Wrapper: Blackened Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Dominican, Nicaraguan and Peruvian







Appearance 8/10
Construction 20/30
Aroma 15/20
Burn 10/15
Draw 5/10
Flavor 10/15

Lance's Rating 68



The Onyx Reserve was recently awarded a rating of 94/100 by Cigar Aficionado. I tried this one due to being drawn in by the advertisements that the company puts out, along with recommendations by the guys at the local cigar shop. As you can see, I have given this one a relatively poor rating, mainly due to the terrible draw, and taste. While taste is a subjective part of the rating process, the construction -- and in this case, the resulting draw is not.

Appearance 8/10

The Onyx, as the name would seem to suggest, has a beautiful maduro wrapper with a very minor box pressing.

Construction 20/30

This cigar is well constructed in the fact that the wrapper and binder wont unravel ... Which is the same for most of the higher end cigars on the market today. That is about the best that I can say about it. The banding had extra glue visible all around the oustide of the wrapper ... The cigar itself was so tightly wrapped that it would probably be easier to draw through a piece of wood.

Aroma 15/20

Unlit, this cigar has a very woody aroma. It is very earthy. after lighting, it is still quite earthy .. It reminds me of an autumn walk in the woods. The odor of leaves and dry grass. It is actually quite aromatic.

Burn 10/15

It lit well, but it started to burn asymmetrically almost immediately. After a few minutes, it did start to straighten itself out ... but never quite got there. It did stay lit however ... even after putting it down for a few minutes.

Draw 5/10

The draw on this particular cigar is very very hard. It has lost alot of points due to this. The cigar is wrapped very tightly, and even after attempts to massage the wrapper to loosen the filler and binder, and even using a draw poker has not made the draw any easier. I have been assured that this is more the exception than the rule with this cigar.

Flavor 10/15

The flavor changes throughout the body of the cigar ... that is to say that it starts as a medium body and ends as a very potent full bodied cigar. There are very strong notes of cedar ... and wood in general, which could be expected by the aroma from the cigar, even before lighting. As the cigar burned, it became very spicy with strong flavors of a mixture of what I would classify as cinnamon and pepper.
--
I have been given another Onyx Reserve to try by the great guys at Cigars and More, and this was due to my severe displeasure with this particular cigar ... I may have to give this cigar a redux at sometime in the future ... afterall, I have another FREE one to try.