Agile Cigar Reviews are cigar assessments where we use a lightweight, shorter format. These will never take the place of our comprehensive reviews. They are only used on blends we have previously assessed. This might be a blend we are re-scoring or giving a score for the first time. It might be a blend we are looking at in a different size. Today, we look at the Byron Selección 1850 No. 3 (Toro size). This is a cigar blend previously assessed back in July 2023 in the Grand Bouquet (Perfecto size) size.

Wrapper: Ecuadorian
Binder: Peruvian
Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan
Country of Origin: Costa Rica
Factory: Tabacos de Costa Rica
No. 3: 6 x 52

In 2022, Selected Tobacco would release a fourth blend under its Byron brand, the Byron Selección 1850. While Selected Tobacco ages its cigars in cedar-lined rooms, the Byron 1850s are also aged in French oak rooms after they are rolled. During that process, the humidity is raised and lowered to allow the cigars to breathe anywhere from two to five years. The concept of incorporating aging in French oak in addition to the cedar rooms was also used with the Alfonso Añejo, another 2022 release. Today we take a look at the Byron Selección 1850 No. 3, a Toro-sized offering.

The Byron brand traces its origins to Cuba in 1850 which is where the Byron Selección 1850 derives its name. It was in 1850 when the “Lord Byron” was created by Jose and Eusebio Alfonso – one of whom was brand owner Nelson Alfonso’s great-great-great-grandfather. The original cigar was made in a small factory in Santiago de las Vegas in the Havana province of Cuba. The name Byron honors George Gordon Byron – who was better known as “Lord Byron” – a renowned English poet. The brand lasted for over 80 years before it folded during the Great Depression of the 1930s. The brand would be dormant until 1998 when Nelson Alfonso would recover the Byron brand name.

The Byron Selección 1850 uses a four-country multi-national blend including a wrapper from Ecuador, a binder from Peru, and fillers from Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. As with all Selected Tobacco cigars, production for the Byron Selección 1850 comes from Tabacos de Costa Rica in Santiago de Puriscal, Costa Rica. The No. 3 size is a classic 6 x 52 Toro presented in 25-count boxes. This is a limited production regular-production cigar and it is distributed by United Cigars.

The Byron Selección 1850 No. 3 began with notes of cocoa, earth, oak, and cedar. The earth notes moved into the forefront early on. During the first third, the oak and cocoa notes alternated between the forefront and the background early on. Both the cedar and oak notes were also present on the retro-hale. Late in the first third, notes of natural tobacco and red pepper also emerged in the background. The second third saw the earth and oak notes remain in the forefront with the cocoa, cedar, natural tobacco, and red pepper in the background. The natural tobacco delivered some additional sweetness to the flavor profile. The final third was similar but with a slight increase in the pepper notes.

The flavors delivered were medium-bodied countered by medium strength. The intensity levels of both attributes remained relatively constant. Both the strength and body balanced each other nicely. The draw had a touch of resistance making it ideal. The burn, much like when the Grand Bouquet was assessed, needed an excessive amount of touch-ups and had a flaky ash.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

The Byron Selección 1850 No. 3 delivers quite well in the most important category – flavor. Like the Grand Bouquet, the burn was a little high-maintenance. At $45.00, this is not an inexpensive investment, but it certainly fits the bill for a nice special occasion cigar that will more than satisfy. Scoring 90 points, it has reached the threshold for the Cigar Coop Standard of Excellence. While I would give a slight nod to the Grand Bouquet cigar, the No. 3 is still a cigar I could recommend to any cigar enthusiast. It is a cigar I would still buy and smoke again.

Summary

Key Flavors: Earth, Oak, Cocoa, Natural Tobacco, Cedar, Pepper
Burn: Good
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium Plus
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium
Finish: Very Good