The Wasabi was first released as an Espinosa Lounge Exclusive in 2016. It was well received and in 2018, Espinosa Cigars released the cigar to the general public.
The Wasabi is manufactured in Espinosa Cigars’ La Zona factory in Esteli, Nicaragua.
If you’ve never retrohaled wasabi, try it, you’ll hate me later.
It is available in one vitola only, a box pressed Robusto (5×52) MSRP $7.95.
There’s not much known about the blend. Other than the Candela wrapper because, you just can’t hide that. I do know that the contrasting cap of the cigar is made from a Nicaraguan Habano leaf.
The appearance of the Wasabi is unique. The bright green Candela wrapper and the brown cap is visually striking and very appealing. The thin white band is framed by black stripes with the name WASABI in a green font that is similar to just about every menu in a Chinese take-out place that you’ve ever been in. The sides of the band have the words La Zona and Espinosa Cigars in a similar font, only red. There is a larger E at the back.
The wrapper had a spicy aroma to it, a few visible veins and nearly invisible seams. The cap was smooth and expertly applied. The finished foot had an earthy tobacco aroma.
The pre-light draw had a surprisingly spicy flavor that was carried over onto my lips. There was almost no resistance at all on the draw.
The first third had a spicy retrohale but, nothing like the condiment the cigar is named after. If you’ve never retrohaled wasabi, try it, you’ll hate me later.
I had more of the spicy flavor from the pre-light during this third along with a tingling on my tongue and the roof of my mouth.
During the second third, the retrohale picked up some more strength with a very long finish in my nose.
The flavors changed a bit to a strong tobacco flavor with the same tingling on my palate.
The final third of the cigar was very similar to the second.
The Wasabi is a fast burner albeit uneven that required several touch ups to keep it going properly. The ash was firm and medium gray in color. The cigar produced excellent smoke as long as I kept on top of the burn issues.
I received two of the cigars as part of my Stogiebird subscription although they came several months apart. The first one was very good but, the second one was so much better. Maybe due to a little more aging?
[su_box title=”Final Thoughts” style=”glass” box_color=”#b9b1ae”]I consider the Wasabi to be a medium strength and a medium to full bodied cigar. Overall it was a very good smoking experience and I would certainly add more to my humidor.
I rate the Espinosa Cigars Wasabi at an 88
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