Today we will be taking a look at a cigar that you have probably not heard of, the Chaveta! Early this year our good friend Mark Just of Tower Cigars informed us that he would be acquiring his own boutique brand of cigars called “Chaveta” (a Chaveta is a sharp tool used by the cigar rollers to cut tobacco leaf, and is a major part of the logo of the cigar) and that he was very excited for us to give them a try as he had already been selling them out of his shop for a few months prior to his ownership.

We asked Mark about this new line of cigars and he had this to say…

“A friend of mine originally owned the company and he asked me if I was interested in purchasing the company from him. Tower Cigars had already carried and done well with Chaveta since October of 2010. I was really excited at the opportunity to own my own brand of cigars.

Chaveta is starting out as our house brand, and I am planning on offering the brand on a wholesale level to a limited number of shops across the country. I want to keep production small and the quality top notch.”

Quality is definitely the key word here, as these cigars are not made in some unknown factory pumping out mediocre cigars; they are made by Abe Flores at the La Fabrica Don Leoncio factory in the Dominican Republic which also makes Pinar Del Rio cigars.

Right now there are four core sizes available which range from $5.80 to $8.70… They are (from left to right):

• Robusto – 5 x 52
• Toro – 6 x 50
• Churchill — 7 x 48
• Torpedo — 6 1/2 x 50
• Double Magnum — 6 x 60
  

As of now, the production on the Corona Gorda vitola has stopped (although it will be continued in the future) and it’s being replaced with a limited production run of a 6 x 60 size called the “Double Magnum” (photo on right end above). Mark Just had this to say about it…

“Before I acquired the brand the corona gorda was the slowest mover for Chaveta. I asked them to make me a 6×60. So the factory stopped making the corona gorda in leu of the 6×60 double mag. I plan on bringing back the corona gorda as soon as I can.”

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Enough of that stuff, lets get to it!

• Cigar Reviewed: Chaveta Robusto
• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: La Fabrica Don Leoncio
• Wrapper: Brazilian Bahia Maduro
• Binder: Domincan Republic
• Filler: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua
• Size: 5 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 52
• Vitola: Robusto
• MSRP: $5.80 (Boxes of 20, $116.00)
• Release Date: 2010
  
• Number of Cigars Smoked for Review: 3

This cigar looks awesome, it has an extremely dark wrapper with a ton of oils just oozing from it, and literally it feels buttery and slick in your hand. The cigar has excellent construction with a virtually invisible seam, a nice firm pack and minimal veins. The pre-light aroma is thick and lush with an earthy, leathery character with hints of chocolate and coffee as well. The pre-light draw is full of chocolate and coffee bean flavors as well as mellow wood note and some earth as well. A lot of full flavors present…

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Starting off in the First Third the cigar is medium bodied with a little pepper and spice kick, especially through the nose, it has a long cedar, peppery finish and it leaves a rich creamy oil slick in the mouth on the finish. Flavors are wood, roasted coffee bean, semi sweet chocolate and some dry earthy notes. The finish is long and flavorful and the draw is perfect creating large amounts of smoke.

Coming into the Second Third the spice from the start disappears completely, there is still a touch of pepper on the tongue and through the finish. Cigar is still medium body but what develops is a real thick creaminess. What I find interesting is there is definitely a dry earthy character present but at the same time its oily and creamy and it really creates a nice contrast. Flavors of wood, coffee, dark chocolate and now a bit of leather as well fill my palate and the finish is still exceptionally long. Great construction with a near perfect burn however the ash is a bit flaky and falls off quickly each time.

Finishing up in the Final Third the cigar definitely gets warm and with it experiences a rise in body and strength; I would call it medium-full towards the end. The creaminess fades quite a bit and I am left with a more basic, earthy, tobacco sweetness filled profile with hints of leather and coffee still coming in and out. Still almost perfect construction with a great draw and excellent burn.

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Final Notes:

• Honestly, from the look of this cigar I could tell it was going to be a good cigar, it just had such a rich, creamy looking wrapper that you knew was going to be full of flavor. I must say I am impressed with what’s coming out of Brazil these days, especially the wrapper tobacco. If you want deep, earthy, oily flavors and a smooth medium body than this is your ticket. It certainly doesn’t overpower, it has a medium strength which is nice…the flavors really are the forefront of this cigar.
• I smoked three of the sizes, the Robusto, Torpedo and the Churchill, and my favorite size was the Robusto. Although the other two sizes were pretty much equally as good I just personally liked the way the Robusto smoked, towards the end of the other sizes they heated up a bit too much for me at the end and I was forced to cut them a bit short.
• If you guys are interested in grabbing a box or even some singles of these to try out give Mark Just at Tower Cigars a shout and he will gladly help you out! or call 1-888-823-8466.
• Final Smoking time was 1 hour 5 mins.

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The Bottom Line: This cigar was personally right up my alley with its bold flavors, complexity and great mouth feel. I also liked the way it started off medium and held that ground for most of the smoke and then at the end it turned a touch more medium-full. Make no mistake, this is definitely a medium-bodied cigar but it smokes like a full-bodied cigar in that it has a load of flavor and a nice oily mouth feel. If this is any hint of what is to come for the Chaveta Brand, then I am definitely intrigued.

Final Score: 88