KILO Cigar Review

KILO is a cigar that I didn’t really want to review; because it is my cigar. However in speaking with someone on social media he put it in a way that made it hard to say no. He said, “I don’t live in New Hampshire and I can’t meet with you to discuss the cigar, so why not bring the cigar to me via The Cigar Authority.” So reluctantly I offer you my thoughts on KILO, take it for what it is worth.

KILO was born in early 2013 when I traveled to La Aurora when I worked for Miami Cigar. It was here I received a crash course in tobacco to fill in the holes of what I hadn’t learned on my past trips. Am I an expert in tobacco, no I don’t pretend to be. However, cigars are in my blood and a passion like no other in my life. At the end of the trip I got to blend a bunch of cigars, and I had to roll 10 of each blend. While La Aurora rolled more for me, I had to roll 40 cigars, and I did a pretty good job if I say so myself. When I got back to Miami, one of those blends stood out to me and my friends. A few months later the cigar was released as a limited edition in the fall of that year.

I wound up parting ways with Miami Cigar & Company and as a parting gift; Jason Wood allowed me to keep the trademark of the brand. When I worked for MCC, I wanted to work with Noel Rojas of Guayacan and his factory Aroma de Jalapa but the company was locked into another factory in Nicaragua and for political reasons it never came to be; until now via United Cigar.

Noel Rojas and I talked and rekindled conversations on the cigar I had blended and his factory rolled the cigar as I envisioned it in 2013. Today, that cigar is available via United Cigar and close to 50 accounts nationwide.

So while I feel a bit narcissistic in writing this here is my review on the cigar that I blended…

Cigar Review: KILO
Size:  6 x 52 (Toro)
Wrapper: Ecuador Habano
Binder: Nicaragua Corojo 2006
Filler: Nicaragua (Jalapa Ligero, Aganorsa Ligero both aged 3 years)
Strength: Full
Source: United Cigar

The Look:  The KILO has a chocolate colored Habano wrapper from Ecuador with some thin veins and an even coloring. Seamlessly rolled the band is matte black with embossed white elements of the chemical structure of gold. The word KILO is in gold foil as is the edge of the band. The band was designed by yours truly and as you can see I am not a graphic artist. In the hand the cigar is firm with a well packed foot and a nice weight to it.

The Notes: The cold draw of the KILO serves up notes of cedar and graham with a floral note coming off of the wrapper. The aroma off the foot serves up more notes of cedar with a slight floral note.

Once the KILO is lit there is a sweetness from the Jalapa grown tobacco and spice from the Aganorsa. The initial notes are that of graham, cedar and cinnamon. There is a moment or two where the cigar tastes like the aroma of a baked apple that my father use to make himself on a near nightly basis when I was young. As the first third of the cigar comes to a close the strength kicks into gear.

As the cigar moves to the second third the sweetness is front and center with some spice on the back-end. The cigar is exceptionally smooth with elements of caramel and cream completely changes things up in the second third of the cigar. As we cross over the halfway point of the cigar the sweetness transitions into spice with notes of red pepper, wasabi and a touch of leather.

The last third of the cigar sees the introduction of coffee bean, and a continued leather. The sweetness which left in the second third of the cigar tries to return but the spice of the cigar makes it difficult. The red pepper notes remain on the finish which is long and has a hint of licorice at the end.

The Burn: Blending a cigar that utilizes all ligero in the filler could create issues with the burn because it isn’t as combustible as other tobacco. With that said, I’ve yet to experience a KILO that has a bad burn and all the credit to that goes to Noel Rojas and his Aroma de Jalapa factory that has done an outstanding job on the construction. The light color ash was revealed by a thin combustion line and the draw served up the right amount of resistance for my preference and the cigar remained lit throughout.

The Finish:  I am not going to give the cigar a score, because I feel that would be pompous of me. Despite saying that I will be the first person to admit this isn’t a 100 rated cigar but it fits comfortably in my wheelhouse in terms of flavor and strength. It’s strong, despite the well-defined sweetness and for that reason I recommend smoking this one after a hearty meal. Will there be another cigar blended by me, who knows. I have some ideas and would love the opportunity but only time will tell.

Price: $9.99 / $178.99 at Two Guys Smoke Shop

Bullet Points

• People ask why I didn’t have La Aurora make them again and while I love Guillermo Leon; my personal preference is Nicaraguan tobacco.
• The band was changed in 2015 so it would be easy to tell the difference between the original release and the new release.
• The name of the cigar was conceived while watching Cocaine Cowboys. Miami was built on the drug, and the original concept was to have the boxes look like newspaper and the bands like duct tape. I opted to go the gold route when I wasn’t sure how the bible belt would feel about the drug reference.
• The toro version of KILO starts off sweater, where the Robusto starts out with a heavy dose of spice.
• The back of the ban has the United Cigar logo which acts as a tab for easy removal.
• I paired the cigar with Cuban coffee which seems to be the normal for me as of late.
• Smoking time was 1 hour 50 minutes