2006 Vintage Stout Corona by Bellatto Caldwell Sears

Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: Not disclosed
Filler: 100% Ligero: Nicaraguan, Dominican. Honduran
Corona: 5 3/4 x 42
Price: ~$11.00

This cigar was assessed in depth on Cigar Coop.

The 2006 Vintage Stout Corona is a 2014 release by Bellatto / Caldwell / Sears Cigars. Previously called Impromptu Cigars, this company is a collaboration between Tony Bellatto, Robert Caldwell and Jaclyn Sears. Bellatto is one of principals of La Barba Cigars while Caldwell and Sears are a part of Caldwell Cigar Company. The Bellatto / Caldwell / Sears venture is a completely different venture than those other companies. Bellatto / Caldwell / Sears is a company that focuses on extremely small batch production using rare and hard to find tobaccos.

As the name indicates, this is one stout cigar. It is full strength and full-bodied. The flavor profile is going to be coffee, pepper, and natural tobacco. The coffee notes remind me of the rich and powerful “Chock Full o Nuts” style flavor out of New York. The pepper floats between a chili pepper and a black pepper flavor. The spice ramps up in the second half big time.

While the draw was excellent, this cigar did require a lot of touch-ups. I smoked this cigar under higher humidity – and I believe that factor along with the ligero caused some of the burn issues. This was still a very good cigar – and its one that because it is limited, it is worthy of a box split of keeping these around.