Pre-Light
The Casdagli Daughters of the Wind Pony Express is a box pressed Corona Gorda with a really impressive blend. The Ecuadorian Habano wrapper envelops binder leaves from Costa Rica, and Nicaragua and filler from Peru and The Dominican Republic. This multinational blend is put together at the IGM Boutique Factory in San Jose, Costa Rica. The wrapper looks fantastic on my example, and seems to be very well constructed from the get go. After a cut I find the draw to be just a touch open for my liking, but still well within the sweet spot for me.
I
First light on the Casdagli Pony Express is showing oak, vanilla, black pepper, and toasted bread. The retrohale has some espresso and clove. There’s a bit of a generic sweetness developing in the background. Flavors are good, but they’re coming off a bit muted here. The pepper starts falling off after the first inch and the main profile is that vanilla and oak with baking spices on the retrohale.
II
Musty cedar is creeping up on the retro in the second third. The vanilla is getting a bit spicy. The vanilla and oak note are reminding me a lot of a good bourbon. I’m picking up on a toasted marshmallow sweetness in the background now. Id love to see that ramp up here. The pepper note has almost entirely fallen off. The retro is now baking spices, oak, musty cedar and a touch of that marshmallow. Really good burn and ash so far.
III
The Pony Express is really hitting it’s stride here as we approach the final third. The spicy vanilla and toasted marshmallow sweetness are playing together really nicely. It’s also showing a bit of nicotine strength here. The toasted marshmallow sweetness is shifting to something closer to a salted dark caramel. I put the cigar down right after the band.
Conclusions
The Casdagli Daughters of The Wind Pony Express had a profile that kept me engaged up until the very end. I really enjoyed the interplay of the subtle sweetness and the spicy woody notes. The construction was top notch, and it was just a pretty cigar to look at. I’d really have liked to see the caramel/marshmallow sweetness ramped up just a bit more. It felt like the wood and baking spices were dominating the mix at some points. I stick to water for my reviews, but if you’re a fan of pairing cigars with a good whiskey or rum I think you’d really enjoy this blend. While the cigar was very good on it’s own I felt as if it needed a fortified companion to be fully enjoyed. I picked up this blend in the Rabicano vitola as well, so I’m looking forward to trying it in a larger ring gauge to see how it holds up.
