Size:

Robusto

From the oldest cigar manufacturer in the Dominican Republic, the La Aurora Classic Series is a smooth medium bodied cigar with great flavor development that is often overlooked.

Pre-Smoke
The cameroon wrapper is a sort of mottled reddish brown which looks interesting, and the red and gold band is pretty classic.

Construction-wise the stick is well put together. Supple yet firmly packed, there are no soft spots and the scent of the wrapper is cocoa sweet. A cold draw is firm but acceptable, and produces a sweet tobacco flavor.

Burn

Easily started, the burn on this cigar is even, requiring no touchups and leaving a light gray, compact ash that holds well to the the cigar. The resting smoke is very pleasant and the amount of smoke produced is impressive.

The Flavor
While I do like pepper in a cigar, I really appreciate one that doesn't blast you at the beginning, but evolves over time, unfolding the flavors one by one. This cigar is excellent in its flavor development.

At first a toasty flavor with sweet notes and hints of cedar / cinnamon / cloves appears. The smoke is somewhat dry in the back of the throat with a nice long aftertaste / finish.

This develops into a more delicate cocoa-like sweetness with the spice notes as the supporting cast.  Maybe some black currant or raisin flavors are intermingled there as well, carrying the cigar through into the final third.

Then the floral and cedar notes appear and carry a slight, but not unpleasant, bitterness at the end.  A licorice flavor, like Blackjack Gum, also enters the palate to provide a punctuating end note to the smoking experience. This is an unusual flavor in a cigar, and some will like it and others will not.

This is a light to medium character cigar, and certainly worth trying to experience the flavor development and just a real dependable cigar.

The height of experience of this cigar is the 1495 series 1994 Cameroon Corona, if you can find them. Only 18,000 cigars were produced, but these were exceptional specimens of the La Aurora cigar line.

Region:

Dominican Republic

Rating:

xx by Cigar Aficionado

Length:

5"

Ring Gauge:

50

Filler:

Nicaragua, Peru, Dominican Republic

Binder:

Ecuador Corojo

Wrapper:

Ecuador Corojo

Price Range:

$

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Suggested Single Malt Pairing

Aberlour 12 Year Old

If you like the licorice note, the Aberlours fresh complex palate of malt sweetness with a licorice, anise and blackberry note complements this cigar perfectly.

Suggested Chocolate Pairing