Southern Draw Jacob's Ladder Robusto

[jefslat]

Beautiful smooth dark wrapper with a firm bunch and a perfect draw. Aromas of dark chocolate from the shaggy foot and wrapper, more of a spicy vibe from the cold draw. Owner Robert Holt says smoke this one after a good meal.



Initial notes are cayenne dark chocolate and cedar. Also very rich, well aged tobacco. It has not knocked me over yet but has already threatened me once. I told it, "F* you, I'm Milford!" and kept smoking, picking up some latte notes. The ash is a firm medium grey and the burn is perfect.

The ale is fermented over coffee and cacao nibs and is perfect for this cigar.

First third really brought out the dark chocolate and cedar notes with espresso in the background. Knocked the ash off to avoid the ash lap I got yesterday, revealing a conical burn that showed the ligero to be slightly off center, but not terribly so.



In the second third the cayenne came through on the retrohale, adding some oomph to the flavor profile. The burn is a little off, but not enough to correct yet. The smoke is plentiful and smooth. The bands slid off perfectly with no damage to the wrapper.



At about half I touched up the wrapper and the burn is even again. The smoke remains cool and smooth with lots of flavor. At 13%, I am drinking the ale sparingly as to not affect the finish, which is as flavorful as the smoke.

Approaching the final inch of the cigar, the smoke remains cool and pleasant while the strength is picking up, especially the cayenne in the retrohale.



Going to have to put it down at one inch because the wrapper is warming up even though the smoke remains smooth. Another great offering from Southern Draw, it earns a 9.5/10 for excellent construction and a perfect draw. Joe Bob says check it out.