Gold Leaf Adorned Cavalier Genève BII Viso Jalapa

This unique cigar came in my July Luxury Cigar Club pack. I have been enjoying this subscription for a few months. I usually receive cigars that are unknown to me, be they new or limited releases, or older varieties not sold any longer. The Cavalier Genève BII Viso Jalapa Robusto Gordo was an interesting inclusion, and a brand I was not familiar with. Especially interesting was the 24-karat gold leaf that adorns the wrapper of the Cavalier Genèva cigar.

I found this to be a fairly bold cigar. The Nicarguan Visa Jalapa tobacco used in the wrapper is described as being similar in flavor to ligero tobaccos, the top leaves of the plant which produce the strongest tobacco used in cigar, though slightly milder. The binder and filler tobaccos are Nicaraguan habano. I could certainly detect the presence the bold leaves upon lighting. Dark chocolate, pepper, and a sharp grassy note made for a full flavored smoke. 

The burn on this particular stick required attention through the first two thirds. One side of the cigar burned substantially slower than the other. I wouldn't call it canoeing in the strictest sense, it was not a narrow line going down the side. Imagine one half of the cigar being coated in flame resistant material. This wreaked havoc with my fixation on an even burn. I managed to ignore the lopsided burn until the difference reached 1 1/4 inches or more before touching up. The ash was quite solid and required effort to knock it off when trying to even the burn. Undoubtably this contributed to the short 45 minute burn from the 5 x 54 stick.

I was very interested in seeing how the smoking through the gold lead would be. Fortunately by that point the burn was progressing evenly.

The gold leaf glowed a bit as the burn hit it, but mostly held on and maintained the diamond shape over the ash. I held the nub as long as I could, barely touching it to my lips for the final light draws.

Despite the burn issues I enjoyed the bold smoke offered by the Cavalier Genève BII Viso Jalapa. It's certainly a cigar I would smoke again. I enjoyed this one simply with some carbonated water. If I acquire more in the future, I'm definitely pouring a strongly flavored bourbon to go along with it.

Cheers!