Atabey Black Ritos by Selected Tobacco

Today, we review the Atabey Black Ritos from Selected Tobacco. Over the past few years, NFTs have gotten some traction in the cigar industry. In particular, La Flor Dominicana, Tatuaje, and Smoke Inn have made headlines by setting up NFT auctions to give people the right to purchase special limited offerings. When the history is written with NFTs in the cigar industry, the company that actually lays claim to being the first significant NFT cigar release is Selected Tobacco. On April 1, 2021 (yes, April Fools Day), Selected Tobacco launched its NFT offering with the Atabey Black.

At the time, the cigar debuted in a conceptual form where digital art was offered. In this way, cigar enthusiasts could purchase the NFT boxes at a set price of $1,200 as Atabey Black Ritos NFTs were released with a charitable intent (proceeds would be donated to Cigar Rights of the World) and not as an auction item. U.S.-based retailers purchased five NFT boxes, allowing them to buy an allotted portion of this limited production once the cigar had come out. At the time, there were no guarantees that Selected Tobacco would even release the Atabey Black. That would change a couple of years later.

Let’s break down the Atabey Black Ritos without further ado and see what this cigar offers.

Atabey Black Ritos by Selected Tobacco – Cigar Review

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

In recent years, Selected Tobacco has been a little more open about disclosing its blends. We are told some components of the blend for the Atabey Black, but others are still undisclosed. Atabey Black features an Ecuadorian Maduro wrapper over an undisclosed binder. The filler features Peruvian ligero and other undisclosed tobaccos. Production comes out of Costa Rica at the Tabacos de Costa Rica factory.

Once rolled, the cigars were aged over a period of five years in rooms lined with Spanish cedar and French oak.

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Maduro
Binder: Undisclosed
Filler: Peruvian Ligero and Undisclosed
Country of Origin: Costa Rica
Factory: Tabacos de Costa Rica

Vitolas Offered

At press time, the Atabey Black comes in one size – a 6 1/2 x 55 parejo known as Ritos. The Ritos vitola also exists in the core Atabey line. The cigar is a limited-production cigar that has been released in small batches. The cigar being assessed here is from the 2023 production, which had a total of 200 25-count boxes (5,000 cigars) produced.

Appearance (*)

The Ecuadorian Maduro wrapper of the Atabey Black Ritos was cocoa-colored. There was a very light sheen of oil on the surface of the wrapper, which had some thin visible veins. Most of the wrapper seams were not very noticeable. This cigar had a smooth wrapper that I could easily categorize as “pristine.”

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw (*)

A straight cut was used to remove the cap of the Atabey Black Ritos. Once the cap was removed, it was time to commence the pre-light draw experience. The cold draw delivered a mix of cocoa, cedar, and earth. Overall, this was a satisfactory pre-light draw experience. At this point, it was time to remove the footer band of the Atabey Black Ritos and head into the smoking experience.

Tasting Notes

The Atabey Black Ritos opened with notes of mocha, earth, and cedar. The mocha notes were a classic fusion of chocolate and coffee notes. The mocha notes quickly moved into the forefront. The earth and cedar settled in the background. In addition, a creamy component surfaced in the background. Meanwhile, there was an additional layer of cedar on the retro-hale.

The mocha notes remained in the forefront as the Atabey Black Ritos moved into the second third. The cedar notes began a gradual increase. Just past the midway point, the coffee component of the mocha displaced the chocolate component. There also was an increase in the earth notes. At the same time, a slight pepper note also emerged in the background. By the end of the second third, the coffee notes remained primary. The cedar, earth, and pepper were background notes, and there was still a touch of cream.

In the final third, the cedar notes joined the coffee notes in the forefront. Earth, pepper, and cream notes remained. This is how the Atabey Black Ritos came to a close. The resulting nub was soft to the touch and cool in temperature.

Burn

The burn of the Atabey Black Ritos started out low maintenance with a straight burn path and straight burn line. The second third saw the cigar require multiple touch-ups. More touch-ups were needed than I preferred. The resulting ash had a salt and pepper color to it. The ash wasn’t overly firm but wasn’t loose or flaky. As for the burn rate and burn temperature, both maintained ideal levels.

Burn of the Atabey Black Ritos

Draw

The draw of the Atabey Black Ritos performed well. It had a touch of resistance – which is something I always prefer when it comes to a draw. At the same time, this was a low-maintenance cigar from which to derive flavor.

Strength and Body

The strength and body of the Atabey Black Ritos opened up in the mild to medium range for both attributes. The intensity of both attributes gradually increased. By the midway point, both attributes had reached the medium threshold. The strength and body continued the gradual increase right until the end of the cigar but stayed in the medium range.

In terms of strength versus body, both attributes balanced each other, with neither attribute overshadowing the other.

BANDING AND PACKAGING NOTES (*)

The banding scheme for the Atabey Black Ritos is identical to the original Atabey line. The primary band is the standard white and gold, and there is no Atabey band, but there is a white, gold, and gray Selected Tobacco footer band. While I like the Atabey banding scheme, I would have preferred something to differentiate the Atabey Black banding from the core Atabey line.

The boxes for the Atabey Black are differentiated from the core line with a black box instead of the core line’s white box.

Packaging of the Atabey Black Ritos

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

I was hoping that someday, a darker wrapper offering would come to fruition with Selected Tobacco and Atabey, and the Atabey Black Ritos delivers. The cigar delivers excellent flavor, and coming in at 90 points, it earns a Cigar Coop Standard of Excellence designation. At $50.00, this is certainly not a cheap cigar, but it was an excellent cigar. On the flip side, this wasn’t quite at the level of some of the vitolas on the core line. Still, a Cigar Coop Standard of Excellence says this is a cigar recommended for smoking. In the end, this one is worth splurging on.

Summary

Key Flavors: Mocha (Coffee, Chocolate), Cedar, Earth, Cream, Pepper
Burn: Very Good
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Mild to Medium (1st Half), Medium (2nd Half)
Body: Mild to Medium (1st Half), Medium (2nd Half)
Finish: Very Good