Tatuaje 20th Merveille

Unseasonably warm Sunday? I’ll take it! This week it’s me, my dogs, and a Tatuaje 20th.

The Good Stuff:

Earlier this year Pete Johnson of Tatuaje Cigars announced the release of the “Tatuaje 20th”. Aptly named after the 20th anniversary of the brand, the blend features an Ecuadorian Habano seed wrapper over Nicaraguan binder and filler. The cigar is produced at the My Father Cigars factory in Nicaraguan and comes in two sizes: The Chasseur (6 3/8 x 54) and the Merveille (6 1/8 x 46). Each size comes packaged in boxes of 20 running $13 and $14 per cigar. The cigar is actually a full production line and one of a few different releases that will celebrate the anniversary. I purchased mine over from our good friends at Cuenca Cigars who still have plenty in stock now.

• Size: 6 1/8 x 46
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano Seed
• Binder: Nicaraguan
• Filler: Nicaraguan
• Body: Full
• Strength: Medium / Full
• Price: $13

Prelight:

The Tatuaje 20th sports a very dark brown, rustic looking wrapper with darker areas scattered through the cigar’s body. The wrapper’s texture is very toothy with a good amount of oils. It feels very dense and thick while the cigar is packed nicely with only a mild soft spot at the foot. The wrapper is laid over itself perfectly while the wrapper carries some mild veining running from its closed door up to the cigar’s double-wrapped cap. The cigar is polished off with a beautiful and elegant black and gold band with the Tatuaje logo and supporting cast embossed in gold and white.

The wrapper on the Tatuaje 20th Anniversary gives off very bold molasses and cedar aromas while the foot of the cigar is much of the same since the foot is closed, however there is a tiny bit of spice and natural tobacco seeping through. The cap cut like butter using my Xikar XO double bladed cutter. The cold draw produces deep notes of dark chocolate and oat.

First Third:

The Tatuaje 20th starts out with an immediate burst of cayenne pepper which while potent, faded very quickly allowing the cigar to release bold notes of dark chocolate, raisin, and dark cherry over lighter notes of musk, cedar, and a really awesome lavender mixed with earthiness and natural tobacco. As I smoked more a really potent clove flavor came to the surface. And when I say potent, I mean the most potent I have ever had in a cigar. No complaints here though as I am a big clove fan. The draw on this cigar is so perfect. Every, tiny, little puff kicks out huge clouds of thick white smoke which you might as well become friends with as it sticks around for a very long time before dissipating. The burnline started slightly wavy due to the enclosed foot, but quickly corrected itself and is now burning even and sharp leaving behind a flaky trail of white ash which held on for about a half inch before falling on my shirt. This pic was the second ash after that.

Second Third:

Into the second third of the Tatuaje 20th and the flavor in this thing is just pouring out. The dark chocolate is still dominant backed by clove and raisin with lighter notes of cedar and floral/earthiness. The retrohale brings out some nice spice and a bit of the pepper I encountered at the start of the cigar. At this point the cigar is burning perectly, the ash is much more compacted and I close out the second third with a minor nicotine kick.

Finish:

The cigar really takes off in the final third of the Tatuaje 20th. On top of the bold clove and dark chocolate an awesome cinnamon/nutmeg has creeped in. Backed by raisin and earthiness this has been a hell of a flavor profile. The cigar did go out on my a few times as I was smoking through it, but after I sped up my pace there were no further issues. it took me almost 2 hours to take this slow-burning cigar down tot the nub and I didn’t want to put it down. I experienced no harshness, sap, or extended heat while it left me with only a very mild nicotine kick.

Note: Out of the handful that I smoked these all had the tendency to go out and and be relit often. I mention this here as it’s a relatively fresh to my humidor cigar so it could very well be humidity issues and not cigar issues, however just picking up my pace a bit quicker than normal easily resolved the problem.

Overview:

The Tatuaje 20th is a damn good cigar. I really, really enjoyed the flavor profile especially the clove which I feel isn’t something I pick up in cigars too often. In fact, this is one of the best flavor profiles I have had in a cigar all year. I smoked a handful of these and each time they got better and better so I am curious how they will age especially considering that they are a regular production line. This is a box worthy purchase for sure and one I can see myself coming back to very, very often.