El Pulpo Belicoso Grande Review — El Pulpo Belicoso Grande by Artesano Del Tobacco

Today, we review the El Pulpo in the Belicoso Grande size from Artesano Del Tobacco. In 2023, Artesano Del Tobacco introduced its second brand, El Pulpo. Artesano Del Tobacco is the company that Billy and Gus Fakih launched. The Fakih brothers are best known for being the original owners of the popular Cigar Inn stores located in Manhattan, New York. In 2019, the Fakih brothers turned their attention to becoming brand owners and launched Artesano Del Tobacco. The first four years saw Artesano Del Tobacco focus on its first brand, Viva La Vida. At the same time, the Fakih Brothers were in the background at work on their second brand, El Pulpo.

El Pulpo translates to “The Octopus.” The Fakih brothers chose to name their cigar after this fascinating creature for a couple of reasons. First, just as an octopus wraps itself around its prey, they wanted a cigar that would envelop the consumer in a similar way. Second, much like an octopus can adapt to different spaces and take on various shapes, they aimed to create a cigar that would appeal to a wide range of tastes. While El Pulpo is designed to be a bold, full-bodied cigar, it is also crafted to be approachable for many cigar enthusiasts.

Without further ado, let’s break down the El Pulpo Belicoso Grande and see what this cigar brings to the table.

El Pulpo Belicoso Grande by Artesano Del Tobacco – Cigar Review

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

Wrapper: Mexican San Andres Maduro
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Country of Origin: Nicaragua
Factory: San Lotano

Vitolas Offered

The El Pulpo is offered in six sizes. The Robusto Grande, Toro Grande, and Belicoso Grande are box-pressed offerings. These three sizes, along with the Lancero, come in ten-count boxes. The Fry comes in five-count soft packs (or a 20-count case). Meanwhile, the Octo Ocho is housed in coffins that are presented in boxes containing three coffins.

Lancero: 7 x 38
Octo Ocho (Culebra): 7 x 38
The Fry: 4 x 48
Robusto Grande: 5 x 56
Toro Grande: 6 x 56
Belicoso Grande: 5 3/4 x 58

Appearance (*)

The San Andres Mexican wrapper of El Pulpo Belicoso Grande had a roasted dark espresso bean color. There wasn’t much oil on the surface of the wrapper. Despite the dark color of the wrapper, upon closer inspection, some mottling was present on the surface. Additionally, the wrapper had a slight amount of toothiness. There were some visible veins and visible wrapper seams. The box-press of the Belicoso Grande had a sharp, square-shaped press to it. The Belicoso tip had a short, yet slightly steep taper.

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw (*)

A straight cut was placed into the tip of El Pulpo Belicoso Grande. I took slightly more than half of the tip off. This allowed me to still get a tapering effect on the cigar once it was lit. From that point, it was time to commence with the pre-light draw. The cold draw drew a mix of mocha and cedar. Mocha is a term I used in reviews to describe a fusion between coffee and chocolate. The mocha here had that fusion with a slight edge to the coffee. With the pre-light draw ritual complete, it was time to toast up the footer of El Pulpo Belicoso Grande and move into the smoking stage.

Tasting Notes

El Pulpo Belicoso Grande opened up with more notes of mocha and cedar. Additionally, notes of citrus, earth, and mixed pepper were present. Early on, the mocha notes took center stage. Like the pre-light draw, there was a fusion of the chocolate and coffee components with a slight edge to the coffee component. The cedar and citrus were close secondary notes, with the pepper and earth more distant. On the retro-hale, there were additional layers of pepper and cedar, both at equal levels.

The second third of El Pulpo Belicoso Grande saw the cedar notes join the mocha in the forefront. The mocha still held together, and the coffee had a relatively similar edge over the chocolate component. There was a gradual increase in the pepper notes. Meanwhile, the citrus component slightly receded, and earthy notes were still present. The pepper also slightly increased on the retrohale.

The final third saw the mocha and cedar remain the primary notes. The pepper was more prominent during this section of the cigar than the previous two-thirds. Meanwhile, citrus and earth rounded out the flavor profile. This is the way El Pulpo Belicoso Grande held on until the end. The resulting nub was slightly soft to the touch and lukewarm.

Burn

The burn of El Pulpo Belicoso Grande performed very well. For the most part, the cigar maintained a straight burn path and straight burn line. While some touch-ups were needed, an excessive amount was not required. The resulting ash was on the firm side. There was a classic salt-and-pepper colored ash. The burn rate was ideal. The burn temperature was ideal, but it did get a little lukewarm at the end. By the time the burn got warmer, a small nub remained, and it was time to put down the cigar.

Draw

I really liked the draw on El Pulpo Belicoso Grande. It had a touch of resistance, which I like. This wasn’t an overly open draw like many box-pressed cigars are. The Belicoso tip also held up very well. Most importantly, it was easy to derive flavor from this cigar.

Strength and Body

El Pulpo Belicoso Grande delivered a medium to full strength, medium to full-bodied smoke from start to finish. There was a slight increase in intensity of the strength and body as the cigar experience progressed, but both attributes remained in medium to full territory.

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

BANDING AND PACKAGING NOTES (*)

Artesano Del Tobacco features contemporary packaging for both its Viva La Vida and El Pulpo products. The packaging for Viva La Vida has a subtle carnival theme, which I find appealing. I also appreciate that the design style of El Pulpo aligns with that of Viva La Vida. The octopus in the logo resonates with me, and I really like the maroon and gold fonts used on both the box and the band.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

In the introduction, I mentioned how Artesano Del Tobacco was looking to wrap itself around the consumer’s palate much like an Octopus can wrap itself around things. The mocha flavors of El Pulpo Belicoso Grande did precisely that, and what was nice is that the mocha held on right until the end. Meanwhile, they were also looking for a cigar to satisfy a wide range of palates – and I think they succeeded here. This is a bolder cigar, but one that is approachable. Ultimately, I would recommend this cigar to experienced enthusiasts, but I wouldn’t hesitate to offer it to a novice seeking a bold option. Personally, while I prefer cigars with more flavor transitions, the El Pulpo Belicoso Grande is still satisfying. It’s definitely a cigar I would buy and enjoy again.

I look forward to trying some of the other sizes.

Summary

Key Flavors: Mocha (Coffee, Chocolate), Cedar, Citrus, Earth, Pepper
Burn: Excellent
Draw: Excellent
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Medium to Full
Body: Medium to Full
Finish: Very Good