In Greek mythology King Midas was revered for his ability to turn anything he touches into gold, which is where the adage “gold touch,” or “Midas touch,’ was derived from. Over the past decade if could be said that Abdel “AJ,” Fernandez has the “Midas touch.” Regularly sought out for his talent and vast amount of premium tobacco; company’s regular clamor for an opportunity to have AJ blend for them. No stranger to working with AJ is Altadis USA, a cigar company that manages production and distribution for some of the most renowned cigar makers in the world. Brands such as Montecristo, Romeo y Julieta, H. Upmann and Trinidad to name a few in their catalog. In 2018 the Montecristo Nicaragua Series was introduced at the PCA (formerly IPCPR) trade show. A collaborative effort between AJ and Altadis USA Director of Product Capability Rafael Nodal. The result is a dynamo fifth addition to Montecristo’s traditional core line.
The Montecristo Nicaragua Series is a Nicaraguan puro; wrapper, binder and filler tobacco exclusively produced by AJ. It’s available in four vitolas; Robusto, Toro, Torpedo and Churchill. This is the fourth blend that Altadis USA has collaborated with AJ Fernandez to create. Traditionally blended in the Dominican Republic, Montecristo over the past few years has branched out to developing blends that shift away from their traditional profiles. This is only my second time trying the blend, the first being when it originally released and have been looking forward to seeing if there were any noticeable changes over the years.
The initial appearance is a moderate caramel color wrapper with a slight oil sheen and the presence of the occasional vein or wrapper seam. The cigar is decorated with two bands of black and gold with the traditional Montecristo emblem and “Montecristo” in red lettering. The secondary band simply states “Nicaraguan Series.” From the inaugural light flavors of earthiness, hay and pepper stick out, the pepper a well-known essence in all of AJ’s work. Moving through the first third the sweetness of the tobacco becomes more apparent as the pepper begins to wane. As I moved my way to the second third the natural tobacco flavors became more prominent before the pepper began to make a second appearance. The final third of the cigar all of the flavors were overcome by a bitterness, not one that necessarily ruined the overall experience but was still palpable. The construction throughout was solid and held a nice white ash with an even burn from start to finish.
In my final opinion, the Montecristo Nicaraguan Series is a well-balanced addition to their core line of blends and a nice change from the classic Montecristo experience. It’s noted from my picture during this tasting that I complimented my cigar with a neat pour of Maker’s Mark 46. A decent bargain whisky that’s a little bolder than the standard 90 proof and paired quite well with this cigar. I would feel secure saying that AJ has once again produced gold with his Midas touch.
