Review: My Father Limited Edition 2011 (Prerelease)

Today we will be taking a look at a highly anticipated cigar, the My Father Limited Edition 2011. It’s no secret that Brooks was not blown away by last years Limited Edition 2010 (reviewed here), and in fact we received a lot of flack for our review… I have since then smoked many My Father Limited Edition 2010s and have yet to smoke one that I feel is worthy of the My Father name, however many people have expressed how much they love the cigar. To each his own I suppose…

This past weekend I attended the Federal Cigar 90^th Anniversary dinner and event in New Hampshire. The García family was present and introduced to us for the very first time the My Father Limited Edition 2011. We are told the cigars will be released sometime at the end of April but we were offered 15 count unbanded bundles at the event and currently these are the only prerelease bundles available. 75 bundles of 15 were made for the event and just about all of them have been sold. The full production of this years release will total 42,000 cigars as opposed to last years 24,000 cigars. However because of the increase in volume Pepín and Jaime García did not bunch and roll these cigars themselves. Another change from last year will be the packaging, the cigars will not come in individual coffins, but rather they will be presented in boxes similar to the LFD Salomons, where each cigar has its own cut out within the box. We are told the price point will be around $20 per cigar like last years. Visually the cigar looks just about the same as last years coming in at 6 1/2 x 52 with a Habano Criollo wrapper from Ecuador. More details about the blend are still unclear, but it does in fact contain Pelo De Oro tobacco (according to Janny García).

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Let’s get to the review shall we?

• Cigar Reviewed: My Father Limited Edition 2011
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: My Father Cigars S.A.
• Wrapper: Habano Criollo (Ecuador)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Size: 6 1/2 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 52
• Vitola: Toro
• MSRP: $20.00 (Boxes of 12, $240.00)
• Date Released: Late April 2011
• Number of Cigars in Release: 3,500 Boxes of 12 & 75 Bundles of 15 (43,125 Total Cigars)
• Number of Cigars Smoked for Review: 2

Visually this cigar is gorgeous it has a beautiful milk chocolate wrapper with quite a few veins but it still has a very smooth and oily appearance. It has a tight pack, a seamless wrap and a perfectly applied triple cap. Pepín’s sticks always have the nicest triple caps and this doesn’t disappoint.

The wrapper has a very rich earthy tobacco scent with leather and a touch of coffee. The foot gives off a pungent tobacco aroma with a fruity, floral like aroma that is absolutely wonderful. The Pre light draw is straight tobacco with a touch of sweetness and a mild pepper note.

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Starting off in the First Third I got a little dose of pepper and spice, although not as much as I anticipated. Initial flavors are a mix of wood and tobacco with a little bit of chocolate sweetness. There is a bit of pepper on the tongue that builds gradually and a spice kick through the nose but towards the end of the first third they fade completely.

Coming into the Second Third the cigars gets a little creamy in flavor, almost vanilla like. Wood still dominates the palate with leather and chocolate. There is a pepper flavor present too…the actual flavor of pepper but without the sensation or tingling. There are wonderful hints of clove and cinnamon on the beginning of the finish and it ends with a very earthy tobacco flavor. The Ash holds on for a solid 2 inches before falling off.

Finishing up in the Final Third the cigars doesn’t change too much from the last. It’s Very woody, with some leather and an earthy sweetness. The cigar gives off a very rich tobacco aroma that reminds me of pipe tobacco, just a deep earthy, sweet tobacco aroma. The pepper and spice are non existent at this point the cigar is a solid medium body. The finish is long and clean…

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 Final Notes:

• I found this cigar to be better than last year’s, but not by much. It was more balanced for sure. I found last year’s release to be too peppery and bland in the flavor department. This year’s release was fuller in flavor, but had much less pepper, in fact the last third didn’t have any pepper at all. The flavor profile was strong with a nice earthy, woody profile and a nice balance of sweetness. The subtle notes of clove and cinnamon were great.
• The overall construction was pretty good, it burned perfectly and the draw was great. However, I did notice two or three small stems when I cut the cigar and this was an issue we had with last years release as well. Perhaps this is a result of the Pelo De Oro tobacco. I am not sure but it’s definitely an issue.
• If you are interested in Purchasing a prerelease bundle of 15 you should call Federal Cigars at (603) 378-0573 before they sell out.
• Final smoking time was one hour 35 minutes.

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The Bottom Line: I enjoyed this cigar and found it to be more complex, flavorful and balanced than last years release. However, I just don’t feel that this is a $20 cigar. It tasted more like a $12 cigar to me. Last year’s release came in a gorgeous box with each cigar individually packaged in its own coffin and the cigars were allegedly bunched and rolled by Jaime and Pepín García themselves. This years release was not rolled by Pepín or Jaime García and also do not come in coffins. I just don’t understand why this years release is the same price as last years? That aside People are going to ask me “Did you like it?” My answer would be “yes,” however, there are many other My Father cigars that I would spend half the money on first and enjoy just as much. Simply, this is a good cigar but I just didn’t find anything too unique or special about it especially for the money.

 Final Score: 85

Steve Valle

Steve Valle wrote for Smoking Stogie, a precursor to halfwheel, from 2010-2011.