West Tampa Circle of Life — West Tampa Tobacco Co Circle of Life Toro

Today, we review the Circle of Life in the Toro size from West Tampa Tobacco Co.. West Tampa was formed in 2022 by two alumni from General Cigar Company, Rick Rodriguez and Gus Martinez. Circle of Life is the fourth regular production line from West Tampa. For the company’s first three releases, West Tampa turned to the Garmedia Cigar Factory in Nicaragua. This time, West Tampa turns to the Dominican Republic and an old friend in Ernesto Perez-Carrillo to produce this cigar at his Casa Carrillo facility.

Perez-Carrillo also has ties to General. After all, they acquired his El Credito company, and he stayed with General for almost a decade. Rick Rodriguez was a member of the sales team at General when the late Edgar Cullman selected him to participate in a rigorous cigar masters program under Benji Menendez, Daniel Nunez, and Perez-Carrillo. After Perez-Carrillo left in 2008 to form E.P. Carrillo, Rick joined the blending team of La Gloria Cubana. With STG’s acquisition of CAO in 2009, Rick moved over to become the blender and ambassador of CAO, a role he has held since 2010. Now with West Tampa and Circle of Life, Rodriguez is reunited with one of his mentors. Essentially, this has brought Rodriguez “full circle,” thus the inspiration for the name.

Now, without further ado, let’s break down the Circle of Life Toro and see what this cigar brings to the table.

West Tampa Tobacco Co Circle of Life Toro – Cigar Review

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

Circle of Life uses Ecuadorian tobaccos for the wrapper (Habano Oscuro) and binder (Sumatra). The filler features both Nicaraguan and Dominican tobaccos. As mentioned, production for the Circle of Life comes from Casa Carrillo in the Dominican Republic.

Wrapper: Ecuador Habano Oscuro
Binder: Ecuador Sumatra
Filler: Nicaraguan (Jalapa, Condega and Estelí), Dominican Corojo ’99
Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
Factory: Casa Carrillo

Vitolas Offered

Packaged in 20-count boxes, the Circle of Life is available in three sizes:

Robusto: 5 x 52 (SRP $12.99)
Toro: 6 X 54 (SRP $13.99)
Gigante: 6 x 60 (SRP $14.99)

**Appearance (*)**

The Circle of Life Toro’s Ecuadorian Oscuro wrapper had a rich, roasted coffee bean color. The wrapper itself had a slight sheen of oil as well as a slightly oily complexion. Upon closer examination, some mottling can also be seen on the wrapper. There were some visible veins, and the dark color of the wrapper made the seams minimally visible.

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw (*)

Before lighting up the Circle of Life Toro, a straight cut was used to remove the cap of the cigar. From that point, it was time to commence the pre-light draw experience. The cold draw delivered a mix of coffee bean, earth, and a touch of date sweetness. Overall, this proved to be a satisfactory pre-light draw experience. At this point, it was time to remove the footer ribbon from the Circle of Life cigar, toast it, and move into the smoking phase.

Tasting Notes

The Circle of Life Toro started with notes of coffee bean, earth, and white pepper. As the cigar progressed through the early phases, the date sweetness that I had picked up on in the pre-light draw resurfaced. The date and coffee bean notes took center stage early on. The earth and pepper settled in the background and were soon joined by baker’s spice. Meanwhile, there was an additional layer of pepper on the retro-hale with some touches of cedar.

The second third of the Circle of Life Toro opened up with the coffee bean and date as the primary notes. There was an increase in the earth, pepper, and baker’s spice. The date sweetness slowly diminished. Just before the midway point, the earth joined the coffee bean. The date settled in the background, complemented by the pepper and baker’s spice.

By the final third, the earth took over as the primary note. In the background, the date, pepper, baker’s spice, and coffee bean rounded out the flavors. This is the way the Circle of Life Toro came to a close. The resulting nub was soft to the touch and cool in temperature.

Burn

The burn of the Circle of Life Toro tended to meander off a straight line at times. This required frequent touch-ups, and it needed more touch-ups than I prefer. There was also a slight amount of jaggedness on the burn line. The resulting ash wasn’t overly firm, but it wasn’t loose nor flaky either. The resulting ash had a salt-and-pepper color complexion. Meanwhile, the burn rate and burn temperature maintained ideal levels.

Draw

The draw of the Circle of Life Toro was definitely on the open side. While I wouldn’t call it overly loose, it was still more open than I preferred. If one is distracted, I could see this open draw leading to some combustion issues later on. In the end, I was able to control the combustion, but I definitely would have liked to see more resistance on this cigar.

Strength and Body

The Circle of Life opened up with medium strength. As the cigar experience progressed, the strength increased, but ultimately, it remained in the medium range. As for the body, this cigar delivered bold and deep flavors. The flavors started out medium to full-bodied, and by the second half, they had become full-bodied.

When it came to strength versus body, the body had the edge. This was a case of a cigar having bold flavors without having a nicotine punch.

BANDING AND PACKAGING NOTES (*)

For the most part, West Tampa has opted for a contemporary style in banding and packaging its products, and Circle of Life is no exception. The West Tampa guitar pick logo, surrounded by a C, makes up the logo. In general, I liked the gold and gray color scheme, and I liked how it contrasted with the Oscuro wrapper.

West Tampa Circle of Life Packaging (Photo Credit: West Tampa Tobacco Co)

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

The first third of the West Tampa Circle of Life Toro started off promising, but I found the flavor profile less interesting as I continued smoking. Although the flavors became bolder, this shift unfortunately did not enhance my experience. While the burn and draw were acceptable, they required more attention than I prefer. I will say that this flavor profile is unlike anything I’ve encountered from Casa Carrillo before. Ultimately, I recommend trying a sample of this cigar to see if it suits your taste.

Summary

Key Flavors: Coffee Bean, Earth, Date, Baker’s Spice, Pepper
Burn: Good
Draw: Good
Complexity: Medium
Strength: Medium
Body: Medium to Full (1st Half), Full (2nd Half)
Finish: Very Good