile the cocoa, cedar, mineral, and red pepper notes settled in the background. There was an extra layer of red pepper on the retro-hale.

Later in the first third of the Long Live the King MAD MOFO Corona, the cocoa notes began to increase in intensity. At the same time, a slight dried fruit note emerged in the background. These would join the musty earth note in the forefront. By the midway point, the cocoa became the primary flavor. Meanwhile, the musty earth, dried fruit, cedar, mineral, and red pepper remained in the background.

Toward the latter part of the second third, the musty earth notes returned to the forefront, joining the cocoa notes. Meanwhile, there was a slight increase in intensity from the pepper, but these notes didn’t reach the forefront. There still were subtle notes of dried fruit, cedar, and mineral present. This is the way the Long Live the King MAD MOFO Corona came to a close. There resulting nub was slightly soft to the touch and cool in temperature.

Burn

In terms of the performance of the burn, the Long Live the King MAD MOFO Corona performed quite well. This was a cigar that had no trouble maintaining a straight burn path. While there was some minor jaggedness from time to time on the burn line, this was cosmetic and the cigar did not require much in the way of additional touch-ups. The resulting ash had a light gray color. This wasn’t an overly firm ash, but it was far from loose and flaky. The burn rate and burn temperature were both ideal.

Draw

The draw to the Caldwell Long Live the King MAD MOFO Corona performed quite well. It had a pleasant touch of resistance to it. At the same time, this was a low maintenance cigar to derive flavor from and it still produced a decent amount of smoke.

Strength and Body

While the original Long Live the King was one of the bolder cigars in the Caldwell Collection, the MAD MOFO Corona is actually somewhat dialed back. This cigar was in the medium strength, medium-bodied range from start to finish. There was a slight increase in the intensity of both attributes along the way, but in the end, the strength and body remained in the medium range of the spectrum.

In terms of strength versus body, both attributes balanced each other with neither attribute overshadowing the other.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Update (2/28/19): We have updated the name to Long Live the King MAD MOFO from Long Live the King MAD MF