I am a glutton for punishment. Despite having virtually no cigar budget these days, I like to browse over to Cigar Monster once per day to check out their Monster Mashup. More often than not, I wind up closing the browser tab and texting Jerry about some great deal I came across.
Last week I did something a little different and couldn’t resist putting an order in. Included in my small order was a 5 Pack of Asylum Premium Cigars. I hadn’t smoked the brand before but with Christian Eiroa behind the blend and a $17.00 price tag, what did I have to lose?
Going into this review, I had my hopes set very high. I’ve been a big fan of the Camacho lineup and a part of me hoped that the Asylum would be the rebirth of Camacho, so to speak. Perhaps a Christian Eiroa blend before the whole CEO of Cigars transformation, numerous price increases, and packaging changes. You know, something like the old Camacho Corojo or El Legend-Ario.
I lit up my very first Asylum with a nostalgic twinkle in my eye. As the smoke began to billow, I settled into my chair and waited to be taken away by big, bold flavors. I’m happy to say that I got just what I was hoping for. The flavor hit hard and was followed up by a nice, creamy finish.
What I’ve found is that the Asylum doesn’t hit you with mind-blowing flavors. You won’t be in awe of the unique and refined flavors of the tobacco. Instead, what you’ll get is a fantastic example of a solid cigar. The woody, leathery, spicy, meaty sort of flavors that the blend produces are, simply put, just solid. I can’t put it any other way, this is a solid cigar that lacks the refined wow-factor of higher priced cigars. You just wind up with a solid cigar that is well worth the price of admission.
Construction was a little off but I really can’t complain much considering what I paid for the 5 Pack. The first cigar that I smoked had a draw that was a bit stiff. The cigar that I smoked for this review had a small tunneling issue that worked itself out after a few minutes. Aside from that, the smoke volume was excellent and the burn line was thin and even.
If you are in the market for a solid, budget friendly, cigar I would suggesting picking up a couple of Asylum Premium Cigars to smoke. They are medium to full bodied with a creamy finish and strong flavors. At the Cigar Monster price of $17.00, the Toro is an absolute steal.
Yeah, I used to be a huge Camacho fan before they just lost
me for the reasons you stated. I’ve had the Asylum, and like you
said, a solid smoke for a pretty good price. Just wish they had a
corona. Or if they do, that they’d put in on cigarmonster cause
that’s where I get mine too.
Ratters,
Have you tried the other Asylum lines and if so, what did you think?
I had the 13, but it was in a big size, the Asylum I had was more of a toro. The flavors weren’t bad but I really don’t like big ring gauge cigars. I’d love to try it in a corona though.
I’m not a fan of big ring gauges either. There are are only a handful that I enjoy.
I was on Cigar Monster the other day and got all excited when I saw Asylum 13 5 Packs on sale. When I realized they were 70’s (70 x 7.00) I lost all interest.
Nice review, Walt. Great to see you back here, posting with
some regularity. I can empathize with you on the cigar budget. –
many wistful times. 🙁 I’ve only had these in the petite corona
4×44 size, and I’ve really been digging on those for a great short
smoke. I thought the Asylum 13 robusto was enjoyable as well,
although I probably won’t be tempted to try the larger
sizes.
jjo,
Its funny but I automatically assumed that Asylum didn’t offer a Corona of any sort. With big sizes in the 60, 70, and 80 ring gauge formats, I thought 50 was about as small as they would go.
I was impressed with the Toro so I’ll have to check out the smaller offering(s).
Thanks for the comment
Eiroa has been on a tear lately making great cigars for all sort of people. The CLE are solid the asylums very nice.in the normal ring gauges. There is a new wynwood that is unique. Then you have the Edgar hoils and the new self named Eiroa line is good but pricey
I have just tries the Asylum 13 70 x7. A good cigar for the price. I myself am a big fan of large ring cigars. Just got some barber pole 7 x 70 and will give a review once I have tried it.
the new 80 by 8 are assume with its slow burn and full body are a cigar smokers delight.I had several people stop me and ask me where i got it [ cigar city in weymouth ma owner don brennan carrys all the various asylum cigars as i the only problem is everybodys discovered them and its hard sometimes to keep them in.great job asylum for top quality cigars at a afforable price.ps miss your rep for new england.