The Byron Siglo Series 19 Century Grand Poemas comes to us from Nelson Alfonso’s Selected Tobacco who also makes Atabey and Bandelero. The Byron 19th Century is a line extension of sorts as the cigar now comes in stunning 25 count limited edition humidors. The cigars inside have been aging since 2012 and only 200 humidors were produced this year. We ran the press release prior to the 2017 IPCPR trade show, and these are now available at select retailers.
We smoked today’s cigar on this past Saturday’s episode of The Cigar Authority podcast and I hinted the score would be amongst the highest I’ve reviewed. Now that I can kick back and smoke the cigar for review, let’s see if it lives up to to the words that came out of my mouth on Saturday.
Cigar Review: Byron 19th Century
Wrapper: Not Disclosed
Binder: Not Disclosed
Filler: Not Disclosed
Length: 6″
Ring Gauge: 56
Size: Grand Poemas
The Look: Byron cigars have long been known for the humidified jars they came in, but the Grand Poemas changed the script by placing the cigar inside a functioning humidor complete with a hygrometer built into the facing of the box. Inside the 25 cigars sit inside a tray that sits slightly raised from where cedar shavings are placed allowing the cigars to take in their aromatic qualities. The dark wrapper is oily and flawless, and the dual band showcases a portrait of Lord Byron and the other denotes “Reserva 5 Anos.”
The Notes: The cold draw of the 6 x 56 cigar is heaven with a sweet cherry note and a mix of cedar, figs with a hint of raisin. The foot of the cigar has a subtle spice to it, and there is even more figs and raisin than on the cold draw. Once the cigar is lit, the cigar serves up some notes of nuts, specifically a pistachio note.
Smoking the first third of the cigar there are notes of cedar, toast and raisins that create an epic balance. There is a bit of red pepper flakes as well, but there is a definitive raisin toast present as well. As the first third comes to a close some subtle mocha notes appear and the retrohale adds a hint of molasses to the mix.
Moving into the second third some cinnamon begins to develop along the dominant note of cedar. The cigar is chewy in the sense that the notes are so strong you actually feel as if you have raisins or molasses in your mouth. They linger perfectly, and the retrohale continues to serve up some pepper. Around the half way point the cigar begins to remind me of the sear from a perfectly barbecued steak.
Moving on to the last third that seared like quality remains with a lot of underlying sweetness. There is hints of caramel, apricot and a lot of cedar. The finish is nutty and for me continues to have pistachio like qualities and the retrohale has some pepper notes as well. I wish the cigar went on a little long, but sadly I have to put it down.
The Finish: It has long been my opinion that the cigars from Selected Tobacco are among the best on the market. I was tempted to give this a 100 rating and even hinted at it on the show. But I had to ask myself if it deserves the same score as Atabey which I’ve given a 100 rating to. For me, the answer was almost. It’s an epic cigar that is not a cheap date, but it is worth every damn penny.
Score: 99
Price: $33.00 / $824.99
Byron 19th Century Grand Poemas
Byron 19th Century Grand Poemas Foot
Byron 19th Century Grand Poemas Burn
