Today, we take a look at the Sobremesa Brûlée Blue Unicorn by Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust. This brings together the best of two worlds. First, it combines master ligador Steve Saka’s Unicorn vision. For the Unicorn, Saka decided to work on a project and spend as much money as possible to create a cigar. To make this project a reality, Saka would find some high-quality tobacco to work with and use two of the best torcedors he could access to make this cigar. These pairs would roll a labor-intensive Diademas Deluxe vitola. It would be released under the Muestra de Saka brand and sold for $100.00 per cigar. Second, it brings the Sobremesa Brûlée Blue blend into the Unicorn concept. The Sobremesa Brûlée Blue is a tweaked, stronger blend of Dunbarton’s milder Sobremesa Brûlée line.
Following the original release of the Muestra de Saka Unicorn, Saka began experimenting with some of his other blends to bring them into the ultra-premium line. Early in 2023, he announced the Sobremesa Brûlée Blue Unicorn and the Mi Querida Black Unicorn. Both were originally charity auction releases, but then Saka decided to do a limited run. Our focus is on the Sobremesa Brûlée Blue Unicorn.
SPECIFICATIONS
- Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade – Grade A++
- Binder: Cultivo Tonto San Andreas Negro
- Filler: Nicaraguan
- Country of Origin: Nicaragua
- Factory: Tabacos Cubanica S.A.
- Diadema Deluxe: 6 1/4 x 60
Each Sobremesa Brûlée Blue Unicorn is packaged in an individual coffin. The coffins are packaged in seven-count trays.
PERFORMANCE
Not to bring up the whole STFU! controversy of a sweetened cap, I detected a sweetened cap on the Sobremesa Brûlée Blue Unicorn that gave me a sweet cream note on the pre-light draw and once lit. As the cigar moved through the early phases, some notes of butterscotch and bread complemented the sweet cream notes. The retro-hale had some wood notes. Later in the first third, the butterscotch joined the sweet cream, which was slowly shedding its sweetness. At the same time a cedar note emerged on the tongue and retro-hale replacing the classic wood note. By the end of the second third, the cedar joined the butterscotch in the forefront. The bread and cream notes remained in the background. This would hold until the final third. The Brûlée Blue Unicorn finished with a soft, cool nub.
The Brûlée Blue Unicorn started out with mild strength and mild to medium-bodied flavors. By the final third, the strength was mild to medium, and the flavors were medium-bodied. The burn did require more touch-ups than I prefer. Meanwhile, the draw of this cigar was a little snug, but it didn’t force any re-lights.
OVERALL ASSESSMENT
Final Thoughts
When Saka created the original Muestra de Saka Unicorn, I declared it the best Connecticut Broadleaf cigar I ever smoked. I have purchased several more of the $100 cigars since then and enjoy the vitola as a celebratory cigar. As for the Sobremesa Brûlée Blue Unicorn, it’s an excellent cigar. It punches everything needed to score a 90 and earn a Cigar Coop Standard of Excellence. It also was a fun size to smoke. However, the original Sobremesa Brûlée Blue parejo still smoked better. As a result, this cigar is still a “Try a Sample” in my book – but most likely, this is not a cigar you will ever find a sample to try. It’s just our category that fits best in this case.
Summary
Key Flavors: Natural Tobacco (some fruit and caramel qualities), Earth, Cedar, Pepper
Burn: Very Good
Draw: Very Good
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Mild (1st 2/3), Mild to Medium (Final Third)
Body: Mild to Medium (1st 2/3), Medium (Final Third)
Finish: Very Good
Rating
Value: Try a Sample
Score: 90
Cigar Coop Standard of Excellence
REFERENCES
Previous Assessment: Sobremesa Brûlée Blue by Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust
News: Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust Adding Limited Edition Sobremesa Brûlée Blue and Mi Querida Black Unicorns at PCA 2023
Price: $100.00
Source: Purchased
Brand Reference: Dunbarton Tobacco and Trust
Photo Credits: Cigar Coop
Note: Agile Cigar Reviews are cigar assessments using 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.
