The La Gloria Cubana Spanish Press was released in 2019, around the time of the PCA (IPCPR) show in Las Vegas.
The specifics
The blend is comprised of a Nicaraguan Jalapa wrapper over a Mexican San Andres Viso binder and then stuffed with four different fillers; Nicaraguan Jalapa, Dominican Piloto Cubano, Dominican Olor and Brazilian Mata Fina.
The cigar comes in three sizes. For this review, I was provided the Toro vitola from General Cigar which weighs in at 6.5 x 52.
The experience
Appearance
The cigar is wonderful to look at. The Jalapa wrapper is medium brown in color, has fine veins and barely visible seams. The aroma from the wrapper is rich tobacco. The cap is smoothly applied and the finished foot is full of barnyard scents.
Pre-light
The cigar is firm to the touch and of average weight for the vitola. I gave the cigar a snip and found the pre-light draw to be quite easy. There really were no discernable flavors from the draw but, I picked up savory tobacco flavors on my lips from the wrapper leaf.
Combustion
Overall, the cigar burned evenly with a thin, dark carbon ring. The light gray ash was firm and tight. Each puff produced a good volume of smoke.
The thirds
The first third of the cigar had a strong retrohale with a slightly bitter finish and notes of mild tobacco. The second third had the same strong retrohale, a medium finish and fuller tobacco flavors. Finally, the cigar finishes off the same as the second third.
[su_box title=”Summary” style=”glass” box_color=”#e1dddd”]I consider this cigar a medium strength, medium bodied cigar. Its flavor profile for the most part is consistent with no real surprises. My smoking experience was just average. In my personal opinion, this is not one of La Gloria’s best blends.
I give the La Gloria Cubana Spanish Press a rating of 87.[/su_box]