Montecristo Churchill Anejados Cigar,蒙特克里斯托丘吉尔雪茄 |

Montecristo Churchill Anejados
蒙特克里斯托丘吉尔雪茄

panish for aged, the Añejados are exactly that—cigars rolled, placed into undecorated boxes for a minimum of five years, then reinspected, packaged with bands while the boxes get their dressing and then released. It’s a particularly interesting concept given the general consensus is that most Cuban cigars benefit with some age because of how cigars are made in Cuba, where most regular production items see far less time in pilones, tobacco storage or aging rooms than their Dominican or Nicaraguan counterparts.

Whether intentionally or not, Habanos S.A. has made some programs that attempt to resolve this trend. The Gran Reserva and Reserva programs use tobaccos aged for a handful of years and the wrappers for Edición Limitadas are said to age for at least two years.

Añejados is another attempt, only the aging is taking place after the cigars are rolled, not in the form of raw tobacco.

Cigar Reviewed: Montecristo Churchill Añejado
Country of Origin: Cuba
Factory: n/a
Wrapper: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Filler: Cuba
Size: 7 Inches
Ring Gauge: 47
Vitola: Churchill
Est. Price: $21 (Boxes of 25, $525)¹
Date Released: January 2015
Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

There’s a soft box-press on each of the Montecristo Añejados I’ve seen. Habanos S.A. claims the cigars are rolled and boxed and then put down for rest with the bands applied afterwards and at least the bands show signs of being new. As for the cigars themselves, they look pretty good with various amounts of veins littering the cigar on a fairly vibrant and bright wrapper. The foot provides aromas that are very sweet thanks to a big caramel with a bit of cedar in the background. Sweet caramel is also present on the cold draw, which also has cedar and twang.

The Montecristo Añejado starts with sweet cedar, some earth, a bubblegum-like sweetness and leather with a grainy and bready finish. It’s a lot of flavors, many developed, potentially even too much. For better or worse, the Añejado doesn’t let up: lots of mushroom, a semisweet caramel, bread, earth and saw dust with a big coriander through the nose and a touch of harshness in the back. It’s full in flavor, medium-full in body and medium in strength. Through the first third of each cigar, construction is great with an even burn and solid ash.