Today’s review will be of the Arturo Fuente #55 which has a large ring gauge (55) and a length of 6 inches. Even though the length is slightly longer than the shark I thought it would be a neat idea to review this next and see how close the comparison was between the two.

Dimensons: 6 x 55
RH: 65%
Temp 67%
MSRP : $10.72 or so
Smoke Time: 1.5 hours

Since this was recently purchased, it only had a few weeks of rest on it but felt this allow me to establish a baseline for the smoke.

Once again, it’s price point makes it a good cigar to try at msrp, but try not to overpay for the cigar which will happen due to the rarity and demand generated during the holiday season. This cigar is offered twice a year, once during the Christmas season and the other during Father’s day.

Unlike the shark, the #55 comes cedar wrapped creating a sense of anticipation as you remove the cedar slowly exposing the cigar to the rest of the world……

The construction of this cigar is fairly firm throughout except for some soft spots by the head. I didn’t notice any tears initially on the cigar even though it had a rugged look to it, making it look like a masculine cigar and it was simply holding back it’s true power….

Taking off the cedar wrap exposed a very beautiful cigar…..

This Anejo has a dark wrapper that excudes dignity and beauty and simply makes it wonderful to admire. The Arturo Fuente label is classy as always with the bottom of the label in white. While the cigar itself has a bumpy like appearance, it’s something that I’ve noticed on all of the #55s so far.

I noticed prelight flavors of roasted nuts and obviously cognac due to the aging process that the Anejo wrapper experiences. As stated in the review of the Shark, I find this smell to be delicious and almost addictive.

Lighting this specific cigar came very easily, in fact one of the most easiest lights to date for me. A very even light with the wrapper burning perfectly when I held the soft flame to the foot. I have found from my experience lighting a cigar correctly requires patience and a sort of gentle approach. No need to be overly aggressive with the flame or rushing the heating process as this can affect the flavor and burn.

The smoke was absolutely full but not the velvety texture that I admired from the Shark. This was more of the “in your face” type of smoke but still enjoyed because of the aroma!

The first third of this beauty had flavors of roasted nuts, bitter chocolate and anise. I must say the anise definitely maintained a strong presence in this cigar compared to the Shark. There were hints of cedar flavor as well which didn’t surprise me, however no spice was detected.

I detected caramel and peppercorn when retrohaling periodically throughout the smoke. While I enjoyed the caramel, I found the pepper to be slightly overwhelming.

Between the 1st and 2nd third I noticed a slight tear on the wrapper and even though this concerned me, I had faith that the Anejo would pull through.

The 2nd third provided the distinct flavors that I have come to love from the Anejos. The sweet flavors of caramel and molasses dominated this segment along with roasted nuts and anise in the background. The burn at times became wavey but nothing that a simple rotation of the cigar couldn’t correct. The slight tear went away as predicted….

Once the ash fell in transition to the final third, I noticed the smoke decreasing dramatically and I decided to apply the soft flame just barely to the wrapper to ignite the sleeping beauty once more. After turning the wrapper red, this cigar woke up with beautiful flavors once again.

While smoking the final third, this cigar reminded of the holidays and a sense of relaxation. The #55 displayed caramel and anise in a continuous cycle with pepper showing it’s face once in a while.

This cigar is a very good cigar and a must try on any one’s list. I believe rest will do this cigar much justice because while the flavors were very enticing, perhaps a few months or a year will allow the flavors to work cohesively together.

RECOMMENDATION: BUY

Out of the Anejos I have smoked to date, I like the #48 and #77(shark) with this one next. However, those two were smoked with about a year of rest on them while the #55 was fresh. Time will tell and my opinion on these may change in the near future.

Hope you enjoyed the review!