In 2021, Alec Bradley Cigar Company brought back its Trilogy line. The Trilogy is a set of three distinct blends: Authentic Corojo, Native Cameroon, and Exotic Maduro. The unique thing about the Alec Bradley Trilogy series is that each cigar has a triangular press. The Trilogy was originally introduced in 2002, but eventually would be discontinued. Second-generation cigar maker Bradley Rubin had been thinking about bringing back the Trilogy since he started with the company. In 2019, company founder Alan Rubin was a guest on Smoke Inn Abe Dababneh’s KMA Talk Radio program and during that show, Dababneh convinced Alan to bring back the Trilogy for a limited run. Two years later, the Trilogy would return. ll three blends: Authentic Corojo, Native Cameroon, and Exotic Maduro would make a return. The cigars would be re-released in two sizes: an exclusive Robusto size for Smoke Inn; and a Toro size for national release. Today we take a look at the 2021 rendition of the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo in the exclusive Robusto size for Smoke Inn.
At the time the relaunch was announced. The story of the Trilogy was described in a press release by Alec Bradley:
Alec Bradley’s founder Alan Rubin dreamt up Trilogy during a fishing trip with some other cigar manufacturers. At one point, the conversation moved to cigar shapes, and one of the manufacturers turned to Rubin, tell him that he just cannot come out with another round cigar. Challenged by the statement, Rubin started drawing up plans and made his way to a South Florida Home Depot, where he created his unique triangular mold. In 2002, the Alec Bradley Trilogy series was introduced in three distinct blends: Authentic Corojo, Exotic Maduro and Native Cameroon. Trilogy had many years of success, and some may still be found in market, but the line was eventually discontinued as Alec Bradley’s cigar portfolio grew. Overall demand for the line lingered.
The way the launch went was the Smoke Inn received the exclusive Robusto sizes first. The Toro sizes would follow later in 2021. The exclusive Robusto sizes of the Alec Bradley Trilogy were packaged in a unique, triangular-shaped package consisting of six cigars of each of the three blends.
The Toro sizes were packaged in boxes that resembled the special triangular-shaped molds that were needed for this project. Unlike the Robusto, each box is dedicated to one of the specific blends.
Without further ado, let’s break down the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto and see what this cigar brings to the table.
SPECIFICATIONS
Blend and Origin
The Alec Bradley Trilogy was re-blended to capture the profile of the original release. The Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo is a Honduran-forward blend with Honduran tobaccos used for the wrapper, binder, and filler. There is also some Nicaraguan tobacco incorporated into the filler. As the name indicates, the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo utilizes a Corojo wrapper.
Wrapper: Honduran Corojo
Binder: Honduran Connecticut Seed
Filler: Honduran, Nicaraguan
Country of Origin: Honduras
Factory: Tabacos De Oriente
Vitolas Offered
As mentioned, the Alec Bradley Trilogy was offered in two sizes – an exclusive Robusto for Smoke Inn and a Toro size for national release. The Robusto sizes are packaged in an 18-count sampler consisting of six of each of the three blends. A total of 300 samplers were produced. The Toros are separated and sold by blend and are sold in the ten-count triangular mold boxes. A total of 2,000 boxes per blend were released for the Toro
Robusto: 5 x 50 (Smoke Inn Exclusive)
Toro: 6 x 52
Appearance
The Honduran Corojo wrapper of the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto had a medium-brown color to it. The wrapper itself had a slight silky sheen. There were some visible veins and some visible wrapper seams. You can see the triangle press, but I’ve noticed with these cigars, after the cigar is taken out of the mold, the shape may not maintain a sharp triangle shape.
The band for the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo has a mostly green background. At the top of the band is the text “TRILOGY” in a red font with some accents. That text sits on a dull-yellow field with a gold frame surrounding it. The top of the frame has the Alec Bradley red badge. The middle of the band has a dull-yellow stripe with the text AUTHENTIC COROJO” in a red font with some accents. Three medallions flank each side of the text. The lower part of the band has the text “Alec Bradley” in a dull-yellow font. The remainder of the band has gold and dull-yellow accents.
PERFORMANCE
Pre-Light Draw
A straight cut was used to remove the cap of the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto. Once the cap was removed, it was on to the pre-light draw experience. The dry draw delivered notes of wood, natural tobacco, and pepper. There was a slight bitterness to the natural tobacco. Overall this wasn’t the most exciting pre-light draw but since this is not incorporated into the score or value rating, there was no loss of points here. At this point, it was time light up the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto and see what the smoking experience would have in store.
Tasting Notes
The Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto opened up with notes of natural tobacco, apple sweetness, citrus, wood, and black pepper. As the cigar moved through the early stages, some baker’s spice surfaced. The natural tobacco emerged as the primary note. The apple, citrus, wood, and baker’s spice settled in the background. The pepper moved into the more distant background. On the retro-hale, there were notes of apple, citrus, and cedar.
During the second third of the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto, some earth and cedar notes also surfaced in the background. The cedar and pepper notes slowly increased in intensity. Just past the midway point, the wood notes began to increase in intensity. By the end of the second third, the wood and pepper displaced the natural tobacco as the primary note.
The final third saw the wood and pepper notes remain in control. There were still notes of natural tobacco, earth, and cedar present. The apple, citrus, and baker’s spice were also present to some extent. This is the way the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto came to a close. The resulting nub was slightly soft to the touch and cool in temperature.
Burn
The burn of the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto did maintain a straight burn line and straight burn path, but this was not without the help of some frequent touch-ups along the way. The resulting ash was mostly silver-gray with some dark spots. This wasn’t an overly firm ash, but it wasn’t loose nor flaky either. The burn rate and burn temperature were ideal.
Draw
The draw to the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto was open, but not loose. This didn’t surprise me considering the unique pressing done on this cigar. Other than being more open than I prefer, there were not any adverse effects from this draw.
Strength and Body
Overall, the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto started out medium strength and medium-bodied. There wasn’t much of a change in the intensity levels of the strength and body and as a result, both attributes stayed in the medium range throughout the smoking experience. In terms of strength versus body, the body had a slight edge.
OVERALL ASSESSMENT
Final Thoughts
In general, I found smoking the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto to be a satisfactory experience. Flavor-wise, I would definitely give the first half an advantage over the second half. This Robusto size did a nice job of delivering flavor transitions and plenty of flavor nuances. While the packaging doesn’t factor into our score or value rating, this triangle-shaped sampler is really cool. While the Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo Robusto is a good cigar, it is only sold in the sampler and when you consider this cigar on its own, it’s hard to go above “Try a Sample” in our value ratings. The good news is I would say, go try the Toro size (which is not far off from the Robusto) and if you like it then by all means get this sampler.
Summary
Key Flavors: Natural Tobacco, Wood, Cedar, Citrus, Apple, Baker’s Spice, Earth, Pepper
Burn: Very Good
Draw: Very Good
Complexity: Medium to High
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium
Finish: Good
Rating
Value: Try a Sample
Score: 88
References
News: Alec Bradley Trilogy Set to Return
Price: $159.99 (18-unit sampler)
Source: Smoke Inn
Brand Reference: Alec Bradley
Photo Credits: Cigar Coop, except where noted
