Cigar Reviewed: Caldwell Eastern Standard Midnight Express

Smoked at: West Chester, Ohio

The Caldwell Eastern Standard Midnight Express Toro is a medium-full bodied stick. I reviewed the Eastern Standard Corretto a few months ago. Ever since, I’ve wanted to get my hands on the Midnight Express to compare and contrast.

One of the first things I noticed immediately upon taking the cigar out of the cello were two prominent veins in the unusual Connecticut shade maduro wrapper. These were long veins. Almost big enough for a heart surgeon to use in bypass surgery.

The Midnight Express starts out with pepper, cedar, earth, and notes of espresso and leather. Those flavors are pretty consistent throughout the smoke. There’s not much sweetness. Many of the other flavor notes are dominated by the pepper and wood.

Frankly, It has the same flavor profile as the first Eastern Standard I smoked sans the voluminous plumes of smoke. Bummer. One of the few things I liked about the first one. Same flavors. Same construction albeit good construction. Even burn line until the last third and then it only took one touch up to straighten it out. One of the vein lines stayed in the ash, like a full inch of ash. Even after rolling the ash off the line was back when I looked about 10 minutes later. Only noticed that on a cigar once before this. I guess it’s a sign of good construction and one tough little wrapper.

Like the first Eastern Standard I found it a lackluster smoke. Just put on a different wrapper and band and call it Midnight Express. I like the marketing, not so much the cigar.