This cigar has a very dark, smooth, and oily wrapper. I smell sweet tobacco from the foot. The pre-light draw is just a bit firm, but not hard. Today’s beverage is an Independent Brewery Nailed It German Chocolate Cake Stout.

The initial flavor profile is mainly medium bodied tobacco. The retrohale is smooth. The burn is even and the light grey ash appears to be starting off firm.

In the first third a light flavor of currants joins the profile. The draw is good but the smoke volume is a bit light. The retrohale remains very smooth. The ash is firm but the burn has become a bit uneven. The Stout is less sweet than many chocolate stouts, much like a German chocolate cake, although there is no coconut flavor. Overall a good pairing.

During the second third the sweetness of the flavor profile increases and makes the currant notes more like raisins. The volume of smoke increases to what I would call normal. The ash dropped and the burn became uneven enough to need a touch-up.

Approaching the final inch the sweetness tones back down and the flavor profile returns to medium bodied tobacco with a touch of currant notes. The ash is more of a mottled grey and the burn is staying more even after the touch-up.

The burn issue I had might have resulted from a variable breeze that changed direction several times. Other than that the construction is good. The flavor profile did change a bit as mentioned. Overall a pleasant medium bodied smoke. 8.5/10.