San Cristobal Clasico

Brand: San Cristobal
Cigar: Clasico
Shape: Robusto
Size: 5" x 50
Wrapper: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Binder: Nicaragua
Price: Gift

Appearance: 8
Construction: 9
Taste: 9
Value: 8
Overall: 9

As a big Jose "Don Pepin" Garcia fan I was excited to try my first ever San Cristobal. This was a gift from a friend and had been aged for about a year before I got it and then a further two months in my humdior. A Nicaraguan puro, the San Cristobal is yet another top drawer offering from Ashton.

The Clasico is a traditional robusto and featured a nice, dark wrapper. The appearance was excellent with a perfect triple cap and a very even wrapper. There were some subtle veins evident but nothing that would indicate any future burn issues. The cigar was at a perfect 65% rH and was nice and firm without being too hard or having any soft spots.

The cigar lit up easily and burned evenly from beginning to nub and required no touch-ups or relights of any sort even when left to its own devices for a few minutes at a time. The ash was a nice light gray and fell off at about an inch and a half due to some jostling in the ashtray.

The initial flavor featured the usual Pepin spice but it was much more subtle than in most of his other blends. The dark wrapper provided a nice toasty, earthy flavor that perfectly balanced the cigar's peppery bite. The San Cristobal maintained that flavor profile right up to the end and while this type of one dimensional flavor can be a negative in many cases I have no problem with it when that single dimension is as wonderful as this one.

While I don't usually comment on a cigar's room aroma (since they are almost by definition stinky) the San Cristobal gave off beautiful clouds of delicious smoke. As a pipe smoker I would compare it to the scent of a traditional English blend. It smelled of rich tobacco with a hint of Latakia spiciness without any cigar funkiness. What a treat.

The San Cristobal Clasico is a top-notch cigar and ranks right up there among my favorites. It was a pure pleasure to smoke and even now I find myself relishing the aftertaste.

Retailing for around $7.50 a stick, the San Cristobal falls squarely in the moderately priced camp and is well worth the slight increase from a bargain cigar. I'm also sitting on a handful of the Monumento size and it's a safe bet that they'll be smoked in the not too distant future given how much I enjoyed this cigar.