Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse

Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse

In terms of shop exclusive cigar series releases, the Smoke Inn MicroBlend Series might rank as one of the most successful of all time. There have been 16 releases over the past ten years, and the company that has been the most active is Tatuaje Cigars. The MicroBlend Series started out with the Tatuaje Anarchy and was followed up with the Tatuaje Apocalypse, a re-release of the Tatuaje Anarchy, and most recently the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos. Back in February, a launch event for the Kaos was held on the eve of The Great Smoke in West Palm Beach Florida in collaboration with the Red Meat Lovers Club. At that event, a pre-release sampler was given out. The sampler contained two Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos cigars and a third cigar called the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse. While the Kaos was planned for a bigger launch the following month, the Pale Horse was something that was only planned for the event. What is special about the Pale Horse is that it is a Connecticut Shade version of the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos. Today we take a closer look at the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse.

The Smoke Inn Microblend Series concept involves Smoke Inn teaming up with some leading brands and manufacturers in the cigar industry to produce a small batch limited run exclusive to its shops. The series was launched late in 2010 to commemorate Smoke Inn’s 15 years in business. It was originally planned to be a four-cigar series, but since then has remained a series of ongoing shop exclusives. Originally Smoke Inn had planned this to be a “one and done” series for each release, but that has now changed.

For completeness, we list all of the blends here. Smoke Inn officially lists the count of 15 releases, but if you don’t count the re-releases and count the two blends released with Padrón, it’s actually 16.

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

As mentioned the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse uses an Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper. It also uses Nicaraguan binder and filler. Production is handled out of the My Father Cigars factory in Estelí, Nicaragua

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: My Father Cigars S.A.

Vitolas Offered

The vitola measures 6 1/4 x 49 and is finished with a 109-style head and the signature Tatuaje Anarchy pigtail cap. This is the same vitola as the original Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos.

Appearance

The Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper of the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse was a couple of shades darker than typical Connecticut Shade wrapper. There was a very light sheen of oil on the surface. This was a wrapper that was slightly bumpy. There were some visible veins and any wrapper seams were well hidden. The “109” style cap is one that tapers to a small flat-headed cap. What is unique about this cap is that it features a cinnamon bun style swirl-cap on it.

One thing about the bands that were in the sampler that was given out at the Red Meat Lovers Club is they were the original bands found on the Tatuaje Anarchy – this included the Kaos and Kaos Pale Horse cigars. This band was black with a red anarchy log on it. To the left and right of the logo the name “Tatuaje” was etched in a gothic style font.

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw

The way I approached removing the cap of the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse was to make a precise cut that essentially removed the cinnamon bun cap. This was the same approach I took when I smoked the original Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos. This easily allowed me to take advantage of the tapered head to the cigar. Once the cap was removed it was on to the pre-light draw experience. The dry draw delivered a mix of cream, earth, and cedar. This wasn’t the most exciting pre-light draw, but since it is not scored, there is no loss in the merit score or value rating.  At this point, it was time to light up the Pale Horse and see what the smoking experience would deliver.

Tasting Notes

The Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse started out with a mix of wood, cedar, cream, and a mixed fruit sweetness. Early on the wood, cedar, and cream notes were primary wit the fruit sweetness further back. The fruit sweetness evolved into a citrus note which remained in the background. Toward the end of the first third, the cream notes fell into the background with the citrus. Meanwhile, there was a layer of black pepper that emerged on the tongue.

The second third of the Pale Horse saw the wood and citrus notes primary. Just past the midway point, these notes increased in intensity. Meanwhile, just past the midway point, the wood and cedar grew in intensity and a slight black pepper note surfaced on the tongue.

During the last third of the Pale Horse, there wasn’t much change. The wood and cedar remained the primary notes. There still were touches of cream and black pepper in the background. This is the way the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos came to a close. The resulting nub was soft to the touch and cool in temperature.

Burn

Construction-Wise, the Tatuaje Anarchy Pale Horse was excellent – and this was reflected on the performance of the burn. The Pale Horse maintained a straight burn line and straight burn path from start to finish. The resulting ash had a silver-gray color with some dark streaks mixed in. This was an ash that was not the firmer side. As for the burn rate and burn temperature, both were ideal.

Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse - Burn

Burn of the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse

Draw

The draw of the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse also performed quite well. This was a cigar that had a touch of resistance to it – which is something that I like. For a Connecticut Shade, the Pale Horse also produced an ample amount of smoke.

Strength and Body

Compared to the other MicroBlend releases, the Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Pale Horse is on the milder side. This is a cigar that started out with mild strength, and mild to medium body. Both attributes slowly increased in intensity. By the 1/3 point, the strength moved into mild to medium territory, and by the 2/5 point, the body moved into medium territory. For the most part, the Pale Horse stayed mild to medium in strength and medium in body until the end.

In terms of strength versus body, the body maintained an edge from start to finish.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

I’ll get right to the point, while I loved the idea of taking the Anarchy Kaos into a Connecticut Shade, I’m just not sure it worked out. The Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos wasn’t a bad cigar, but it simply lacked any wow factor. I was waiting for this cigar to just do something special – and it just never happened. Plus when I look at this cigar compared to Tatuaje’s Cabaiguan line, the Cabaiguan wins every time. It’s hard to put a value rating on this cigar because there was no price on this cigar. Still, the Pale Horse is a cigar worth trying – especially if it is part of the same event sampler that contains two of the original Anarchy Kaos cigars.

Summary

Key Flavors: Classic Wood, Cedar, Cream, Black Pepper, Citrus, Fruit
Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Mild (1st 1/3), Mild to Medium (Remainder)
Body: Mild to Medium (1st 2/5), Medium (Remainder)
Finish: Very Good

Rating

Value: n/a
Score: 87

References

News: Tatuaje Anarchy Kaos Becomes 15th MicroBlend for Smoke Inn
Price: n/a (Event Cigar as a part of Smoke Inn’s VIP Party at The Great Smoke)
Source: Purchased
Brand Reference: Tatuaje

Photo Credits: Cigar Coop