Staff Review: Guardian of the Farm Cerberus Toro
Introduction:
Today’s staff review will feature Guardian of the Farm Cerberus Toro. Cerberus, as the newest member of the Guardian of the Farm family, had some big shoes to fill and was able to do so by utilizing the newest innovation from world-renowned Aganorsa Leaf.
Feel free to skim the quick hits for an overview or jump into any section below to find the full details of Guardian of the Farm Cerberus. Let’s do it!
The Quick Hits:
- The third iteration of Guardian of the Farm
- Main tasting notes of ciabatta, natural sweetness, black pepper
- Recommended for: fans of Aladino Corojo, Warped Futuro, Foundation El Gueguense
- At $10.50 per cigar, Guardian of the Farm Cerberus is priced right in line with comparable products
The Story:
The story here dates back to IPCPR in 2016, when Warped and Aganorsa (named Casa Fernandez at the time) announced their second collaboration project that introduced Guardian of the Farm for the first time. Long story short, Guardian of the Farm would go on to receive almost unanimously positive reviews and make pretty much every publication’s top cigar of the year lists - Guardian of the Farm became, quite literally, an instant classic.
The project was named and designed in honor of the American Bulldogs that guard the Nicaraguan tobacco farms of Aganorsa, and after the success of the core line, a line extension was added in the form of Guardian of the Farm Nightwatch. Nightwatch was a fitting reference to the night shift of the “Guardians” as well as the maduro wrapper used for the blend, and just like the core line, it garnered immediate success.
A few years passed, and in 2022, the third installment of the Guardian of the Farm series was released to the market: Guardian of the Farm Cerberus. In Greek mythology, Cerberus is the three-headed dog that prevents the dead from leaving the gates of the Underworld - certainly, a different direction than your typical American Bulldog, but a fitting reference, nonetheless. Not only does Guardian of the Farm Cerberus change the direction and tone of the line, but it’s also the first blend from Aganorsa that utilizes the new Corojo 2012 seed varietal.
From the time I started smoking cigars, Aganorsa has been one of the only companies that has failed to disappoint me, and I fully expect this trend to continue with Guardian of the Farm Cerberus.
The Build:
I love the idea of “new” in relation to cigars – a new line, a new brand, a new tobacco varietal, etc., and Guardian of the Farm Cerberus checks two of these boxes. Not only is Cerberus a brand-new line from Aganorsa, but it also uses a new seed varietal that the company introduced for the first time: Corojo 2012. With that said, Guardian of the Farm is a Nicaraguan puro that starts with a beautiful light brown Corojo 2012 wrapper that sits atop a Nicaraguan binder, and a blend of Nicaraguan fillers, all grown on the distinguished farms of Aganorsa.
The Look:
Although Cerberus is considered an extension to the Guardian of the Farm family, the similarities really end with the Guardian of the Farm name. Sure, you would expect a different blend than the other two Guardian of the Farm releases, but the biggest difference lies in the Cerberus’ design.
Compared to the original Guardian of the Farm, and Nightwatch for that matter, Cerberus’ band is pretty elaborate. The monstrous hellhound that serves as Hades’ watchdog at the gates of the Underworld, Cerberus, is the main image of the band, and with its gold color and large amount of embossing, easily stands out against the slate background of the band. Below this image, “Cerberus” emblazons the band in a relatively large white font, with “Guardian of the Farm” underneath it in a much smaller gold font.
Overall, the box of Cerberus has a much more refined and finished feel – black and with a gold border around the edges of the box, the same image of Cerberus that is present on the band is the focal point of the box, sitting front and center on the lid. To the left of this logo is “NICARAGUA”, to the right, “AGANORSA”, and below, “MADE WITH RARE MEDIO TIEMPO” (which is used in Cerberus’ blend).
If “Guardian of the Farm” were not present on the band and if I were not as invested as I am in cigars, I would have had no idea that Cerberus was a part of the Guardian of the Farm family (not that it matters). Although Cerberus’ look and feel is a big departure from what I was used to, I think it does a good job of separating itself from the original line and Nightwatch in a way that fits the idea of the cigar.
At the end of the day, I like cool packaging, and Cerberus is definitely cool. So, I can’t complain.
The Experience:
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect from Cerberus. I have smoked my fair share of blends from Aganorsa in my lifetime, and their large use of Corojo and Criollo tobaccos is something that I have grown to love. But with the introduction of the new Corojo 2012 varietal in Cerberus, I was really interested to see how this would change the signature Aganorsa profile that we have all come to know.
The first third of Cerberus started out with a doughy sweetness that almost reminded me a little of those King’s Hawaiian Sweet Rolls. This sweetness was followed by a good amount of black pepper that lingered well after the retrohale. So far, the draw has been just the right amount of firm, and the burn line has been sharp - just what I expected from a cigar coming from Aganorsa.
As I transitioned into the second third of Cerberus, the spicy sweetness remained in the forefront, and additional notes of cedar and earth made their way into the background. Cerberus is sitting right in the medium-bodied range, and so far, has a really balanced flavor profile that is just the right amount of sweet, savory, and spicy.
Throughout my time smoking Cerberus, I noticed a distinct floral note that I haven’t experienced from Aganorsa before, which ended up becoming much more apparent in the final third (I think this was from the Corojo 2012?). Cerberus finished up strong with flavorful notes of earth, ciabatta, and cedar that were rounded out by a sweet and spicy finish.
Cerberus didn’t stray too far from the signature Aganorsa flavor that I have become accustomed to, and I’m sure that was by design - the biggest difference that I noticed was the added floral note and the more noticeable amount of leather from the Corojo 2012 wrapper.
All in all, the Cerberus blend is a strong addition to the Guardian of the Farm family, and Aganorsa’s use of the new Corojo 2012 varietal in their blends marks a new age for the company.
The Value:
Considering you can get a brand-new smoking experience from one of the world’s premier cigar producers for $10.50, Cerberus is blend I would recommend to anyone who enjoys any other offering from Aganorsa (or cigars from Nicaragua in general). Cerberus is a great complement to the rest of the Guardian of the Farm lineup and provides a solid basis of what future innovation will look like from Aganorsa.
Final Thoughts:
As I mentioned earlier, I wasn’t sure what to expect from Cerberus. I was a little nervous that the blend would stray too far from the kind of flavor profile that has made Aganorsa so popular (particularly over the last few years), but to my delight, Cerberus felt more like a tweak on an old classic. I have been really impressed with the direction that Aganorsa has been headed over the past six or seven years, and with innovative blends like Cerberus, I expect them to continue to grow exponentially in the coming years.
Cerberus was the perfect addition to the Aganorsa portfolio and is a blend that is going to be a staple in my humidor the same way that Guardian of the Farm, and Guardian of the Farm Nightwatch are. Be sure to pick up Guardian of the Farm Cerberus in your favorite size and get a glimpse into the future of the legendary Aganorsa.
