The Good Stuff:

The MC Slam was the first release that carried the blue and white “Cigares Prive” (which translates to Private Cigars) band back in 2014. “MC” stands for Marvin Chang, who runs R. Fields Wine Co.’s cigar operations. The original release consisted of only 200 boxes and was only available at R. Fields. Fast forward to 2021 and Marvin announced the triumphant return of the cigar dubbed “MC Slam 2 Redux” which would again, only be available from R. Fields Wine Co., would only consist of 200 boxes, and would sport the same blend which consistent of a Mexican San Andres wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and filler. The main different is the price tag. Due to inflation, taxes, and likely demand the new version will run $10 a stick vs. the $8.50 price tag from 2014. Another shoutout to my boy JG for hooking it up with a few of these from his personal stash.

• Size: 6 x 52
• Wrapper: Mexican San Andres
• Binder: Nicaraguan
• Filler: Nicaraguan
• Body: Medium/Full
• Strength: Medium
• Price: $10
• Pairing: Horus Push the Boundaries (Imperial Stout 14.8% ABV)

Prelight:

The Illusione MC Slam 2 Redux sports a beautiful soft box press format. The wrapper is a very consistent deep-dark brown with only a few darker areas around the cap. The wrapper itself feels very hard and dense while the cigar as a whole seems relatively well packed with no soft spots to be found. The wrapper’s texture is very gritty and toothy with only slight oils as it’s laid beautifully over itself showcasing only minor veining as the long body leads up to the cigar’s triple wrapped cap. The cigar is topped with the elegant blue and white “Cigares Prive” band we expect on these limited releases.

The wrapper on the Illusione MC Slam 2 Redux gives off pepper and dark chocolate aromas while the foot of the cigar is much more earthy with spice and natural tobacco aromas. The cap cut clean using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces some chocolate and raisin notes of earthy, dirt-style flavors.

First Third:

The Illusione MC Slam 2 Redux starts out with a very minor black pepper punch which almost instantly fades allowing the cigar to release tons of bold dark chocolate, pecan, black coffee, and spice over lighter notes of vanilla, coconut, raisin and musk. The draw is absolutely perfect as each little puff kicks out copious amounts of thick, gray smoke which linger for a considerable amount of time while the cigar itself releases a ton of stationary smoke while it rests in my ashtray. The burn line is razor thin and dead even leaving behind a tightly compacted trail of white ash which held on for an inch before falling into my ashtray.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the Illusione MC Slam 2 Redux and it’s still pouring on the flavor. The dark chocolate, pecan, and raisin are now leading the pack backed by vanilla, coffee, and spice with some great little floral undertones. The retrohale is great as it brings more of the spice and raisin to the front of the smoke. The burn line is still flawless as I close out the second third with nothing in the nicotine department.

Finish:

Into the final third of the Illusione MC Slam 2 Redux and the dark chocolate, pecan, and musk are owning the experience. There are some lighter flavors underneath consisting of raisin, vanilla, coffee and black cherry. I really enjoy this profile. The cigar burned flawlessly from start to finish as it took me about an hour and a half to smoke the MC Slam 2 Redux down to the nub. I experienced no harshness, nor any extended heat and never once had to reach for my torch to touchup or relight the cigar.

Overview:

First of all, I loved this cigar. Secondly, it’s not what you expect from most of Dion’s blends. Instead of being more natural tobacco and spice forward the MC Slam 2 Redux carries more sweetness, pastry undertones, and scaled back strength. It’s quite a changeup, but showcases the depth Illusione has. The flavors are extremely balanced, so much so that you could easily miss some of the more nuanced ones if you aren’t paying attention. Its a perfect cigar to just sit back, relax, and smoke when you are looking for something with a ton of flavor that won’t make you think too hard about it.

Pairing:

Push the Boundaries is a collaboration between Horus Aged Ales and Toppling Goliath. The beer is a 14.8% imperial stout brewed with chocolate, almost, coffee and vanilla. The beer leads with a ton of VERY sweet vanilla, coconut, and chocolate over lighter notes of coffee, cinnamon, and roasted malt with an extremely heavy mouthfeel before finishing with even more sweet vanilla and chocolate with an awesome almond aftertaste. I’ll likely need to check my blood glucose after drinking this one. The coffee, chocolate, vanilla, and coconut flavors in the Illusione MC Slam 2 Redux were all prominent flavors in the beer’s profile. As soon as I lit this cigar up for the first time I was almost certain this was the beer I was going to pair it with.

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-Tony

After reviewing the Sun Grown version of the Perdomo Habano Bourbon Barrel Aged line, I was eager to grab some of the Maduro, the darker wrapped sticks having been by far my favorite of the old blend.  So after giving them a nice little rest in my humidor, here is my take on the Perdomo Habano Bourbon Barrel Aged Maduro.  Like the Sun Grown, the Maduro comes wrapped around a core of aged Nicaraguan filler and shares the same sizes – Robusto 5 x 54, Epicure 6 x 54, Torpedo 6 ½ x 54, Churchill 7 x 54, and Gordo 6 x 60 – which run in the same $7 – $8.50 price range.  Once again, these were picked up from Cuenca Cigars.

The Basics:

Wrapper:  Nicaraguan Maduro, aged 14 months in bourbon barrels
Binder:  Nicaraguan
Filler:  Nicaraguan Condega seco aged 4 years, Jalapa viso aged 5 years, Esteli ligero aged 6 years
Size:  Robusto
Price:  $7.25
Smoking time:  One hour, fifty minutes
Pairing:  American Brewing Co. Caboose Oatmeal Stout (ABV 6.2%)

Pre-light:

The Perdomo Habano Bourbon Barrel Aged Maduro is cloaked in a very dark wrapper that goes from reddish-brown to nearly black with minimal veins and some noticeable tooth to it.  The seams are very tight and the pack is more than firm; it’s nearly rock-hard.  The flashy new banding sports a beige background with dark yellow, burnt sienna, and black, offset by bright chrome silver filigree and borders, with the foot band indicating the Maduro wrapper.  The wrapper gives off a rich, musty tobacco aroma, with earth and a bit of tang.  The foot shows off an even richer profile of the same, with a sort of meatiness thrown in for good measure.  After easily sliding off the foot band, an effortless clip of the cap reveals a snug draw that shows natural tobacco, sweet grassiness, and a bit of woodiness.

First third:

The first few puffs are surprisingly mild, with the natural tobacco and sweet cedar at the forefront and black pepper flavor (but not the heat) and some coffee bringing up the rear.  The retrohale shows earthiness and there is a leathery dryness to the mouthfeel.  The tight roll of the stick is making it a little difficult to get a good mouthful of smoke without requiring a double-puff, but it’s getting better as it goes.  The burn line is a bit thick and pretty even, and the light gray ash is compact.  The ash refuses to tap off at over an inch in length, which probably means that it will decide to fall into my lap soon.  The sweetness is climbing as the Perdomo Habano BBA Maduro slowly moves into the low end of the medium-bodied range, with all of those well-aged tobaccos making for what has so far been a very smooth smoking experience.

Middle third:

After the ash finally fell at a good 1½”, and thankfully into my ashtray, the Perdomo Habano Bourbon Barrel Aged Maduro has moved into the central third with an easier draw and shift in flavors.  The sweetness has stepped back and a savory, almost meaty, umami tone has moved forward, and the smoke is no longer as dry as it was in the initial third.  The wood is now more oak than cedar, and a bready note has emerged as well.  Just past the halfway point, the sweetness has again moved up, along with the pepper, which is just beginning to assert itself on the retrohale, while the cigar tips just over the medium-bodied threshold.

Final third:

As the Perdomo Habano Bourbon Barrel Aged Maduro enters the home stretch, the sweetness has once again moved to the background, as the rich natural tobacco, earth, bread, oak, and savory notes vie for attention.  Coffee has also re-emerged.  The cigar has been burning like a champ throughout, never needing a correction or re-light while staying almost dead-even, but I would caution that it has been pumping out stationary smoke like an emerging Icelandic volcano.  This slow smoking stick goes down to the wire cool to the touch and draw, firm, and with absolutely no harshness.

Final thoughts:

My take on the Perdomo Habano BBA Maduro as compared to the original, is that although some of the elements are alike, they are totally different smokes.  While my memory of the old Habano Maduro dredges up thoughts of a fairly strong and full bodied cigar, the new version is a much more refined and smoother experience.  As with the old Habano Maduro, construction is top of the line, and the burn, while a bit testy to start out, came around and behaved admirably.  Neither cigar is the most complex smoke around, but that is fine with me, as the flavors that came with this one were certainly enjoyable and the back and forth movement of the flavors kept me on my toes and held my interest.  This is a cigar I would want to smoke on a consistent basis.

Pairing:

When matching up maduro wrapped cigars with beer, stouts are, of course, a natural go-to, and the Caboose Oatmeal Stout from American Brewing Co. in Edmonds, WA is one that epitomizes the standard for American stouts.  With a smooth and almost creamy texture to go with coffee/chocolate, caramel, and a whole lot of semi-sweet maltiness offset by just enough hoppy bitterness to keep it from cloying, the Caboose does its part in providing a great compliment to the flavors of the Perdomo Maduro.  Of course, a nice strong coffee, whether sweetened or not would be another way to go, as would a rich, sweet rum or port.

We often post pairings here on Casas Fumando and have always been advocates on finding the right pairing for your cigar smoking experience. Our friends over at Famous Smoke Shop recently released a very easy to use tool which helps you choose the right pairing for your cigar or drink. Check it out here: https://www.famous-smoke.com/cigar-pairing 

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