The My Father Le Bijou 1922 Corona Gorda is an exclusive release for 4 stores nationwide, one of them being Federal Cigar in New Hampshire. This is a limited production size and while there is no “official” word on continuing this vitola as a limited or regular release, it seems that the Corona Gorda is a very popular size amongst cigar aficionados and I would suspect it to continue.
Last I spoke with Rick from Federal, the CG is one of their best sellers for the My Father Line as is the Cervantes release a few months back. I’ve smoked both when they were first released and each had that usual blast of pepper in the beginning. But, I’ve also noticed that with just a few months of rest, the pepper mellows quite a bit relatively speaking and works in unison with the rest of the flavors.
4/8/2012
My Father Le Bijou 1922 Corona Gorda
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano Oscuro
Binder/Filler: Nicaraguan
Size: 5 5/8 x 46
Vitola: Corona Gorda
Price: $7.50
Drink: Water
Days in Humidor: 110
Smoke Time: 1hr 25min
Location: Tobacco Haven
Construction/Appearance:
The wrapper has a pleasant milk chocolate color and is tremendously toothy. The triple cap is seamless when I run my hand over it though it’s still visible. One of the cigars for review had an uneven foot where the wrapper didn’t completely match up with the binder/filler but that’s me being overly critical for a beautiful cigar. The My Father Le Bijou 1922 Corona Gorda has a slight give when squeezed which is very good for this vitola. When a corona gorda has too much give prior to lighting, it could be representative of a loose draw from my own experiences. So far, even though the veins are apparent from the head to the foot, the cigar feels like a well rolled specimen. It has the usual double band for the Le Bijou 1922 line which fit astonishingly well for the size.
Burn/Draw:
The cut across the head was just a bit above average with a cold draw that isn’t tight. Combine that with a well filled cigar and I should have a very good draw. Lighting the cigar goes without a hitch as it’s very easy to cover the entire foot of a corona gorda evenly. While the initial burn was jagged, it did even up in the first third and stayed just shy of razor sharp all the way through. While the draw felt a bit tight initially, it opened up in the first section and stayed about average until the end. The smoke was reminded me of a thin silky string gently going upwards from the foot. The ash started grayish, then it became more white as I got into the second third before returning to that light gray. It did feel somewhat solid and not flaky, lasting 3/4 of an inch before falling.
Flavor/Aroma:
The wrapper has a strong aroma of cedar, molasses and spice while the foot reminds me of dark chocolate and espresso. The My Father Le Bijou 1922 Corona Gorda has one of the strongest aromas that I can remember in the past few weeks. The initial draw greets you with a dose of medium strength pepper and cedar with a touch of earthiness. In the first third, leather, nuts and espresso seem to be the dominant flavors. Pepper is on the medium finish and certainly not as strong as when the cigar was first released. This cigar feels like a solid medium while hitting it’s stride with a pretty good balance among the flavors.
In the second third, I am getting a unique sweet and sour flavor that briefly showed up in the first third but is making it’s presence known in this section. It was initially hard to figure out as it reminded me of a berry but the unique tartness removed the strawberry and blueberry from the equation. After eating some raspberries at home, it immediately reminded me of the cigar. This wasn’t the only flavor in the second third, I just felt the need to mention it. At this point, the cigar is on the high end of the medium spectrum for strength though not one note overwhelms the flavor profile.
Finally, in the beginning of the last third, I notice that the raspberry notes come through first on the draw and then fade. The mellow leather and wood follow up rather nicely while pepper is in the background providing a small “kick”. The flavors have a creamy profile especially when spacing out the draws longer than usual. While this isn’t a full bodied cigar, it has enough strength for a vitola of this size.
Final Thoughts:
- I think this is one of the best sizes for the My Father Le Bijou 1922 as the flavor profile feels more complex. The box pressed torpedo and cervantes are also sizes that I feel shine.
- The corona gorda has medium complexity with strength that borders on full. There aren’t many cigars of this vitola that would compete on the enjoyment factor.
- While the smaller vitolas do really well with just a few months of rest, I think the entire line benefits tremendously with letting them sit for extended periods of time. In another words, these will probably age very nicely.
- The price point of the corona gorda is very very good and could possible become an everyday cigar for some. The Jaime Garcia Reserva Especial New England CT Exclusive would be a wonderful alternative.
- This can easily be a box worthy purchase for some and I can see the cigar gaining a point or two with age in the next year.
- This cigar is available for purchase at Federal Cigar in Epping
Rating: 92
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