At the 2017 trade show the Plasencia family decided to step into the limelight after making cigars for many superstars in the industry. Having 5 generations of experience dating back to 1865 in Cuba the company today makes 35 million cigars at their crop to shop operations in Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, and Panama.
The name Alma Fuerte translates to Strong Soul and I first tasted the cigar in Miami at The Tank Brewing with national sales manager, Javi Carranza. Today, we offer our review of the Nestor IV size of Alma Fuerte which is a traditional box press versus the six-sided Sixto and box press Salomon named Generacion.
Cigar Review: Plasencia Alma Fuerte
Wrapper: Nicaragua (Jalapa)
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Length: 6.25″
Ring Gauge: 54
Size: Toro
The Look: Packaged in 10 count boxes, each box features a piece that separates from the packaging and serves as an ashtray. It’s complete with 4 cutouts for cigars and a metal Plasencia logo at the center. As for the most important part, the cigars feature three bands. The first being a thin band of black and gold with the letter P in a circle repeated. The second band uses the same colors and sees Plasencia boldly stated with Alma Fuerte in a smaller font. Finally, the foot band is reversed with letters of black on gold denoting Alma Fuerte. It’s a bit repetitive, but it works on this box pressed cigar. Speaking of the cigar it’s oily and seamlessly rolled with a subtle brindle appearance on the coloring. The foot is well packed and the cigar has no voids of tobacco along the length and an average weight to it.
The Notes: The cold draw of the cigar reminds me of a the candy bottle caps, specifically the cola flavor along with a hint of the cookie part of a fig newton. The aroma off the foot has a cherry like sweetness to it and a hint of cedar. Once the cigar is toasted and lit the first note is reminiscent of the morning dew on a summer morning.
Moving on to the first third of the cigar, it’s a bit slow to develop with the wet earth notes that continue for the first inch before the complexity begins. At this point the cigar sees some notes of plum, cedar and coffee begin to develop. The plum sweetness is noticeable on the front side of the draw as well as on the finish which is somewhat lengthy. The Alma Fuerte really begins to shine once you retrohale as cinnamon and chocolate begin to enter the mix.
The second third sees the earth notes pull back considerably as the plum sweetness becomes the focal point of the cigar. The chocolate takes on more of a cocoa like quality to it and the retrohale still offers up some cinnamon and a touch of anise with a a peppery finish that lingers on the palate in a very enjoyable way. The cigar is as smooth as silk and borders on a medium to medium-plus in term of strength.
The last third sees the earthiness return and the cinnamon notes become more noticeable on the palate with a touch of apricots on the retrohale and aroma. With about an inch to go the earth completely exits with plum and apricots becoming the lingering note on this memorable cigar.
The Finish: We all know the only reviews that matter are here at The Cigar Authority but the Alma Fuerte finished in the top 10 of all three major cigar magazines in the year-end review and that is quite a feat. When I first lit up the cigar I was a little disappointed at how slow it began to develop, but once it did it was well worth the wait. This cigar started in the medium range of strength before finishing full and if you like a stronger cigar as I do this one will fall right into your wheelhouse. Price is a concern, but it smoked like a cigar should at that price point even with a slow start it fully delivered the experience I was looking for. This summer the ashtray will be on my back deck as I picked up a box.
Score: 94
Price: $19.99 / $179.99
Plasencia Alma Fuerte
Plasencia Alma Fuerte Foot
Plasencia Alma Fuerte Burn
