The Angel’s Anvil 2015

Last year Crowned Heads released its Tobacconists’ Association of America (TAA) exclusive called The Angel’s Anvil. Separate from any of the rest of Crowned Heads’ brands, single size and limited release was followed up this year with a new size and a new blend. The blend for the 2015 version is based off the company’s first limited release, the Four Kicks Mule Kick.

Here is the meaning behind the name according to the promotional material:

Legend has it that there was one fallen angel, in particular, who fell to Earth from the heavens, finding himself alone and lost. Unlike other fallen angels who were content to wander the earth in a soulless state of purgatory, this angel became bound and determined to find his way back to Heaven.

The angel soon realized that his only way back would be for him to forge a new set of wings by which he could ascend back to the heavenly skies. He walked the countryside for days and days, until he came upon a blacksmith. The blacksmith gave the angel a hammer and an anvil, and said to him, “With these tools you will forge your new wings. With these wings, you will announce the words, ‘Ascend Word He,‘ and you will find your way home.”

• The Angel’s Anvil 2014 (7 1/8 x 49) — June 2014 — 1,000 Boxes of 20 Cigars (20,000 Total Cigars)
• The Angel’s Anvil 2015 (6 x 52) — June 2015 — 1,000 Boxes of 20 Cigars (20,000 Total Cigars)

• Cigar Reviewed: The Angel’s Anvil TAA-MMXV
• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Tabacalera La Alianza S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Size: 6 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 52
• Vitola: Toro
• MSRP: $10.50 (Boxes of 20, $210.00)
• Date Released: June 11, 2015
• Number of Cigars Released: 1,000 Boxes of 20 Cigars (20,000 Total Cigars
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

The medium brown wrapper looks impressive with a seamless application and a soft, oily feel to it. There’s some give and a couple of slightly softer spots, but nothing that is overly worrying. A strong earthy aroma is coming off the wrapper with lots of manure, barnyard and a touch of leather. Cold draw is light milk chocolate, a touch of pepper and not much else.

Starting the first third there’s a nuttiness, some milk chocolate and a touch of pepper. The burn starts out quite even and continues in an impressively sharp line making nice rings in the ash. There’s lots of aromatic smoke that swirls around adding another nice element to the experience. A light citrus note adds itself to the mix, though it’s in the background behind the large milk chocolate and nutty notes.

The second third of The Angel’s Anvil sees much less citrus though a little more sweetness, but some bitter espresso and earthy notes join the fray somewhat negating the increase in sweetness. The burn continues to be quite nice with only one small lag that required a touch up. Draw has been ideal so far and doesn’t show any sign of changing. Milk chocolate, nuts, espresso and earth continue to lead while the pepper and very light citrus stay quite mild.

As I start the final third there’s a significant reduction in the sweetness, with a much more earthy profile, featuring mostly espresso and a nuttiness, while the milk chocolate has transitioned into a less sweet cocoa note. Burn continues without any issues, allowing the cigar to finish without seeing any more change to the profile, staying cool and mellow to the end.

Final Notes

• Two samples performed very similarly and didn’t really have any burn issues—in fact the burn was almost perfect the majority of the cigar. However, the third sample deviated from the norm, with some burn issues that included a couple of significant runs and a few touch-ups, which noticeably affected the profile compared to the other two samples. Unfortunately because of the averaging of scores between the three samples, it does knock the score down slightly despite the fact that overall I think this is a pretty good blend.
• The 2015 edition features a slightly different band, with a new color scheme and using Roman numerals instead of Arabic.
• While this year’s TAA meeting has already happened, the next one will be held March 6-10, 2016 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
• The limited 2015 TAA releases number 15 different cigars from 11 different brands. 2014 only saw seven cigars in the Exclusive Series.
• My review of the Four Kicks Mule Kick showed a cigar I really enjoyed, but the redux saw significant changes in it. The Angel’s Anvil 2015 blend has many similarities, so I would suggest smoking these fresh in case they change like the Mule Kick did.
• The cigars for this review were given by halfwheel.
• Final smoking time averaged around two hours and fifteen minutes.
• Site sponsors Elite Cigar Cafe (972.661.9136), Emerson’s Cigars, Serious Cigars