Tatuaje Mexican Experiment Limited

By Tony Casas | August 5, 2019

First of all, my heart goes out to all the family members affect by the shooting in my hometown city that is going on as I write this review. I have been actively checking in with loved ones, and I mourn with my city which I love to those we have lost.

The Good Stuff:

Pete Johnson of Tatuaje cigars unveiled a number of new cigars at this year’s IPCPR show in Las Vegas. Two of those cigars were the Mexican Experiment Limited and the ME II. Today, we’ll be focusing on the Mexican Experiment Limited which is a re-release of the same cigar that hit the market in 2011. Both cigars are offered in four different sizes (Robusto: 5 x 54, Toro 5 3/4 x 50, Churchill 6 1/2 v 48, and Belicoso 5 x 52). While the ME II comes in boxes and is a regular production line, the Mexican Experiment Limited comes in bundles of 15, with only 1,000 bundles of each format produced running around $10 a stick. These are both due to be released later this month. I got mine over from the fantastic team at Fox Cigar Bar in Arizona. The Mexican Experiment Limited starts out with Nicaraguan fillers, surrounded by a Nicaraguan binder, wrapped in a Mexican San Andres wrapper. The Mexican Experiment Limited shares the same blend as the ME II and I had a hard time uncovering what the differences actually are. Possible different vintage tobaccos? Different Primings? Tweaked Blends? In the end, it doesn’t matter. What does matter is how the cigar preforms and we’re about to find out.

• Size: 6 1/2 x 48
• Wrapper: Mexican San Andres
• Binder: Nicaraguan
• Filler: Nicaraguan
• Body: Medium/Full
• Strength: Medium
• Price: $10
• Pairing: The Bruery White Chocolate Mocha (Wheatwine 14.4% ABV)

Prelight:

The Tatuaje Mexican Experiment Limited starts off with a gorgeous deep, dark brown wrapper which is pretty consistent in color for the most part with the exception of a few lighter areas around the cigar’s cap. The cigar’s texture is very toothy and gritty with a good amount of oils while the cigar as a whole features only a few minor veins running through the cigar’s long, soft-box-pressed body leading up to the round, double-wrapped cap. The cigar is polished off with a white, red, and green band showcasing the Tatuaje crest in the front as well as the word “Limited” on the side.

The wrapper on the Tatuaje Mexican Experiment Limited gives off some rich musk and oak aromas while the foot of the cigar is more earthy with hints of spice and pepper. The cap cut clean and easily using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The Tatuaje Mexican Experiment produces a ton of rich flavors on the cold draw. Black cherry, chocolate, oak, and a subtle musk are the notable flavors.

First Third:

The Tatuaje Mexican Experiment Limited starts out with a very light bit of pepper which faded after the first draw or two revealing huge amounts of dark chocolate, black cherry, musk, oak, pecan, and natural tobacco. The draw is absolutely flawless as each tiny puff kicks out a whole mess of thick, white smoke which hangs around for a considerable amount of time before dissipating while the cigar gives off very little stationary smoke as it rests in my ashtray. The burn line is razor thin and dead even leaving behind a trail of tightly compacted white, and light gray ash which held on for about an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the Tatuaje Mexican Experiment Limited and the cigar is still pouring on the flavors. The dominant ones at this point are the dark chocolate and oak backed by black cherry, brown sugar, musk and pecan. The retrohale really brings out the oak and a nice spice that I don’t get in the standard draw. The cigar is still burning perfectly and I close out the second third with nothing in terms of a nicotine kick.

Finish:

Into the final third of the Tatuaje Mexican Experiment Limited and I have to say, I am in love with the flavor profile of this cigar. Oak, pecan, black cherry, coffee, chocolate, and light notes of brown sugar and musk. It seems like this cigar was created with with me in mind. The burn has been flawless from start to finish. It took me almost two hours to take this cigar down to the nub and I loved every second of it. I experienced no harshness, nor extended heat as I close out the cigar with no signs of nicotine whatsoever.

Overview:

I smoked the original Mexican Experiment ages ago but that cigar is so far out of my mind that I couldn’t even begin to compare the two. But wha tI can tell you is how utterly enjoyable this Tatuaje Mexican Experiment Limited was. The flavors are a thing of beauty. Complex, yet balanced as they all support one another. The cigar performed flawlessly from start to finish. And one thing that really stood out was just how much the cigar had to offer in terms of body, without increasing the strength of the cigar past the medium arena. Lookout for a review of the ME II coming up soon.

Pairing:

Bruery’s White Chocolate Mocha is a variant of their famous White Chocolate beer which is a Wheatwine, aged in bourbon barrels with cacao nibs, vanilla beans, and coffee added. Coming in at 14.4% this beer isn’t for the faint of heart. The beer leads with a ton of sweetness, white chocolate flavors. roasted malt, butter, cocoa, and a soft hop bite with a very heavy mouthfeel before finishing even more sweet with notes of brown sugar, butter, creamed coffee and pecan. As the beer warms more of the light coffee flavors come forward. It’s easy to see why I paired this beer with the Tatuaje Mexican Experiment Limited, the sweetness, brown sugar, chocolate, and pecan flavors paired of perfectly while the beer was subtle enough not to overpower the cigar.