Brand: Padilla Dominus
Blender: Ernesto Padilla
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Cuban-seed Corojo 06
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Origin: Honduras
MSRP: Aprox. $9.76
Purchased From: Gettysburg Cigar Company

Brand:

Padilla is a boutique brand of cigars founded by Ernesto and Carlos Padilla in 2003. Before opening a factory of his own, Padilla was best known for their El Rey de los Habanos made boutique lines.

The Padilla Dominus is available in 7 sizes, which includes Churchill (48 x 7.00), Torpedo (52 x 6.25), Double Robusto (54 x 5.00), Toro Gordo (52 x 6.00), Corona Gorda (46 x 5.75), Robusto (50 x 5.00), and a Perla (44 x 4.00). They are available in boxes of 24, except the Perla which is 30 to a box, at a price range of $217.00 – $264.00 and for the Perla the price is around $200.00 per box.

Pre-Light:

A few weeks ago, Mike (KnightRid) was kind enough to send me a Padilla Dominus. I had never smoked the cigar and had it on my wish list as something I wanted to try. After we reviewed the San Cristobal by Ashton, we got to talking about doing another review in the future. It turns out that coordinating a review is a little harder than it sounds. The easy way to go was to smoke the Padilla Dominus as a joint first impressions review.

After some discussion, it seemed that our samples were the same. Both exhibited a dark brown wrapper with a reddish hue. When pinched, both samples were firmly packed with tobacco. Only my sample showed signs of a small soft spot while Mike’s was uniformly packed from head to foot. Neither one of us got a strong odor off the wrapper or foot, just a subtle barnyard smell that faded quickly.

After clipping, despite the firm feel and dense looking foot, the draw was free flowing with a bit of resistance. The cold draw produced a mildly sweet flavor that made me think of some sort of dark red fruit.

First Third:

After cutting our cigars, we moved to the toasting and lighting process. Before long, both samples were evenly lit and producing a steady supply of smoke. After retrohaling the first puff, I was blasted by a crisp spiciness. The spice was quick and sharp, lasting for a very short time before dissipating. The body was medium to start and gradually worked its way towards medium to full as the first third progressed. The finish was smooth and mildly creamy. Just to note, Mike was getting a sweet sensation on the roof of his mouth also.

When it came to burning characteristics, both cigars performed differently. On my my sample, I experienced a weak ash with some flowering while Mike’s cigar produced a firmly compacted ash. Both cigars, however, did produce a light colored ash and steady supply of smoke.

Second Third:

After a little more than an hour, we reached the second third of our Padilla Dominus Cigars. As we expected from our experiences with the first third, the body slowly progressed from medium to medium to full. The finish remained smooth and creamy across the palate. When the smoke was passed through the sinus, I was presented with a heavy spice that seemed to gravitate towards the front of my nose. This spice was fast and clean, only lingering for a few seconds before completely dissipating.

In the flavor department, I was getting practically the same affect as through the sinus. The flavor was primarily towards the front of my mouth and focused on the soft palate, directly behind my front teeth, The focused flavor was that of spice. As this subsided, I picked up some sweet tones as well as some wood tones. Mike on the other hand, was getting more of the spice on the back sides of his tongue, but the same overall effect and flavor.

Final Third:

We were about an hour and a half into the cigar at this point and everything was going pretty well. Spice in the cigar was still running in the forefront while we were getting some sweetness and a very nice creaminess that coated the palette with a dense enjoyable smoke. Body was into the full range at this point but even for Mike it was not overbearing. The retrohale was smooth with a spicy finish to it that was enjoyable rather than being rough. Not very much changed in the flavor profile. Our palettes were getting a bit weary at this point, although Mike’s was not as much as mine, but the cigar was still very good, and we nubbed them with toothpicks.

Mike was also getting a dry feeling which made him drink more water, although I did not drink any more than normal. I may have actually drank a bit less than I normally do.

A couple burn issues popped up requiring a few touch ups along the way but with the cigar being enjoyable it was not too much of a bother. We both had some wrapper issues from the middle into this final third but they never got out of hand and we burnt straight through them with no ill effects to the flavor of the cigar.

Final Thoughts:

By the time our cigars were ready to be placed into our respective ashtrays for good, you can safely say that we enjoyed them thoroughly. Despite the flavor profile being a little straight forward, lacking distinct flavor changes, the smoke was rich and complex from start to finish.

With a price point residing outside of what I normally spend for a day to day cigar, I can definitely see the Padilla Dominus in my future. It may not make the cut as an every day smoke but it would be a great way to end a rough work week, especially if paired up with a nice spirit.