Tatuaje Havana VI Nobles

Pepin Whore (/pɛ,pin hɔr/or /pɛ,pɪn hoʊr/) noun,

1. A cigar smoker that smokes many cigars made by Don Jose "Pepin" Garcia.
2. A cigar smoker that irrationally extols the value and/or quality of said cigars.

Okay, I'm not a complete Pepin Whore, but I'm pretty damn close. It all started with a Tatuaje P-Series, followed by San Cristobal, and then snowballed with Tatujae Havana VI, DPG Serie JJ maduro, 5 Vegas Miami, DPG Black Label, Cigars International Yellow Label, DPG Blue, Benchmade,Vegas Cubana, and La Aroma de Cuba Edicion Especial. I've smoked all but the most expensive cigars by Don Pepin Garcia, and I've managed to enjoy them all.

The Tatuaje Havana VI (aka Red Label) is a Pepin-blended cigar made for Pete Johnson, and a tasty cigar with a personal parking stall in my humidor. This Nicaraguan puro is a flavorful experience.

The lightly toothy, sun-grown Corojo wrapper shows some mild veining, an has a light oil sheen as well. An aroma of cedar and leather rose from this moderately packed cigar, and a pinch revealed a light spring to the fillers.

On first light, I caught an explosion of dry, crisp pepper and cedar flavors. The finish, at first, was crisp and short, but a leathery flavor lingered on the palate as I smoked farther. After an inch, the flavors settled into a dry cedar with leather lingering on the palate. There was a moderate amount of smoke, but being so dry, I'd hesitate to call it creamy.

Smoking to the nub, a spicy pepper rejoins the cedar and leather for a rewarding finish. All through the cigar, the draw was immaculate, and the dove-gray ash held for over an inch.

At $5-8 each, depending on how you get them, the Havana VI line are a great quality smoke, and well worth the expense.

Thanks to Cigars Direct for providing a familiar friend in the sampler.