Nica Rustica El Brujito (Toro) Review

Cigar: Nica Rustica
Size: El Brujito (toro) 6" x 52
Wrapper: Connecticut Broadleaf
Binder: Mexican San Andres Negro
Filler: Nicaraguan (Esteli and Jalapa)
Price: MSRP ~$7

Initial Impression/Prelight
Visually, the Nica Rustica stood out right away. It had a closed foot and a nice pigtail twist cap, but it's the Connecticut Broadleaf that really caught my eye. The leaf was nearly black, and although I know this doesn't use the same leaf as the Liga Privada #9, it did remind me of that cigar. It had a rough, almost charcoal-sketch feel to it, with such a dark wrapper and even darker moderate veins. The cigar was noticeably heavy in hand with no bumps or soft spots, and had a nice oily sheen.

The barnyard scent coming off the cigar put all other barnyard scents to shame, and I guess that's a compliment. The smell pre-cut really did take me back to the stock barns at the county fair. The pre-light draw was perfectly firm and I got more barnyard, even to the point of calling it a sweet manure, along with heavy sweet tobacco and some spice.

This particular cigar has been resting in my humidor at 65% for about 3-4 months. It was another sunny 75 degree day here, and I had an IBC root beer with the smoke.

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1st Third
I immediately got a huge blast of the sweet hay and barnyard that was promised before I lit up. I also picked up some sorghum molasses and a bunch of spiciness and just a bit of black pepper. Smoke poured off the cigar even at rest, and the burn was impeccable. The ash held for about an inch and a half before dropping harmlessly to the concrete. Full flavor and medium-full strength so far.

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2nd Third
The spices stuck around, and I also started getting that typical maduro sweetness in this section although it was heavier than most cigars I've smoked - maybe a little too heavy. There was a very long finish, to the point I'm figuring I'll taste this cigar for a day or two. I hope you'll pardon me saying, but this section really kicked off my saliva production and I found myself spitting after almost every puff (which is out of the ordinary). Again, smoke is heavy, thick, and plentiful - up to par with what I expect from Undercrown and Liga Privada.

Final Third
The heavy sweetness faded a bit in the last inch or two, and I got a little more pepper and spice to go along with some dark chocolate. The cigar did need a quick touch-up towards the end as the filler burned but the wrapper fell behind. Otherwise, this cigar was characterized by good construction. I'll call it full bodied flavor, and still medium-full or possibly full strength.

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Overall Impressions
From what I read, Drew Estate wasn't going for subtle and refined. Mission accomplished. This cigar was a beast, and the flavors hit hard and kept coming.
• I don't think I've needed to spit that much since I was new to cigars. Sorry, it's a little gross but it's true.
• It was a pleasure to smoke for almost 2 hours and never have to worry about the burnline or retouches until a tiny bit at the very end.
• The Drew Estate website lists this cigar as medium-full strength. I guess I could buy that depending on how you define strength, but I'd definitely rate this one as about as full-flavored as anything I've smoked lately.
• Again, the DE website says this cigar is blended to be "un-polished, un-refined", but I actually thought there were some pretty decent flavor shifts from start to finish.
• Maybe I'm crazy but this one reminded me of the Diesel Unholy Cocktail at times.
• Smoke production was off the charts, particularly at rest. It actually got annoying...ly awesome. I did have to put the cigar in the tray away from me between puffs though, due to smoke from the foot continuously wafting up and getting in my eyes.


At first this was a tough one for me to rate. I found the maduro spicy/sweetness a little bit too much at times, as the flavor passed pleasant and became almost cloying. Still, even that was borderline and again I get that the point of this cigar was never subtlety. In that vein but on the plus side, the flavors were big and bold and there was no mistaking them. In the end, this is not a box buy for me, but I may pick up one or two here and there as (if) they come back in stock at the shop for the times when I want a big hammer of a cigar, or to give to friends who enjoy bold maduros. I could see how the full flavor folks would really love this cigar.

I've smoked a few more of these since I initially wrote the review, and now I recommend at least a 5-er. If you don't like them, someone will take them off your hands.

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