Arturo Fuente Anejo Shark 77 Review

[AsetOne]

Perfecto

5"7/8x50

Wrapper-Conneticut Shade
Binder-Dominican Republic
Filler-Dominican Republic

-Another gift from BubbaNJ



Appearance-
Looks very nice, half box pressed, a very interesting looking smoke.
Anejo band looks sexy, Red ribbon on the foot and a nice dark chocolate coloured wrapper

Construction-
Construction is good, foot looks well done, feels heavy in the hand
my only issue, and i was struggling for one, was the foot felt slightly spongy. though with the thickness of the foot and all things considered this is probably normal.

Pre Light Aroma-
Slightly oaky, which would be from the aging in cognac barrels, and nutmeg, which was a pleasant surprise.

Pre Light Draw-
Perfect, like sucking water through a straw.

First Third-

This cigar was paired with a glass of Gentleman Jack.

Ok, as soon as i lit it, my first thought was 'smooth' i got no rush of spice whatsoever, which was a surprise, as i was kinda expecting it from this smoke.

Leather and wood were what stood out the most to me, with an underlying sweetness that i struggled to put my finger on, after a bit of chatting to some other guys, i concluded it was somewhere in the vicinity of a mix between burnt sugar and shortbread.

After a few draws the cigar developed a very faint floral taste, and started taking over from the initial sweetness.

this kept up until about an inch in, when the floral taste started to make way for pepper, but there was no spice at all yet.

Rolled the ash off at about an inch and a bit.



Second Half-

The second third of this smoke was extremely complex, so much so, that at times i couldnt work out what i was tasting, but i will give it my best shot at explaining.

By this stage the Floral taste had been completely overpowered by the taste of pepper, The leather and wood notes are still there, just nowhere near as strong as they were in the first.

Toasted nuts became the prevalent taste in this third, with the cigar starting to take on a much more earthy profile.

I also tasted Slight amounts of coffee every now and then

The burn got a bit spazzy, just before the start of the final third and needed a touchup.

The draw had been getting progressively tighter, so i clipped it again, had a draw and just got a big whack of leather, this kept up for about 2 or 3 draws and settled back into the profile that it had held for the second third.

Final Third-

Finally i am starting to get a bit of accumulative spice (the spice that builds up over a little while on the back of your mouth, not like party short spice )

Toasted nuts and wood have started taking a backstage to earth and leather.

It is also becoming much less complex.

The cigar is starting to develop a faint floral taste again, but not a good floral, its more like perfume, this keeps up for 5 or 6 draws, after this i gave it a purge and the perfume taste dissapeared, thank god

After purgingthe Toasted nuts have become a little stronger but still not as strong as the leather and earth.

The coffee has been fading in and out throughout this third.



Conclusion-

The cigar got bitter with about an inch to go, but it was thoroughly enjoyable.

The first third of this smoke was nice, the second, due to its complexity, amazed me, before settling down back into a nice, not amazing final third.

It is not very happen i pour a drink to smoke a cigar, and then the cigar turns out so good that almost the whole drink is still sitting there after you finish, i honestly forgot i even had it there sometimes.

Did i like this smoke? yes.
Would i buy it again? definately, provided i could find some without ridiculous price markups.

Thankyou Bubba, for allowing me to smoke such a great smoke

2nd review down, many more to come hahaha

James

[ritan]

What an insightful review!

Seems that there are so many things going on with the Shark that this is one cigar where it lives up to its reputation. I didn't realize this cigar was so nuanced.

Thanks for sharing, James.

[PUFFNMO]

The flavors will meld and the bitterness will go away as they age. Nice review. Larry.

[tallypig]

Great review-it's obvious that you put a lot of time and thought into it! Thank you!

[Bubba -NJ]

Glad you enjoyed it . Did it remind you of any cigar you've ever had before ?

[CigarmanTim]

I've got 10 of these bad boys left....your review makes me want to knock it down to 9 Thanks!

[Bax]

Very nice review. I hope these age well.

[ja3480]

Sounds like a fantastic cigar!!! Never had a shark attack yet!!

[jamesb3]

Great review. Have several in my locker at my local B&M!

[nozero]

What a great review! Thanks!

[AsetOne]

Originally Posted by Bubba -NJ

Glad you enjoyed it . Did it remind you of any cigar you've ever had before ?

At some points, especially in the second third, it almost reminded me of an Opus, though with less spice.

Thanks again mate

Originally Posted by ja3480

Sounds like a fantastic cigar!!! Never had a shark attack yet!!

Neither had i, this was my first, but definately wont be my last

James

[Beagle Boy]

Nice review, and if you have the patience, letting them rest for 3 or 4 years, they only get better (IMHO)

[groogs]

Great review. My first Anejo was a shark and I loved it. I have since had a few other sizes and the Shark is by far the best IMHO.

[omowasu]

These are really good, but I would not pair them with strong coffee or hard liquor - they just dont have the "punch" of the OpusX, and the flavors can get lost when the pallet is assaulted with stronger compounds.

I have about 5 of the 77s and two of the Cameroon 77s left. One will meet a demise very soon!

[physiognomy]

Thanks for the review James... Glad to see you have the opportunity to enjoy some good NCs down under. I'm guessing the pickings are normally pretty slim in Adelaide. I have smoked one #77 that had over a year on it, but didn't find the same level of complexity as you. I have a few more tucked away & hope that some age helps them along. Out of all the Anejos I have tried so far, the #49 was definitely my favourite.