Cigar Review | Jailbreak

Let’s face it, the cigar industry is built around plagiarism. There are no original ideas, and everyone looks to someone else’s idea and then tries to build on it. That is until Jailbreak by Viva Republica. This is an idea that I believe is as original as they come. A 6 x 58 cigar, with a lancero wrapped in the center. These are essentially two cigars. But it is not just any lancero, it is a La Aurora Cien Anos lancero according to Sales Director of Miami Cigar & Company, Hector Paz who visited Two Guys Smoke Shop last week with new sales representative Cody McKeon.

The question is how long until another company continues the circle and copies this awesome idea. After all, it is an industry built on plagiarism and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing as long as you improve on the idea.

Cigar: Jailbreak by Viva Republica
Size: 6 x 58
Wrapper: Dominican Corojo and Ecuadorian Habano
Binder: Non-Disclosed
Filler: 10 Different Filler Tobaccos
Strength: Medium-Plus
Source: Two Guys Smoke Shop

The Look: The Ecuadorian Habano wrapper that adorns the outside of the cigar has some thin veins and a lot of tooth to it. The cigar is coarse to the touch. The simple band in my mind is a bit of a fail, because a cigar this original deserved something that stood out. But as we have said many times on the show, you can’t smoke the band. Looking at the foot its difficult to make out the lancero in the center. On a side note, one of my coworkers yesterday dissected the cigar to smoke the lancero which he said was pretty beat up as is expected as the cigar went through a Lieberman press which is utilized at La Aurora where these are rolled. Not to mention the pressing in the mold before the wrapper was put on. The cigar is well constructed with no soft spots.

The Notes: The cold draw of the Jailbreak reminded me of a graham cracker on the first pull, where as subsequent pulls took on an earthy component. The foot of the cigar has some more of the graham cracker note with a hint of honey.

Upon lighting the cigar I am quickly impressed at the flavor characteristics of the cigar. There is a sweetness present that is reminiscent of mocha that is easily identifiable off the initial light. As we smoke further into the first third of the cigar there is some earth as well Toward the end there are notes of licorice that are introduced and a subtle spice on the nose.

The second third of the stick see the licorice notes continue to grow as the sweetness of the mocha moves to the background. There is a hint of graham cracker present as an afterthought. The earth notes experienced in the first third have faded away. There is a subtle spice on the front end and through the nose at times.

The last third of the Jailbreak by Vivia Republica develops a bitter espresso note that works for me especially since there is still some lingering licorice notes. There is also a wheat note that lingers just long enough concluding this an extremely enjoyable smoke.

The Burn: I was a little worried that the cigar inside the cigar would cause some burn issues, and aside from some flowering of the ash in the beginning the cigar it burned perfectly. The cigar had a slightly fluid draw which worked for me given the size which is admittedly outside my comfort zone. Despite the aforementioned flowering in the first half-inch, the ash held strong for more than a third at a time with almost no flake.

The Finish: I will admit, I had some reservations when smoking this cigar. Many times a cigar with a good story just doesn’t seem to deliver in terms of the hype that is built up around it. Gimmick aside this is a damn good smoke. But I have to ask, what was Jason Holly smoking when he said, Hey, lets put a lancero inside a 6 x 58.  These are definitely worthy of a couple of 5 packs if you aren’t a fan of the size. However, if the 6 x 58 is in your wheelhouse these are without a doubt box worthy. There are only 300 boxes on the lam, and I am pretty sure they will be apprehended pretty fast.

Score: 93
Price: $12.50 / $224.99