It’s not a secret that I’m a big fan of the Drew Estate Undercrown lines, especially the Shade version, as I’m a big fan of Connecticut wrappers. The Undercrown Maduro gives you the richness of the Liga Privada line and the Undercrown Shade gives you a creamy Connecticut with some body to it for a cheaper price than the Liga Privada. That’s why they have always been big sellers for Drew Estate. Earlier this year, they announced the release of a new size in the Undercrown line called the “Corona Pequena” which is a petit corona size, 4 x 44. This size has always been popular because it’s a nice short smoke for times when you don’t have the time for a larger cigar like lunch breaks or for when the weather isn’t cooperating. Both versions of the Corona Pequena are offered in 32 count boxes for $176.00 per box/$5.50 per cigar.
Undercrown Maduro Corona Pequena
- Wrapper: Mexican San Andres Maduro
- Binder: Connecticut Stalk Cut and Sun cured Habano
- Filler: Brazilian and Nicaraguan
Undercrown Shade Corona Pequena
- Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade
- Binder: Sumatran
- Filler: Dominican and Nicaraguan
I’m actually doing this review a little differently. Since these Corona Pequena cigars are being released together and are a small vitola, I thought I would review them together. I didn’t break them down into halves or thirds since they are smaller cigars, so I just gave you my overall impression of each one. Enjoy.
Pre-Light
Both Drew Estate Undercrown Corona Pequenas seemed very well rolled. I saw no issues with wrappers or the application of the caps, so much that the Shade version looked like a seamless wrapper. After cutting the caps of both, the draw was spot on, but mayble a tad bit loose on the Maduro version. I got notes of earth, cocoa, and leather on the Maduro verion and hay, peanuts, and toast on the Shade version.
Undercrown Maduro Corona Pequena
The Drew Estate Undercrown Maduro Corona Pequena started out as you would expect from an Undercrown cigar. The Corona Pequena has a rich flavor and a smooth draw. The cigar has notes of espresso, cocoa, leather, spices, and earthiness. As the cigar nears the end, I got more of the leather and spice notes. The cigar has a medium-full body with full flavor, but it did get a little bitter near the end.
Undercrown Shade Corona Pequena
The Undercrown Shade Corona Pequena burned excellent with notes of cedar, caramel, pepper, and sweet cream. On the retrohale, I get stronger pepper and sweet cream notes. This Corona Pequena has a medium body but full flavor. Near the end of the cigar, the cigar gets more mellow and loses the pepper kick it had and the sweet, creamer notes are more dominate. The pepper is still there, but it’s faded some to the background.
Overall Impressions
I think both of these Corona Pequenas are great editions to their Undercrown lines. They were full of flavor and packed a punch in a small package. Like I said earlier, these are perfect for when you are short on time, but want a something with a lot more flavor than most other small cigars, especially some of the machine made cigars. If you are a fan of the Undercrown series, definitely check these out.
Final Score
- Maduro: 88
- Shade: 89
