This past week we asked the listeners of The Cigar Authority what cigar they wanted to see reviewed on the website, and my fried Jose requested the Brick House Maduro. If you have a cigar you want to see reviewed, leave a comment at the end of this posting. While the original Brick House is a Nicaraguan puro, the Maduro features a Brazilian wrapper. According to their website, the Brick House label is a tribute to JC Newman’s childhood home, that also served as the town tavern.
Cigar: Brickhouse Maduro
Size: Robusto (5 x 54)
Wrapper: Brazilian Arapiraca
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Strength: Medium-Full
The Look: A dark looking Brazilian Arapiraca adorns the Brick House which gets a secondary band denoting Maduro. The wrapper of the cigar is slightly receding off the foot which shows some aging. The wrapper is extremely rough under the fingers that feels like sandpaper. There are virtually no veins present on the seamless roll. The foot of the cigar is well packed and there is a decent weight to it.
The Notes: The cold draw of the Brick House Maduro has a note similar to that of carrots and earth while the foot of the cigar is earthy, similar to barnyard notes with an abundance of dry hay. The initial light is dark and hearty, and comes across as leather.
As we went the first third of the cigar the notes of leather remain the focal point but there is a developing of a citrus like note and some dark chocolate. About an inch into the cigar, the leather notes begin to fade into the background and as the first third closes out the cigar becomes sweet, like a maduro should be in my opinion.
In the second third of the Brick House I lose the ash for the first time near the half way point and the sweetness really begins to take hold of the cigar with a growing abundance of wood. As the cigar moves past the halfway point the sweetness is more of an afterthought and there are some notes of wood are joined by some coffee notes.
In the last the third of the Brick House the notes return to leather return over a canvas of wood and coffee. The sweetness that developed in the second third doesn’t exist in the final third and the cigar has a nice short finish.
The Burn: The Brick House Maduro has a solid ash that holds for more than the first third, and fell once more before the cigar was put down. The burn line is as perfect as they come with an ultra thin burn line. The draw offered just enough resistance for it to be perfect. All in all the burn is perfect, with great construction.
The Finish: I didn’t smoke Brick House until we had a month-long promotion at 2 Guys Smoke Shop where we gave away beer steins, tailgating chairs and the ultimate lounge chair for your man cave. Since then I really can’t get enough of these especially in the Maduro version. A solid Medium-Full cigar with a wonderful flavor profile and a price that can’t be beat.
Score: 92
Price: $5.49 / $119.99 a box
Brick House Maduro
Brick House Maduro Foot
Brick House Maduro Burn
