J. Fuego Origen Originals (Prerelease)

Around April of this year, J. Fuego started releasing a new cigar onto the market in very small quantities, called the Origen Original, a new vitola in the Origen line.

The idea behind this vitola was quite different than most of his other cigars. Jesus Fuego learned how to test leaf by rolling an interesting cheroot size from his father and grandfather, both tobacco growers. One day, Fuego was traveling and meeting with a friend in the industry, but forgot to bring cigars. The only thing he had were the ugly cheroots he had rolled himself. When his friend asked for a cigar, Fuego ultimately gave one to the friend, who asked why it was not an actual a release.

The cigars are sold in a soft pack of five unbanded cigars.

• Cigar Reviewed: J. Fuego Origen Originals
• Country of Origin: Honduras
• Factory: Tabacos de Oriente
• Wrapper: Brazilian Corojo
• Binder: Costa Rican Corojo
• Filler: Honduran Corojo & Nicaraguan Corojo
• Size: 5 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 44
• Vitola: Cheroot
• MSRP: $2.50 (Soft Pack of 5, $12.50 & Bricks of 60, $150.00)
• Number of Cigars Smoked for Review: 3

The first thing you notice about this cigar is the packaging. As seen above, the soft-pack is quite cool looking and when you open it up, there are five unbanded cigars inside. The cigar itself is not the prettiest of sticks, with a very gnarly and rough wrapper that is covered in bumps and veins. Both ends of the cigar are open, and while it is almost a double perfecto vitola, one end is noticeably smaller than the other.

I also noticed that the Origen Original look almost identical in size (although not in shape) to the My Father El Picador and by extension, the La Flor Domincana Icepick.

Here is a photo of the two side by side (Origen Original on the left, El Picador on the right):

The first third starts out with a small amount of spice, along with notes of cedar, leather and coffee. The burn is great so far, and there is just a touch of sweetness on the tongue.

The second third has the cedar note turn spicy, although the sweetness is still underneath, just diminished, and the coffee flavor is replaced by more of an espresso note.

The final third does not change much from the former two. The flavors are pretty much the same, but the spice increased a bit at the end, which was a welcome change.

 

Final Notes:

• While I did enjoy the Origen Originals quite a bit, I honestly liked the My Father El Picador just a touch more, mostly due to the creaminess that was present. Having said that, the El Picador is about $3 more.
• Despite the smaller size, the Origen Original never turned hot on me at the end, not matter how close I smoked it to the nub.
• The burn and draw great perfect for the entire cigar.
• The final smoking time is exactly 55 minutes.
• Site sponsor Atlantic Cigar has them in stock.