Reserva Del Mercante XXX - Cameroon, Corojo & Maduro

Hey team, Don José here back with another review.

Today we have the

'Reserva Del Mercante XXX' Cameroon, Corojo & Maduro to try!

If this is your first time here, my reviews rate each cigar on 10 factors and each factor gets a rating out of 10 giving me an overall out of 100. The 10 factors are: Construction, Draw, Burn, Flavour, 1/3 overall, 2/3 overall, 3/3 overall, Journey (how well it flows), Complexity & Value for money.

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Overview

Incase you missed it, we recently announced the Reserva Del Mercante XXX, a celebratory new cigar release by Grant 'The Cigar Merchant'.

Well the first 3 of that line up have handed on NZ shores and I have them here to sample!

Available now on canteros.nz are the Cameroon, Corojo and Maduro, with the Connecticut Shade to be added shortly.

In a slightly different format than normal, I will review the current 3 in one place so that you can read and see what might be the pick for you - though im sure you will want to try them all anyway.

All the tobacco used in this line is a minimum of 6 years old and the rolled cigars have been rested for 12 months. As only the wrapper is disclosed in each blend (unless you managed to read the introduction mailer before we changed it...), and they are all Robusto, details for the three are:

Details:

• Size: 5x50 Robusto

• Wrappers: Ecuadorian Cameroon, Dominican Corojo & Brazilian Maduro

• Binder: Undisclosed

• Fillers: Undisclosed

About the Wrappers.

Cameroon Tobacco

Cameroon tobacco, as the name indicates, comes from the African nation of the same name and also neighbouring Central African Republic. The Cameroon strain was born from Sumatra seed. Cameroon is now used mainly as wrapper leaf to lend flavour to mild filler blends. Cameroon tends to convey notes of butter, pepper and leather.

Corojo 

Popular releases like Rocky Patel The Edge use the Corojo (core-ro-ho) leaf that originated in Cuba, but today is grown mostly in Honduras and Western Kentucky, a little is grown in Dominican Republic and thats where this cigar gets its tobacco.

Cubans used the leaf for wrappers that carried a significant level of spice, but the susceptibility of the Corojo leaf to disease led the Cubans to abandon it and develop hybrids like Habano 2000. Honduras grows pure Corojo, but hybrids are grown in many other regions.

Maduro 

Here's where things get a little more complicated... So, generally speaking the colour of a cigar wrapper is an indicator of how much fermentation and oxidation the tobacco leaf has gone through. The darker the colour, the greater the degree of fermentation and the denser the flavour.

Maduro actually just means “mature” in Spanish, so it's not a tobacco type. Maduro cigar wrappers have a reputation for the sweetness of their flavour and aroma. They come in shades from deep red to brown to almost black, a colour that’s achieved through long fermentations at higher temperatures.

If a Wrapper is from Brazil, it's generally going to be a Mata Fina which translates to thin forest and that is the case for the Maduro Reserva Del Mercante XXX.

The three primary Mata Fina tobaccos are:

• Mata Sul tobacco comes from the southern area of Mata Fina. Abundant rainfall and fertile soil contribute to the tobacco’s mild body and flavour, but it is tough to harvest because much of the crop is grown on steep hillsides.

• Mata Săo Gonçal is an excellent wrapper crop because neighbouring cocoa farmers fertilise the soil with natural compost that imparts much flavour to the tobacco.

• Mata Norte is grown in the north of Reconcavo in an arid climate where the tobacco is cured in open air, imparting a particularly vigorous flavour. This crop makes for an ideal filler and is characterised by notes of coffee beans and nuts.

You’ll encounter two additional Brazilian tobaccos used for wrapper: 

• Arapiraca is milder than traditional Mata Fina tobacco, but is great for adding subtle and complex taste to a mellow cigar. The leaves are larger and darker than Mata Fina.

• Brazilian Sumatra refers to crops grown from Indonesian seeds in Brazil. These Shade Grown wrappers are not known for possessing much flavour.  

So, while we can't know what tobacco is exactly on this cigar, it's a Brazilian grown, Mata Fina tobacco fermented to Maduro.

let's get into the review.

First thoughts

All there cigars look amazing. Even though Grant has opted for band-less bundles to keep prices more friendly for Aotearoa Afficionados, they still look great with just the government ordered green bands.

There isn't a huge amount of difference in them visually, the Maduro isn't super dark, and the Cameroon is surprisingly dark making them each only a slight shade apart.

Unsurprisingly, the Maduro is the toothiest, followed by the Corojo, and the Cameroon is silky smooth.

The Cold Draw:

Cameroon - Almond, Oak and natural tobacco with some sweetness upfront.

Corojo - Mostly leather but some fruit sweetness too

Maduro - Tonnes of powdered chocolate!

Construction

All three have flawless construction, no soft spots, no blemishes.

Burn & Draw All 3 also had perfect draw and a near perfect burn. No touch ups needed on any of them.

Flavour & Complexity Cameroon - Plenty of wood and leather, sweetness present throughout with sections of cinnamon and nut.

Corojo - This has the most punch. Good bit of nut and a solid helping of pepper with hints of leather, and a subtle sweetness at times.

Maduro - This would be the lest complex of the group. Some sweetness in parts, cocao, coffee and a hit of spice.

Strength Cameroon - Mid strength, 60%

Corojo - Full, 85%

Maduro - Mid-Full, 70%

Enjoyment / Journey Cameroon - I do love a Cameroon wrapper!

Corojo - The most diverse journey of the 3, great build throughout and ends with a bang.

Maduro - A great cigar, like many Maduro, its not as... 'interesting' as other wrappers. But a great example of a Maduro none the less.

Overall 3 amazing cigars, congrats again to Grant and the team. For me the pick of the bunch was the Cameroon, even tho the Corojo scored the same, Cameroons are still less common and always a pleasure to smoke.

I rate these cigar:

Cameroon - 93

Corojo - 93

Maduro - 91

Get some while you can!

A look at the numbers.

Cameroon

Construction -- 10/10

Burn -- 9/10

Draw -- 9/10

Flavour -- 10/10

Complexity -- 8/10

First 1/3 -- 9/10

Second 1/3 -- 9/10

Third 1/3 -- 10/10

Journey -- 9/10

Value -- 10/10

Corojo

Construction -- 10/10

Burn -- 9/10

Draw -- 9/10

Flavour -- 9/10

Complexity -- 9/10

First 1/3 -- 9/10

Second 1/3 -- 9/10

Third 1/3 -- 9/10

Journey -- 10/10

Value -- 10/10

Maduro

Construction -- 10/10

Burn -- 9/10

Draw -- 10/10

Flavour -- 9/10

Complexity -- 7/10

First 1/3 -- 9/10

Second 1/3 -- 9/10

Third 1/3 -- 9/10

Journey -- 9/10

Value -- 10/10

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About the author

Joe Murdie aka Don José has been reviewing cigars in New Zealand for over 10 years now, originally as a writer for NZBlokes, a mens magazine.

Outside of Cigars Joe is an international award winning film-maker based in Wānaka, OTA.