The Drew Estate Isla del Sol Maduro Robusto brings a coffee lover's fantasy to life in a 5"x52 parejo format. This Nicaraguan puro with its oily Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro wrapper comes pre-dressed for dessert - literally featuring a sugar-kissed cap that'll make your lips sticky. At about $3.45 per stick in 10-count boxes, it's positioned as an affordable daily indulgence rather than a special occasion smoke.
The pre-light taste smacks of Folgers crystals with a side of brown sugar. That sweetened cap leaves residue on fingers like powdered donut glaze.
Initial puff delivers instant diner coffee vibes - think slightly burnt percolator brew sweetened with those little paper-wrapped sugar cubes. Smoke production stays modest, requiring deliberate draws to keep lit in humid conditions.
As the burn line passes the band, bitter cocoa powder notes emerge through the sweetness. The nicotine creep becomes noticeable here despite its "mild-medium" rating - about equivalent to drinking cold brew on empty stomach.
Last inch turns into a flavor wrestling match between tar buildup and residual sweetness. Most smokers ditch it before nubbing when the saccharine taste morphs into artificial sweetener aftertaste.
Rolled in Drew Estate's Estelí factory using Jalapa Valley fillers. The maduro wrapper undergoes 18-month fermentation in pilones, developing those characteristic cocoa notes. Unlike traditional infusion methods, the coffee flavoring here gets applied post-roll through a proprietary spray process.
