Smoked: Ave Maria Divinia

Smoked at: Sharonville, Ohio

Ave Maria Divinia is a box-pressed smooth to rustic AJ Fernandez blended stick with Nicaraguan binder and filler and covered in a sun grown Habano wrapper with nearly invisible tiny veins. You’ve got to love the elegance of the cigar bands – very classy.

Cedar, coffee, cocoa, roasted nuts – hazelnuts, peanuts and cashews in a mixed nut can - earthy with a touch of leather sneaking into the background, spice, pepper. Quite a collection right from the start. Thank you, AJ. The pepper and sweetness are subtle. The sweetness was hard to identify until the second third. Even then I’m guessing, but I know I tasted caramel and cream – like a Werther’s candy drop. I’m pretty sure I picked up the taste of fruit on a few puffs – cherries and/or berries and some puffs of orange. The cocoa transitions into semi-sweet dark chocolate and the pepper and earthiness pick up some steam during the final third. Also, mint enters the array – unexpected, not unpleasant, just a surprise finale. The flavor notes are plentiful and well balanced.

The construction would be worthy of a place of honor at the table of the cigar band’s Crusaders. Perfect draw, abundant smoke and decent layered grey ash that held pretty well through most of the smoke.

Ave Maria Divinia is medium-full bodied, medium-full strength, has complexity and perfect balance…and it sticks the landing! Getting mentally prepared for the Olympics. Rack this up as a 5 across the board. Good thing there’s no longer an East German judge involved in the scoring.