Cigar Review: Smoking Jacket

Smoking Jacket, a line of cigars where each stick is blended different and has a different set of tobacco. To be honest, I am not sure how I feel about that. But this is the case with Smoking Jacket, blended by Hendrik Kelner Jr., the son of Davidoff legend Henke Kelner. We recently had members of the Kelner family on The Cigar Authority so we decided today to review this cigar made at the Kelner Boutique Factory (KBF).

Hendrik describes the Smoking Jacket, Robusto Imperial as “beautiful, with great flavor”. The website goes on to call it “an interesting cigar, it keeps you intrigued and provides a complex smoking experience. It’s balanced but it surprises you with unexpected notes.”

Cigar: Smoking Jacket
Size: Robusto Imperial (5 x 52)
Wrapper: Brazil
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican, Nicaragua, Peru (Pelo de Oro)
Strength: Medium
Distributed By: Davidoff USA

The Look: The KBF Smoking Jacket has a nice oily wrapper from Brazil. There is a mottled look to the wrapper as the coloration isn’t even. To the naked it eye it almost looks speckled. There are some seams present but the Brazillian wrapper is virtually vein free to the naked eye. In the hand there is a nice weight to it and there is a slight soft spot just below the band, but the foot appears to be well packed.

The Notes: The cold draw of the Kelner Boutique Factory made stick  feels gritty with some raisins that I am pretty sure is from the Pelo de Oro tobacco, one of my favorites. The foot of the cigar reminds me of figs and I like that the Smoking Jacket seems different at this point than what I have smoked lately.

Once the cigar is lit there is almost a citrus like quality that reminds me of orange rind, before giving way to notes of molasses and earth. As we continue into the first third of the cigar there is a slight spice through the noses with an easily defined nuttiness. On the regular draw of the cigar there is a nice sweet note that almost borders on mocha with a slightly earthy component.

The second third of this exquisite medium bodied Smoking Jacket delivers an amazing note that reminds me of my morning cup of orange juice, the freshly squeezed variety. It is so distinct and mind-blowing it might be one of the favorite notes I have ever experiences on a cigar.

The final third of the Smoking Jacket moves away from the orange notes and develops a sweetness that borders on caramel with wood notes. The short finish remains citrus however, and leaves me wanted to reach into the box to light up another one.

Burn: The Smoking Jacket Robusto Imperial has an effortless draw with a solid white ash and a nice crisp burn line. About a half-inch into the cigar I had to take care of something in the office, and I left the cigar seated in a crystal ashtray for about 5 minutes. When I returned the cigar didn’t need to be re-lit which in my eyes is a huge plus. The ash of the cigar didn’t hold on well, falling off just after I took the photograph of the burn, and it continued to drop in less than one inch chunks.

Overall: When you smoke a cigar from Henke Kelner, there is a signature flavor profile that doesn’t exist here, so it is obvious Jr. is off to do his own thing and not follow in the blueprint his father has laid out before him. The Smoking Jacket is a wonderfully complex cigar that doesn’t taste Dominican. It was so intriguingly delicious that I can’t wait to try out the other sizes and see where Kelner Boutique Factory takes us.  I can easily see this cigar making my year end list of top cigars.

Score: 94
Price: $8.99