2005 Fuente 858 Sungrown

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra Sun Grown
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Dominican

Storage: 63 – 65 RH at 63 – 68 F.

Construction: Nice oily mottled dark chocolate brown wrapper with two smaill veins. Very solid and even roll. Clipped clean.

Prelight: Very cedary (due to cedar sleeve) and rich tobacco aroma. Sweet wood, cedar and sweet/tangy flavors from the SG wrapper. Medium draw.

Burn: Lit evenly, very sharp burn throughout. Off-white ash tinged with grey.

Drink: Starbucks Frappuccino.

Smoking Notes: Due to the cedar sleeve, the initial impression is not surprisingly a very cedary smoke. There are additionally some dark earth and leather tones around a nice toasty tobacco core. The smoke is quite smooth and a bit oily. The sun grown wrapper adds a nice sweet/sour tang on the finish. Around the ¼ point, the SG wrapper begins to contribute some light spicy black pepper notes to the finish. About halfway, the 858 really hits its stride with earth, leather, dark coffee and cedar notes around a dark, woody tobacco core. The black pepper spiciness and sweet/sour tang of the SG wrapper also builds, just a bit. This was a solid smoke right down to the nub.

Overall Impression: A solid B to B+. The 858 SG is a limited release usually available around the holidays. They’re a significantly darker, heavier, earthier smoke than either the natural or maduro and, IMHO, the best of both the SG and 858 lines. Enjoy!