The original Undercrown from Drew Estate was a huge release back in 2011. The cigar was originally announced as a blend made by the rollers, for the rollers. Since the Undercrown came to market it has been one of the most popular cigars in the vast Drew Estate portfolio. The Undercrown 10 is the Anniversary celebration to mark the milestone of 10 years of Undercrown. Here is Matt’s review of the Undercrown 10 Robusto.
In addition to the Robusto size reviewed here, the Undercrown 10 is also available in a 6 x 52 Toro, 7 x 50 Corona Doble, 5 x 43 Corona Viva, and a 6 x 46 Lonsdale Factory Floor Edition.
Undercrown 10 Robusto
MSRP: $11.75
Size: 5 x 50
Origin: La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate – Esteli, Nicaragua
Wrapper: San Andres (Mexico)
Binder: CT Broadleaf (USA)
Filler: Nicaragua
Prologue
The look of the cigar is striking. Not only the band design, but the deep color of the wrapper catches the eye. It is dark and oily, with a pronounced tooth. There are some slight veins on the surface but the seams are smooth and clean. The wrapper has a strong aroma of aged tobacco and leather. The foot has some peppery and dark molasses aromas. The cold draw is more molasses, with some barnyard notes.
Act I
There is an intensity right out of the gate after lighting. The first few puffs have black pepper and earth in the foreground. It settles rather quickly into a mix of deep molasses and charred wood. There are some background notes of coffee and dark cocoa with occasional hints of leather. The retrohale is peppery, with hints of sweetness and wood.
Act II
The flavors remain largely the same but shift a bit in the middle of the smoking time. The coffee and cocoa notes come into the foreground, while the wood and pepper notes fade to the back. There are still some draws that bring the earthiness and hints of molasses sweetness, but they are only occasional. Surprisingly, the retrohale in this section of the cigar is extremely smooth with very little pepper bite, mainly just sweetness and earth.
Act III
Although the pepper does kick up a bit towards the nub, it is well balanced with that sweet molasses. The charred wood and earth round everything out with a little bit of a dry tannic note. One very interesting thing I get at the very end is a toasted marshmallow note that comes out of nowhere and then it’s gone. The retrohale is still that ever-present molasses and very mild black pepper.
Epilogue
I was able to smoke most of the sizes in the new Undercrown 10 and this Robusto seemed to me to perform best overall. Not only did the Robusto tend to deliver the flavor profile in the best way, it also had consistent burn performance. While the blend didn’t seem to me to be extremely complex, the flavors and aromas were accessible. If you are a consumer who enjoys a medium-plus profile with a mix of sweetness and spice, this is one you should definitely check out.
Undercrown 10 Robusto – How Bout That Cigar?
Rating: How Bout A Box?
Overall Score: 91
PAD: +0.0 (What is PAD?)
Flavor Summary: Coffee, Dark Cocoa, Earth, Molasses, Charred Wood, Pepper
Strength Assessment: Medium-Full
Source: Cigars for this review were purchased by HBT Media LLC