In 2006, Havana Cellars released three limited edition cigars to three different stores.

They were:

  • Tatuaje La Maravilla (5 5/8 x 46) — Leaf & Ale — 50 Boxes of 25 (1,250 Total Cigars) —  $9.99 (Boxes of 25, $249.75)
  • Tatuaje El Cohete (4 x 50) — Tower Pipes & Cigars — 50 Boxes of 25 (1,250 Total Cigars) —  $9.00 (Boxes of 25, $225.00)
  • Tatuaje Bombazo (4 x 46) — FUMARE — 50 Boxes of 25 (1,250 Total Cigars) —  $7.50 (Boxes of 25, $187.50)

The Tatuaje La Maravilla, which translates to miracle in Spanish, was released in 2006 as a limited release cigar to one store, Leaf & Ale of Knoxville, Tenn. Only 70 boxes of the cigar were released and the cigars were wet-packed in foil, which is part of a unique fermentation process Tatuaje uses on some of its cigars. The cigars are rolled, then wrapped in foil to seal in the flavors, and aged that way, similar to how some Cuban cigars are aged wrapped in burlap.

This is an extremely rare cigar, and in fact, quite a few people don’t even know it exist or ever existed. From all of my research, I found exactly two reviews online, one of them from my good friend Luke.

Tatuaje La Maravilla 1.png

  • Cigar Reviewed: Tatuaje La Maravilla
  • Country of Origin: Nicaragua
  • Factory: Tabacalera Cubana S.A.
  • Wrapper: Nicaragua
  • Binder: Nicaragua
  • Filler: Nicaragua
  • Size: 5 5/8 Inches
  • Ring Gauge: 46
  • Vitola: Corona Gorda
  • MSRP: $9.99 (Boxes of 25, $225.00)
  • Date Released: June 2006
  • Number of Cigars Released: 70 Bundles of 25 Cigars (1,700 Total Cigars)
  • Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 1

The La Maravilla is a 5 5/8 x 46 Punch Punch-sized cigar with a slightly mottled, light brown wrapper that smells slightly of tobacco and chocolate. It is obviously well-constructed with a wonderful triple cap and a great toothy feel. It also has an unfinished foot, which I always love to see.

It lights very easily and I am immediately taste notes of roasted nuts, pepper and just a bit of chocolate. I am also almost assaulted with smoke, it seems to be very dense and abundant. The draw is perfect so far and the burn is pretty good as well, at least early on.

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After about two-thirds of an inch, the ash fell off, which is surprising. I am still tasting a tart nutty note, but I am now also tasting a very strong wood flavor that is starting to overwhelm just about everything else, including the pepper, which has all but peppered out at this point. Still present, but mostly a background note for now.

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About a third of the way through and the dominant flavor is still a nice cedar note that is also very creamy, not harsh at all. There is still very little pepper and there is a very faint sweet, almost fruity flavor that is not strong enough to identify. The smoke is still abundant as well.

Tatuaje La Maravilla 5.png

Into the second third and I am starting to get a bit of spicy tingling on my lips and tongue. Not much has changed flavor wise from the last entry, still a large creamy cedar taste with just a sprinkle of pepper and now spice. The draw is still perfect and while the burn has wandered a bit, it is nothing major.

Tatuaje La Maravilla 6.png

We are starting to get close to the end of the final third and the cigar has started to get a bit hot. Still very little change in flavor, although the spice on my tongue has increased quite a bit. Nicotine-wise, it is also getting a bit stronger. All other flavors have been drowned out by the cedar note and that is pretty much the only flavor I am tasting at this point.

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At the end, it did get quite hot before I quit. Nothing changed flavor-wise either, so not much to report for the final photo.

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Final Notes:

  • The amount of smoke that came from this stick was surprising, and I do like to smoke a cigar that looks like you are smoking a cigar.
  • I think the size of this vitola is almost perfect.
  • The ash never stayed on more than about two thirds of an inch, which surprised me, considering how great the overall construction was.
  • The draw was amazing, and the burn was nothing to sneeze at, but that is not exactly unusual for a Tatuaje…
87 Overall Score

I was really hoping this would turn out to be a new favorite stick from Tatuaje, even considering how hard they are to find, but that was not to be. It is a solidly good, but by no means great cigar with clean flavors and a dry finish, but it lacks the complexity of, say, the Noella Reserva, SW Maduro or the Black Label Corona Gorda, just to name a few. I was hoping for a bit more sweetness in the stick as well and I won't go so far as to say I was disappointed in it, but I was expecting a bit more.

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Brooks Whittington

I have been smoking cigars for over eight years. A documentary wedding photographer by trade, I spent seven years as a photojournalist for the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star Telegram. I started the cigar blog SmokingStogie in 2008 after realizing that there was a need for a cigar blog with better photographs and more in-depth information about each release. SmokingStogie quickly became one of the more influential cigar blogs on the internet, known for reviewing preproduction, prerelease, rare, extremely hard-to-find and expensive cigars. I am a co-founder of halfwheel and now serve as an editor for halfwheel.