Last month the Chattanooga, Tenn.-based retailer Burns Tobacconist teamed up with Miami Cigar & Co. for a store exclusive. Based on the La Aurora 100 Años Lancero, the wrapper has been switched from a corojo wrapper to a Cameroon wrapper; an idea that was hatched when Mike Hunter, who now owns Burns, was talking with Nestor Miranda and Jason Wood of Miami Cigar & Co. during a visit to the store for an event.

La Aurora 100 Anos Lancero 1

  • Cigar Reviewed: La Aurora 100 Años Lancero Cameroon
  • Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
  • Factory: E. León Jimenes Tabacalera
  • Wrapper: Cameroon
  • Binder: Dominican Republic
  • Filler: Dominican Corojo & Dominican Piloto Cubano
  • Size: 7 1/2 Inches
  • Ring Gauge: 40
  • Vitola: Lancero
  • MSRP: $11.99 (Boxes of 25, $269.78)
  • Date Released: March 12, 2015
  • Number of Cigars Released: 50 Boxes of 25 Cigars (1,250 Total Cigars)[ref]Right now only 50 boxes have been produced for Burns, though that was just the initial order and is not limited to 50 boxes long term.[/ref]
  • Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 2

The Cameroon wrapper is a nice lighter brown color, soft and oily with only a few tactile veins. Giving the lancero a squeeze shows that the first third is so soft I can almost pinch the sides together, but the remaining two thirds only have a slight give. There is a rich barnyard and leather aroma coming off the wrapper while the cold draw is vanilla, cocoa, cinnamon and some baking spice.

The cigar lights up easily and even, with the first third starting out with pepper up front, along with cinnamon, creamy leather and a touch of hazelnuts. The draw and smoke production are both great starting out, however the burn almost immediately lags behind on one side. A half inch in and the ash is quite flaky and easily falls off with a slight tap. A minor bitter note is hitting the back of my tongue, accentuating the black pepper note that dominates the profile. Somewhat disappointingly I’m already relighting the cigar, which isn’t surprising considering how under-filled it seems. The bitterness has thankfully disappeared after another inch, returning instead to the enjoyable profile of black pepper and creamy leather with spices, cedar and a nuttiness in the background.

La Aurora 100 Anos Lancero 2

The second third warrants another relight, with the profile still made up of pepper, cinnamon, leather and baking spice mix, a combination that’s all very creamy and slightly sweet. The burn continues to be a little wonky, though the draw is still nice and the ash has firmed up a bit from the first third. Thankfully the bitterness hasn’t returned, so the profile continues unabated.

La Aurora 100 Anos Lancero 3

Moving into the final third the pepper has grown a little, as has the strength, peaking at around a medium full. Creamy and slightly sweet notes of cinnamon, leather and spices are still in the background, though the pepper is firmly in control of the whole profile. The burn has evened up some, though the cigar has required another relight. With the cigar getting slightly harsh towards the end, I finish up with about an inch remaining.

La Aurora 100 Anos Lancero 4

Final Notes

  • Miami Cigar & Co. is the U.S. distributor for La Aurora.
  • The secondary band looks fine, matching the colors and look of the primary band, but upon closer inspection it’s quite different—slightly flat and just not quite the same quality as the La Aurora band. This is similar to what Patrick Lagreid noticed with the La Aurora Preferidos Diamond No.1.
  • Lanceros smokers have historically had to toe a fine line between smoking too fast and the cigar becoming harsh or smoking it too slow and the cigar going out. I had a very hard time finding a good pace as even smoking it faster than I would’ve preferred saw the cigar going out more than it should have.
  • One sample seemed to be quite under-filled in the first half, while the other had more give than I would like but wasn’t what I would call underfilled.
  • The cigars for this review were sent to halfwheel by Burns Tobacconist.
  • Final smoking time averaged around two hours and 15 minutes.
  • The La Aurora 100 Años Lancero Cameroon is available from Burns Tobacconist online.
79 Overall Score

I love lanceros. I really enjoy a lot of La Aurora’s lines. I enjoy the Cameroon wrapper that La Aurora uses. All of these put together should make an amazing cigar, and I was excited about the 100 Años Lancero Cameroon, but some pieces of the puzzle seemed to be missing. Specifically, some tobacco seemed to be missing, as both samples didn’t appear to have enough filler in the first part. Thankfully the profile still did its best to shine through burn issues and the harshness surrounding touch ups and relights. Creamy, slightly sweet and complimentary notes worked well together and for the most made the cigar enjoyable. Perhaps I got two bad samples, but regardless if this was the norm or not, this is a cigar I can easily suggest trying out, especially if you’re a La Aurora, Cameroon and lancero fan like myself.

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Brian Burt

I have been smoking cigars since 2005 and reviewing them as a hobby since 2010. Initially, I started out small with a 50-count humidor and only smoking one or two cigars a month. Not knowing anybody else that smoked cigars, it was only an occasional hobby that I took part in. In March of 2010, I joined Nublive and Cigar Asylum, connecting me with many people who also shared an interest in cigars. Reading what they had to say about brands I had never heard of, I quickly immersed myself in the boutique brands of the industry and it was then that cigars transformed from a hobby into a passion.