Brick House Bricktoberfest 2022 by JC Newman Cigar Co.

The J.C. Newman Brick House Bricktoberfest 2022 is a limited edition J.C. Newman Cigar Company cigar. Since 2009, Brick House has proven to be one of J.C. Newman’s most successful brands. The Bricktoberfest 2022 was the first in what now appears to be an annual limited edition series (the company has subsequently released Bricktoberfest 2023). The name Bricktoberfest is a take on the Octoberfest celebration – typically enjoyed with lagers. Bricktoberfest originally started out as a marketing campaign to coincide with the Octoberfest season. Now, J.C. Newman has added a cigar into the equation. Today, we look at the Brick House Bricktoberfest 2022 cigar.

Brick House is a brand that can be traced back to 1937. It was a Cuban puro produced by company founder Julius Caeser Newman to honor his childhood home – a brick house in a small Hungarian village. Once the Cuban embargo was imposed, it no longer became possible to make a Cuban puro, and the Brick House would be no more. Fast forward to 2009, and Newman’s grandsons Bobby and Eric Newman worked to bring back the Brick House brand – this time using Nicaraguan tobaccos.

Brick House Bricktoberfest 2022 Cigar Review

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

One difference in the Bricktoberfest 2022 is that it is a Nicaraguan puro that also includes a Nicaraguan wrapper. This is not the first Brick House cigar to feature 100% Nicaraguan tobaccos. In 2019, J.C. Newman released the Brick House Ciento Por Ciento TAA Exclusive (2019), which was also a Nicaraguan puro. Production comes from the JC Newman PENSA factory in Estelí, Nicaragua.

Wrapper: Nicaraguan
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: Puros de Estelí Nicaragua, S.A. (J.C. Newman PENSA)

Vitolas Offered

The Bricktoberfest 2022 was offered in one size – a 6 x 52 Toro. It was presented in ten-count boxes.

Appearance

The Nicaraguan wrapper of the Bricktoberfest 2022 had a dark cinnamon color. There was a lot of oil on the wrapper and a slight amount of mottling. The surface of the wrapper had some prominent veins that were visible. Any visible wrapper seams were on the thin side. The cap of the cigar has a thick pigtail that was affixed to it.

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw

As opposed to pulling the pigtail off the Bricktoberfest 2022, a straight cut was used to remove the cap and pigtail simultaneously. Once the cap was removed, it was time to begin the pre-light draw experience. The cold draw delivered a mix of earth and wood. From a flavor perspective, this was not a great pre-light draw experience. Since the pre-light draw is not scored, there is no loss of points on the numeric score or assessment rating. At this point, it was time to pull the footer band off the Bricktoberfest 2022, toast up the cigar, and head into the smoking phase.

Tasting Notes

The Bricktoberfest 2022 started out with notes of earth, wood, and black pepper. As the cigar moved through the opening stages, natural tobacco and cedar notes emerged. Continuing through the early stages, notes of earth, wood, and natural tobacco surfaced as the primary notes, with none of the notes dominant. Finally, the earth notes emerged as the sole primary note toward the latter part of the first third. The earth notes had a dank quality to them. Meanwhile, the wood, natural tobacco, pepper, and cedar rounded out the flavor profile with additional layers of black pepper and cedar on the retro-hale.

As the Bricktoberfest 2022 moved through the second, the natural tobacco notes returned to the forefront, joining the dank earth notes. The pepper, cedar, and wood notes remained secondary, but there was a slow, steady increase of the pepper during this stage.

The final third saw the natural tobacco notes take over as the primary note. The dank earth notes joined the pepper, wood, and cedar notes. The increase in the pepper leveled off, but this was still a secondary note to the natural tobacco. As the Bricktoberfest 2022 came to a close, the cigar finished with a cool nub in temperature that was soft to the touch.

Burn

The burn of the Bricktoberfest 2022 performance performed exceptionally well. This cigar maintained a straight burn path and straight burn line. Throughout the cigar experience, there were minimal touch-ups along the way. The resulting ash was firm with several shades of gray. As for the burn rate and burn temperature, both performed at ideal rates.

Burn of the Bricktoberfest 2022

Draw

While I usually prefer a draw with a touch of resistance, the resistance level of the Bricktoberfest 2022 was higher than I prefer. At the same time, I could still derive flavor, and no re-lights were required along the way.

Strength and Body

The Bricktoberfest 2022 started with medium-strength and medium-bodied flavors. There wasn’t a huge change in the intensity levels, so when the cigar experience concluded, the medium strength and body remained.

BANDING AND PACKAGING NOTES

The Bricktoberfest 2022 features the standard Brick House band as the primary band. The secondary band rests near the footer, indicating it is the 2022 edition of the Bricktoberfest. The cigars are packaged in a classic wrap box.

Bricktoberfest 2022 Packaging (Photo Credit: J.C. Newman Cigar Company)

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

The Bricktoberfest 2022 didn’t light the world on fire for me, but it still provided a pleasant cigar experience. Compared to many of the overpriced limited edition cigars that hit the market, the Bricktoberfest holds its own. The flavors performed very nicely and complemented each other nicely throughout the smoking experience. I could recommend it to any cigar enthusiast. It’s also an excellent cigar for someone who is a core Brick House cigar enthusiast. As for myself, this is a cigar I would buy and smoke again. The good news is at press time, the Bricktoberfest can be found at many retailers.

Summary

Key Flavors: Dank Earth, Natural Tobacco, Wood, Cedar, Pepper, Caramel, Bakers Spice
Burn: Excellent
Draw: Very Good
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium
Finish: Very Good