Asylum 867
Today I am smoking the Asylum 867. It’s a line of cigars that at one point was produced by Deadwood, the same company that partnered with Drew Estate to make famous sweet tips like the Fat-Bottom Betty, Crazy Jane, and others. There are three different flavors- Midnight Oil, Zero, and Auntie, in descending size and flavor intensity. While they are all Honduran Puros, it is the added flavor that changes- flavor added by infusing the cigars in flavored liquid, much like how we do it here at Ralph’s Cigars. I am personally a big fan of the aromatic infusion method, as I believe it gives a more natural taste to flavored cigars.
I chose the corona size of the Auntie for a nice quick smoke. The cigar itself has an interesting orange and black band with the classic Asylum skull, and a three quarters sheath that has the same skull alternating across it. The Midnight Oil and the Zero have the same design, except they are brown and red respectively.
The wrapper is satin and medium brown, with a visible seam at the cap. All in all, it looks pretty good for a stick that costs less than twelve dollars. As soon as I take it out of the plastic sleeve I can smell it, a delightful sweet floral aroma. Lighting it up I can taste the sweet notes right away. Floral, maple syrup, a touch of bourbon. I can’t really taste any of the natural flavors of the Honduran tobacco, though I suppose that’s the point of sweet cigars. On the retrohale I get a bit of the classic Honduran earthiness and a sort of baking spice, but it's still subdued.
Reviewing an infused cigar is a little different than a natural smoke, because they’re designed to have the same strong flavor throughout, so I’m not really getting the classic thirds progression. The Auntie is not too sweet, which I appreciate- too often sweet cigars have an almost harsh chemically sweetness that really overpowers everything else. Its flavor is reminiscent of an Arizona Iced Tea, a nice summery cigar that reminds me of endless childhood days outside of 7/11. A natural fruitiness to it. The only real difference as I move towards the stub is a slight increase in strength, though it never pushes past a strong medium.
Overall the Asylum 867 Auntie is a pretty great cigar. I love the flavor, appreciate a cigar that’s not overpoweringly strong, and I am eager to see more flavors from Asylum. I’ll be checking out the other two in the line soon. Hopefully these will be a regular addition to Ralph’s Cigars, but if I were you I would not hesitate to come on down or grab one online when you can.