Gurkha Cellar Reserve — A Vintage Cigar

The Gurkha Cellar Reserve is a new release from the recently renamed Gurkha Cigar Group.  As soon as I received this stick I was curious both because of the interesting shape of the cigar as well as the complex label.  The label is large with lots of information.  It tells you that the cigar is a Dominican puro, and the tobacco has aged 15 years.  I was also looking forward to a nice long smoke since the size of the cigar is large.  I kept this cigar waiting for a good opportunity to enjoy and that was with a group of friends watching NCAA basketball in Las Vegas.

When first unwrapping this so called ‘Doble Robusto’, you notice a great dark oily wrapper that is without blemish and an unusual head.  The head of the cigar is finished in a pig-tail treatment.  this means that the additional part of the tobacco wrapper leaf is twisted and then curled into a tight circle atop the cigar.  It’s not easy for the roller to do and is really nice looking.  I clipped the top of the cigar and it lit easily.  The draw was even and free.

This cigar remained lit and burned evenly although I was paying little attention to it on a regular basis.  Every once and a while I would think about the cigar, take a few puffs, think to myself this was a really good stick, and then turn back to the basketball.  Only a well constructed cigar would take this inattention.  This is a flavorful smoke.  Rich tastes, which vary through the cigar, contribute to a complex and full flavor.  But, I don’t think the cigar is full bodied in that there wasn’t a powerful pepper or spicy tone to it.  I got lots of earthy flavor, oak and leather at the start.  There was just a hint of spice and sharpness, more like a mellow Mexican mole flavor than pepper.  At all times the smoke was voluminous and heavy.  At the end of the cigar I was getting a bit of sweetness.  it presented as a vanilla or honey taste that was extremely pleasant.

These cigars are very hard to find but well worth the effort to get them.  Even at the $8 – $13 price point that they retail for, I was impressed enough to remark that this was a cigar I would buy again and again.