Los Blancos Nine Robusto

Reviews12 Comments on Los Blancos Nine Robusto

Los Blancos Nine Robusto

I’ve been looking forward to the Los Blancos Nine since the rumors started circulating about it a little before IPCPR. I’ve had the opportunity to sample earlier offerings of the Los Blancos Cigar Company, and it seemed to me what they were missing was a proper full-bodied cigar. The existing Premiere line is not bad group of smokes with the morning cup of joe, but not really ones I would light up with a stiff drink in the evening. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who thought that. David Blanco echoed that same sentiment in our interview with him at IPCPR this year. So to fill the gap, Los Blancos introduced the Nine.

The name, Nine, has a pretty straightforward meaning. It was simply their ninth attempt at finding the right full-bodied blend. Combine that with the happy coincidence that the cigar was created during Los Blancos’ ninth year of operations, and it was a no-brainer.

To achieve their goal of producing a fuller bodied cigar that is still accessible to most smokers (not just those of us who munch on peppercorns for breakfast), Los Blancos blended the early primings of three different Nicaraguan ligeros leaves. Harvested early, these leaves don’t have the opportunity to develop quite as much power or peppery body as they would ordinarily. The Nine is available in many of the most common formats (unfortunately, I don’t have the complete list) and on a limited basis, the lancero to satisfy lovers of small ring gauges.

Before we get into the review, a little unrelated Los Blancos news. At a recent Los Blancos/Primer Mundo event, David mentioned that we should keep an eye out for cigar in the works tentatively named “Three”. The word is that their third try at the Nine was a great blend, but not what they were looking for. But at the same time, it was too good for the discard pile. As it was a product of the search for the right full-bodied blend, it seems reasonable to conclude that it’s going to be on the fuller end of the scale. And if, as David said in our interview, it was a refining process that brought them to the Nine, the Three could be a real beast of a stick.

OK, I’ve gone on long enough. It’s time to give the Nine its trial by fire.

Cigar Stats:
Size: 5 x 50
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano Corojo Oscuro
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Smoking Time: 1 3/4 hours
Beverage: Water
Price: MSRP $7.42

The Pre-Smoke
You have to hand it to Los Blancos, they are consistent with their packaging. The Nine has the same dual band design you’ll see on the rest of their Premiere line. And the bands, though black, are nearly as eye catching as bright reds, yellows, greens and blues of the other lines. And it looks really nice on that dark oscuro wrapper leaf.

Taking a closer look at the wrapper on the cigars, I didn’t see any major imperfections, only a mixture of darker hues. There was a small hole in the wrapper leaf in the middle of one cigar, but that was it. The veins were pretty scarce, generally not more than two of any significant size, and they were not that significant. To the touch, the cigars felt about as hard as a rock, though a couple had a slightly softer spots.

The scent of the wrapper is one of my favorites. I love that mixture of beef jerky and compost I smell on some cigars. The cold taste was surprisingly sweet with a bit of coffee.

The Burn
Overall the Nine burned pretty well, though often unevenly. The ash was solid, but did get just a little flaky at points and the draw was pretty good too. I did have to relight a couple of the cigars in the final third, but other than that, the torch wasn’t required once the cigar was lit. The uneven bits all worked themselves out nicely. In all, nothing that would, or did, negatively impact my smoking experience.

I should also note that I intentionally smoke cigars slowly when doing reviews. But the Nine smoked more slowly than average, very likely due to the quantity of ligero tucked away in the filler.

The Flavor
It turns out that cold taste was a big hint of things to come when the cigar was lit. The initial puffs produced sweet syrupy and creamy coffee flavors. I expected the sweetness to fade quickly as the ligero started to warm up and be replaced with more of a peppery, spicy flavor, but that wasn’t the case. At most, I noticed a hint of pepper in the finish of this third. The predominant flavor remained a creamy coffee, with a little bit of cocoa and earth throughout.

Sweet and creamy coffee and cocoa were still the dominant flavors for much of the second third. Until around midway through the cigar when I noticed a brief spike in sweetness that resembled toffee and sweet orange. After that, the cigar’s profile trended toward darker chocolates and coffees. There was slightly more pronounced pepper in the finish of this third than in the previous as well.

The final third was a little earthier and a little more peppery (only a little) but continued to produce enjoyable creamy coffee and chocolate flavors.

The Price
Though I’ve been spoiled recently with the plethora of new five dollar cigars, I still think what I paid for this cigar is reasonable.

The Verdict
I had a good feeling about this cigar, and half way through my first I jumped the gun. I told David Blanco it was easily my favorite Los Blancos cigar. Fortunately, I don’t have to eat those words now that I’ve had the time to smoke a few more and really focus on it. It’s a great cigar. And it just seemed to get better the more I smoked it. The word decadent came to mind several times during the course of this review. Who needs dessert when you have a Los Blancos Nine?

The great thing about this cigar is that even though it’s chock-full of ligero, it’s still a stick most medium bodied cigar smokers will be comfortable easing into. They nailed that target. It’s definitely full flavor, but it won’t blow the hair to the back of your head with regard to strength. And even if it did, the way it tastes, I don’t think you’d mind.

Liked It: Loved it. Box-worthy.
Buy It Again: Definitely
Recommend It: Yes

Tower of Burn
Here for your viewing pleasure is my trademark Tower of Burn™.

 



 

The FTC Big Brother Zone Where your speech is free only when we say it is!™
The cigars smoked for this review were purchased at a legitimate cigar shop with legal U.S. currency from the bester online broker by Brian Hewitt, personally. Brian drove to this shop with a legitimate drivers license on official state highways while maintaining both the speed limit and a blood alcohol level of considerably less than the legal limit of 0.08. Brian was not compensated for the fuel, his driving time, the cigars or the time spent smoking them. During his visit to the cigar shop, and on the drive to and from, Brian abstained from giving out his opinion on any and all consumer products and services, except where he first disclosed, in triplicate, how he acquired said products and services.

The content of this review does not constitute an opinion (which might be subject to $11,000 fine by the FTC if nearly anything that could be subjectively said to be related were not fully disclosed), instead, it’s an elaborate metaphor for man’s eternal quest for knowledge. May your search be fruitful.

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12 thoughts on “Los Blancos Nine Robusto

  1. Interesting. I had a completely different take on this cigar…lol

    Front end, I was really digging it. A nice peppery kick, some earthy/musty flavor, and some nuttiness and espresso-like flavor mixed in. The one I had burned quickly (roughly an hour and 30…the size I had should smoke at about 2 hours for how I smoke), but it didn’t affect the flavors…which became a muddled mess roughly halfway through. The musty flavor picked up a bit, the pepper just kind of lingered, and the nutty/espresso flavor I picked up was gone. I can see where you got a citrus flavor, but I didn’t really pick it up much at all – to me, it was more of a cleaner-type of flavor. And after the band…oh crap. I ditched it with over an inch and a half to go. It became harsh, bitter, and repulsively stinky.

    But, maybe that was just the one I had. I might have to give it another try before I shit on it completely…lol

    1. Yeah, I’d recommend trying it again. That doesn’t sound anything like my experiences. Everybody’s palate is different, but it sounds like you probably got a bum stick.

  2. Very interesting review! I dont think I have ever had a Los Blancos product, but then again, with my memory I could have smoke 50 of them last week and forgot by now! Sounds like somethign that would be interesting to try, but would probably be a bit too full for me to smoke all the time. Let me rephrase taht, if it has super flavors throughout and doesnt have a nicotine kick, then I might smoke it more often, like i do the AB Tempus.

    Mike

    I dont believe you stated the process that you actually came into possession of said money to buy said cigar! 11K damn you – send it over =)

  3. Dear Mr. Hewitt,

    We here at “Big Brother” would like proof that the cigar for this review was a legitimate purchase. We have searched local cigars shops in our area and online and have been unable to find any shop that carries this cigar. Therefore, it is our belief that this cigar was obtained as an in-kind payment in exchange for the positive review. Because the in-kind payment was not disclosed we further believe that this review runs afoul of 16 CFR Part 255.

    We further take offense to your lack of respect for the guidelines that are set forth in the federal regulations cited above. The guides were drafted with consumer protection in mind; we certainly do not take consumer fraud lightly and neither should you, yet your clear sarcasm seems to do just that.

    We are sure you are aware of the penalties that result when a blogger such as yourself violates the rules set forth in the federal regulations. In an attempt to make an example out of you, we have decided that the penalty levied against you will be more unique than those set forth in the regulations. The unique penalty is necessary to curb future similar behavior by you and other bloggers.

    We have been monitoring your Twitter account. We read a statement by you where you indicated that you may not be able to recall where you obtained certain cigars. For example, you may several cigars in your humidor some of which were bought and some of which may have been given to you by a cigar manufacturer. You stated that you may not be able to determine which cigar was a gift and which was purchased. This can create problems in light of the regulations.

    Therefore, to prevent potential violations of the regulations because you cannot determine from whom a cigar was obtained, we have determined that the sole penalty levied against you in this case will be for you to relinquish all your cigars. You must take all of your cigars, package them up safely, and send them to Irish Mike. He has been designated as the enforcer in your matter. He will properly dispose of your cigars.

    Sincerely,

    Irish Mike, oops I mean “Big Brother.”

    1. Anticipating potential trouble with post, I went on a cigar smoking bender. I’ll be happy to turn over what’s left. Let me know where I should mail the Equus, Drew Estate Egg and the 5 Vegas Knuckle. LOL

  4. Mr. Hewill-

    Please send us a payment of $11,000 immediately. We have determined this review constitutes an opinion and an endorsement. We also believe that you have in the past obtained cigars (though not necessarily this cigar) from Los Blancos for free.

    Please pay via cashiers check or money order, as we don’t trust your personal check not to bounce.

    Regards,
    Your friendly FTC

  5. Looks like a gar that I will be enjoying very soon.I wil get back with everybody on what the aroma and taste is like.

  6. Brian: This might be your best written review ever. However I do have one question that is not about the Cigar.
    It regards the title of the disclaimer section:
    The FTC Big Brother Zone Where your speech is free only when we say it is!™
    Have you actually applied for and received a trade market for that sentence. I am not a lawyer but you might not want to poke “Big Brother” in the eye with a stick thus getting his attention and then violate federal law. LOL
    Great Review, I will have to see if my local B&M carries this cigar.
    Bill

  7. I had one of these a couple of weeks ago, and really, really enjoyed it. I read somewhere, but couldn’t confirm, that it uses the same wrapper as the Liga Privada No. 9, which I kind of doubt. You hear anything about this?

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