Crowned Heads Belgian Blue LE 2024

Last October, seemingly coming out of the blue, Crowned Heads announced a new line—Belgian Blue—a limited edition made out of the factory that handles the company’s Mil Días and Juárez offerings. While many of Crowned Heads’ limited editions are tweaks on pre-existing lines, the Belgian Blue was completely unique, arriving with a European feel and an interesting tobacco tie-in:

“Many modern era cigars are intentionally blended to be strong, but Belgian Blue was blended to be full in flavor first, full in body second, and the resulting intensity and strength were a by-product of the blend. I’d classify the profile as intense in terms of spice, especially in the retrohale, and strong in terms of body but not in a nicotine-nausea-inducing sort of manner. The blend is comprised of 75 percent ligero with a textured base, meaning that the base leaves selected have more thickness and texture, resulting in more strength and better combustion. The profile is simultaneously strong and smooth.” —Jon Huber, co-founder of Crowned Heads

Belgian Blue LE 2024 Breakdown

Included within each box of Belgian Blue is an insert with the following information on the project:

The Belgian Blue is a breed of beef cattle from Belgium renowned for not only its strength, but for its extremely lean, hyper-sculpted, muscular physique which is termed “double-muscling.”

The double-muscling phenomenon is a genetic condition resulting in an increased number of muscle fibers known as ‘hyperplasia.’ The Belgian Blue breed originated in central and upper Belgium in the 19th century, as a result of crossing local breeds with a Shorthorn breed of cattle from the United Kingdom.

It is in this spirit of strength and muscularity that Crowned Heads is excited to introduce an all-new blend and limited edition release, “Crowned Heads Belgian Blue LE 2024.” Belgian Blue is a muscular blend of Nicaraguan and Dominican tobaccos, with an Ecuadorian binder, and finished with a dark Mexican (San Andres) cover leaf. The result is an intense, spice-forward profile that is complimented by an earthy undertone, seamlessly balanced to deliver a full-bodied and complex smoking experience. Crowner Heads Belgian Blue is raw and robust, yet maintains an air of refined elegance yielding layered flavors of pepper, leather, oak and molasses.

While many other cigars are blended to be “strong,” Belgian Blue was blended to be full in flavor first, full in body second, with its inherent intensity and strength being a natural byproduct. A total of only 24,000 of these exquisite cigars was produced for global distribution at the TacaNicsa factory in Esteli, Nicaragua, home to such Crowned Heads brands as Mil Días, Mil Días Maduro, and Juárez.

Appearance

The Belgian Blue LE 2024 offers a departure from Crowned Heads’ familiar aesthetic, featuring a blue and cream color scheme that drives the European vibe home. The cigar takes on a soft box-press shape, being dressed in a wrapper leaf showing a milk chocolate hue. The leaf itself has a fine, toothy texture beneath the fingers, with nearly invisible seams running the full length of the cigar. Fine veins are scattered across the leaf, which is finished with a clean triple cap at the head.

When squeezed, the cigar reveals a medium-dense bunch that’s perhaps a touch softer than ideal, though this characteristic remains consistent from head to foot. The wrapper itself is rather reserved in its aromatics, offering subtle mineral notes and a faint suggestion of campfire smoke. The foot brings primarily earthy qualities, being complemented by touches of mocha and leather. After cutting, the pre-light draw shows good resistance, expressing notes of baking herbs and leather, with an underlying campfire quality and subtle hints of anise.

Smoking Experience

The Belgian Blue begins on the gentle side of the spectrum, offering a subtle sweetness that lingers between draws and just a pinch of black pepper through the retrohale. The profile is decidedly mellow in these early moments, being tasty despite its calm nature. Initially, the draw shows more resistance than the pre-light inspection suggested, often requiring double puffs to achieve the desired smoke output and flavor intensity. The burn line develops at a notably crooked angle (approximately 60 degrees), though the soft white ash proves to be clean and without flakes, holding consistently for one-inch sections before dropping.

As the profile develops, there’s a refreshing natural sweetness that remains subtle throughout, with toffee-like notes emerging as one of the first distinct characteristics. The smoking experience is relatively straightforward at this point, showing medium-plus flavor output, mild strength, and mild-medium body. The first minor touchup is required at about the inch-and-a-quarter mark. Moving forward, campfire smokiness (as noted from the pre-light inspection) begins to emerge, being backed by the slightest suggestion of marshmallow sweetness. The profile feels rounded and balanced, and while not particularly refined or complex, it maintains an easy-going character that’s aided by a cool smoking temperature. This section brings out smoked hickory and soft mocha, having an underlying clay-like quality that feels somewhat muted.

The smoke primarily hits the tongue on the tip and front sides, extending to the far back sides of the palate. There’s a somewhat dry texture on the palate, which carries into notes of charred wood, anise, and vanilla root beer through the finish. Following another touchup, the cigar has settled into medium territory in terms of flavor, strength, and body. The finale shows a sharper texture and more fiery disposition, introducing flavors of pizzelle cookies amidst plenty of charred wood and anise. It’s an interesting juxtaposition, being fiery upfront while offering a menthol-like coolness through the finish. Leather rounds out the experience, with the cigar finishing at medium in flavor, medium-plus in strength, and medium in body.

Would I Smoke This Cigar Again?

I sure would. It’s not the most dazzling profile, being primarily balanced and noticeably restraining an underlying intensity, but it would certainly be an above-average contender in the realm of sessionable smoking experiences. In terms of profile, it’s fairly reminiscent of a Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series Maduro—albeit tuned down a few steps in terms of punchiness and complexity.

• I’ve always felt that Crowned Heads does a phenomenal job representing the aesthetics of various cultures around the world, and this is yet another example. That being said, it doesn’t look like a Crowned Heads cigar. It feels a bit disjointed from their other lines (in design), though they can probably get away with it due to the limited nature of the project.
• I’m a sucker for a good narrative, especially when the tobacco blend seamlessly integrates into the story. This is certainly the case with the Belgian Blue, which combines European aesthetics with the “muscular physique” of its namesake cattle. The theme carries through to the blend itself, offering a surprisingly subdued profile despite its ligero-heavy composition.
• You can usually spot a San Andrés wrapper due to its smoky aroma, and this was especially evident with the Belgian Blue.
• I took my review notes prior to reading up on the cigar’s backstory, and I found it quite surprising to learn that the recipe was built from 75 percent ligero leaves. Of course, there are many factors that go into the equation, and not all ligero leaves will come with the same levels of intensity (region, varietal, shade-grown vs sun-grown, etc.), but this does not come across as being even remotely in powerhouse territory. Sure, that’s part of the cigar’s marketing narrative—being “raw and robust, yet maintain[ing] an air of refined elegance”—but I found the profile considerably more subdued, often appreciating its balanced, easy-going nature while hoping that the dial would be turned up a notch or two.
• At the time of this review, the Crowned Heads Belgian Blue LE 2024 has a “98% Smokable” rating on Dojoverse, ranking in the top 30 percent of cigars on the all-time leaderboard.

Short Link: