Viaje Satori 2013

Wrapper: San Andres Mexican
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan

Karma: 5 x 52 (Robusto)
Price: $10.35 (Smoke Inn)

This was a cigar just scored and rated on Cigar Coop.

In 2010 Viaje introduced its Satori line as a line available only to retailers that attended the IPCPR Trade Show. The original Satori line proved to be a favorite of mine. The cigar had a jet black and thin Oscuro wrapper. In 2011, company President Andre Farkas changed the wrapper to a San Andres Maduro. While I didn’t think the cigar was quite the same as the original 2010, it still was a very good cigar. In 2012, Viaje flipped the box-press and rounded vitolas around, but for 2013, Viaje brought the vitolas back to the 2011 specifications.

I wish I could say the Viaje Satori 2013 smoked as good as the previous releases, but it doesn’t. The 2013 seemed to have less complexity than its predecessors. It also lacked some of the smoothness of the previous versions. Finally, it also had less sweetness. It still featured some of the unique blackberry flavors – which I felt was the signature flavor. It also had pepper and tea notes. Both the strength and body were in the medium to full range.

The burn for this one gave me some trouble. This cigar required more effort to burn straight and did have a loose ash. However, the draw was outstanding.

Overall it’s still a good cigar, but it has some big shoes to follow with the previous three releases. I’d rate it a “Try One”.