Kafie 1901 - Sumatra Written Review

Their Story: With over a century and four generations of family in Honduras they are committed to produce the finest cigars to honor Honduras, our legacy, and that of Rolando Reyes Sr. and his heirs (Reyes Family Cigars).

From their Website: http://www.kafiecigars.com/

"All cigars are not created equal. The philosophy and methods used at the Puros Aliados Tobacco Factory in Danli, Honduras are legendary. We share a common goal with the late Don Rolando Reyes Sr., to create cigars that are a pleasure to smoke. This blend has an amazing wrapper sun grown in Ecuador. It is aged 4 years and is smooth, soft on the palate, with flavors of rich cream, almond, earth, and mild expresso notes. The blend really comes to life minutes after lighting. It has an amazing and mesmorizing semi sweet finish. Composed of all long filler tobacco from Honduras, the Dominican Republic, and Nicaragua, and Ecuador. Cuban seed Habano binder really balances out the flavors and gives you that liveliness that modern connoisseurs are looking for. Smooth, balanced, flavorful and silky to the finish. This is a cigar that can be enjoyed any time of day. "

The Kafie 1901 Sumatra features a shade grown Sumatra wrapper from Ecuador. The binder is from the farms of Reyes Family Cigars (Dani,Honduras), and filler tobaccos are a blend from the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. Their focus is in creating blends that are traditional, flavorful, balanced, and timeless. As with the Habano Maduro and Connecticut, the Ecuador Sumatra is a permanent blend. Kafie Cigars believes strongly in making cigars that connoisseurs will develop relationships with. There are great challenges in creating permanent blends, but we feel it is well worth the time and effort.

Blend Profile

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra Shade Grown Colorado Binder: Honduras (Reyes Family Farms) Filler: Nicaraguan, Dominican Country of Origin: Honduras

Robusto 5 x 50

Medium-to-Full Bodied

Pairing Choice: Fresh Dark Roast Coffee

Prelight Ritual:

The only thing missing from this Séance are four exceedingly gorgeous witches...I'll make do with the coffee, cutter and matches. We do what we must.

Taking the tour, the Cigar wrapper is dark-brown with several pronounced veins; it appears to be firmly rolled, with an open foot with a bit of a dry cap. There we both dry spots as well as oily patches along the leaf. It made me feel as though I had a cigar that may well have been on hold a while at the retailer before finding its way to my Humidor.The band is very attractive in its simplicity, signature Kafie Logo with burgundy and gold striping and "Sumatra" identifying the Blend at the bottom.To the nose it presented an undeniable dank earthy tone, much like Moss after it's dried out. There was a faint hint of chocolate and wood to it as well, but it was rather secondary and offered a bit of distraction for the primary smell. Time to cut this bad boy....

Cold Draw: The first thing that cropped up was a subtle sweetness with a nutty, bitter dark chocolate tone. I had to sit a few minutes discerning the flavor because of how subtle all the flavors were. At times I picked up woody notes, and others I got that dank earthy quality I'd previously mentioned.

Let's get it toasted and lit, as they say "Daylight's burnin'"

First Draw: The initial light up almost immediately reinforced the Earthy tones, but completely unexpected was a slightly bitter, almost citrus quality...perhaps that of Grapefruit that bit into the back of my tongue with a tang. I could easily discern an espresso bean joining in on the party to make things interesting. A few puffs in I was very taken aback by the complexity of flavors. It was very much in the spirit of being surrounded and having a hard time focusing in on one particular thing. There was a blast of flavors that took my palate by storm.

First Third:

Soldier on, and CHARLIE MIKE! (Continue Mission).... The overall flavor profile has not changed much, with the exception of an added Peppery nuance to cut through the bitterness. Retro gave the best opportunity to develop this taste which was a welcomed addition. The burn started off great but quickly became uneven and even burning from the inside of the cigar outward in spots about a 1/2 inch further up the cigar. I don't recall ever having that happen before, but it is what it is. Strength levelled off into a Full-Character Medium that could crest into Full Bodied at times. Smoke generation was solid, but not overwhelming and at points required some coaxing to really get going. At this point I'm looking forward to how the cigar will develop; it's been a bit of a wild roller coaster of a ride.

Half Way There:

Out of the bitter toned smoke, I grasp for my mug of coffee...sipping ever so patiently to cleanse the taste buds again. Rounding into the second third, the bitter espresso bean becomes much more evident, and the citrus note fades into the shadows, lurking like a creature of the night...hunting...haunting. Wood, Earth, and Spice also make a stronger appearance here eager to be heard. Smoke production picks up and the Ash continues to be a flaky cake, with distinct ribboning in spots. Burn consistency has been a concern through this point often catching up, and then racing up one side again.

The flavors have been a whirlwind of complexity, and continue to keep me guessing. I am ever edging forward in anticipation of what's to come next. COME AT ME BRAH! I can take it!

Final Third and Onward to the Nub:

WOW! Gadzooks! (Pick your exclamation) What a journey!

The last time I had this much fun on a trip was watching National Lampoons Vacation and their Road Trip! This is no ordinary Griswold folks; it's more like Wally world...the Ups, the downs, the whiplash in flavors...

I finally put my finger on the flavor that was eluding me a bit here at the end. I'm betting it's because the flavors REALLY become pronounced at this stage. I pinpointed the sharpness I'd tasted and can only describe it as an "IPA" Beer...the flavor has been HOPS! Something that really makes no sense until you try one for yourself and can taste what I mean. The burn finally evened off, and the blend of flavors actually began to complement one another more than they had to this point. Tangy, Earthy, Woody, Mossy, perhaps a bit musky. Influences of pepper continued to slap my mouth around long enough for that haunting of citrus to come back for a reprisal.

Conclusion and Recommendation:

Dr. Kafie, what you have done here is sent me on a whirlwind adventure. I have to say it's similar I think to the Pioneers as they set out and forged a new world in the West. You've presented me with a challenge in getting the flavor profile adequately identified. For this I thank you! Flavor wise this cigar has a LOT to offer, but I would not recommend this to the non-mature palate, it would almost be too overwhelming and likely not appreciated for what it is. You can tell the level of craftsmanship and knowledge that has gone into this blend.

CigarSticks Score: 3 out of 5 Beards - If you have an opportunity, you should pick these up, and hold them in your humi for 30-60 days before tackling them. If you are a newer smoker, buy these with caution as it's a lot to take in early on.