Cusano Nicaragua Esteli Churchill

In 2009, Oettinger Davidoff acquired Cusano from Domrey Cigar Inc., a company started in 1995 by Joe and Michael Chiusano. The release of the Cusano Dominican Connecticut brought new life to the brand in early 2016.  Within a few short months of the Connecticut release, the Cusano Dominican Maduro and the Cusano Nicaraguan Esteli would be on the shelves of local retailers. Cusano cigars fill the valued-priced spot in the rather premium and super-premium Davidoff portfolio. 

The Cusano Nicaragua Esteli features tobaccos from Mexico, Ecuador, Dominican Republic, and Nicaragua. Since Nicaraguan tobacco is only found in the filler, the Cusano Nicaragua Esteli name seems to be more marketing hype than anything else.  The Cusano Nicaragua Esteli line is available in four vitolas: Robusto (5 by 50), Toro (6 by 50), Churchill (7 by 48) and Gordo (6 by 60). The cigars come packaged in 16-count boxes with a per stick price of $4.99 to $6.49.

THE FACTS

• Manufacturer: Davidoff
• Country: Dominican Republic
• Price: $6.00
• Vitola: Churchill
• Size: 7 by 48
• Wrapper: Mexican Negro San Andres
• Binder: Ecuadorian Connecticut
• Filler: Dominican and Nicaraguan (Esteli)

THE EXPERIENCE

Construction and Appearance:

• Medium brown Mexican San Andres wrapper loaded with bumps, dark veins, color imperfections and an oily sheen.
• The simple band is well done and stands out against the wrapper color.
• Rolled firmly from head to foot. No soft spots found.
• Messy triple cap.

Pre-Light: 

• Wrapper aroma: sweet and syrupy
• Foot aroma: warm cedar and pepper
• Cold draw: clove, cedar, and pepper

Tasting Notes:

• 1st third: mild/medium flavors of earth, toasted notes, and black pepper. Faint spice and sweetness trail the other flavors.
• 2nd third: flavors shift up to medium with the core flavors remaining from the first third. Pepper lingers on the finish. A little more sweetness and a yeast quality move in.
• 3rd third: flavors darken to a black coffee combined with pepper. The earlier sweetness has departed.

Performance:

• Well holding ash
• Firm cold draw that opens up shortly into the smoke.
• Great smoke production
• Even burn

Smoke Time: 1 hour and 55 minutes

THE ROUNDUP

The Cusano Nicaraguan Esteli is a very good value-priced cigar even if the name is not the most fitting. Coming in at $6.00 for the Churchill, the cigar provides nearly two hours of relaxation. The cigar delivers medium, balanced, and earthy flavors with just enough pepper to pay homage to Nicaragua. The performance was excellent with its even burn and firm ash.  I prefer more strength and spice, but this cigar would be a great compliment to a cup of coffee in the morning or an early afternoon smoke on the weekends when time permits.