Today we are smoking the popular Joya De Nicaragua Antano 1970 Gran Consul, this Nicaraguan puro is a marvelous size weighing in at a very stubby 4 3/4 inches by 60 ring gauge with just a slight Belicoso shape. I love the look and feel of the Joya De Nicaragua line in reminds me of what a classic old-school cigar might look like which is fitting because the word Aantano means “yesteryear” in Spanish. The cigar features a rather dark natural criollo wrapper and retro inspired gold, red, white and green label.
When I cut this Joya De Nicaragua I had to recut it a couple times to obtain the draw I was looking for. And I did have a bit of a struggle getting this bad boy to stay lit but only at the very beginning of the smoke.
This is a powerhouse of a cigar and your first few puffs will blast you with deep rich chocolate flavors. As the Joya begins to get into it’s groove the burn becomes much better and the ash is a pure white. The flavors shift to a more spicy leather with subtle hints of sweet caramel. There is also a nice old-world spice throughout my journey with the Joya.
The Joya De Nicaragua has been compared to a Fuente Opus X by some reviewers but personally I don’t get that. While the Joya remains full bodied through and through there is a mellowing as you get to the halfway point and beyond. The flavor of the tobacco on your tongue is a nice savory sweet which is very pleasant. Not only are these a full flavored smoke they also have a strong nicotine strength to match therefore these cigars are not for the newbie to be certain. I did find myself double puffing on this cigar to get the amount of smoke I wanted in my mouth but it certainly wasn’t a “deal breaker” as I did enjoy this smoke very much.
These stogies will set you back about $7 so you can’t really place them in the inexpensive category yet I would say they are well worth the money and if you enjoy a full bodied smoke (like I do) you should have some stashed away in your humidor.
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- Awesome shape and size
- Full bodied flavor
- Poor burn
- Light on smoke