Bosphorus Laguito No. 6

In September, OZ Family Cigars added a new limited edition vitola to its Bosphorus line, which was the debut line for the company when it entered the market in August 2022, then known as Ozgener Family Cigars.

The Laguito No. 6 is a round 6 1/2 x 56 toro gordo, unlike the four regular production sizes in the line that get a box press. It also gets a coiled pigtail cap and a fully covered foot. The shape mirrors one of the most famous cigars of the past 15 years or so, the Cuban Cohiba BHK 56.

The blend remains the same, using an Ecuadorian habano wrapper, two binder leaves: one an Ecuadorian Connecticut-seed and the other coming from Nicaragua, while the filler comes from Nicaragua’s Estelí, Jalapa and Ometepe regions. The cigars are produced at Casa Carrillo in the Dominican Republic and are limited to 1,500 boxes of 12 cigars, with each cigar having an MSRP of $15.95.

Of note, the bands for this vitola compared to the first four are noticeably different. It’s the same concept, but the execution—font, spacing, color schemes—has changed.

The line is named after the Bosphorus Strait, a reference to a waterway in northwestern Turkey, the country where both his parents were born.

• Cigar Reviewed: Bosphorus Laguito No. 6
• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Casa Carrillo
• Wrapper: Ecuador (Habano)
• Binder: Ecuador (Connecticut-seed) and Nicaragua (Jalapa)
• Filler: Nicaragua (Estelí, Jalapa and Ometepe)
• Length: 6 1/2 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 56
• Shape: Round
• MSRP: $15.95 (Box of 12, $191.40)
• Release Date: September 2024
• Number of Cigars Released: 1,500 Boxes of 12 Cigars (18,000 Total Cigars)
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

Given how it looked in the cellophane, pretty much like a standard toro, the Bosphorus Laguito No. 6 is a thicker cigar than I was anticipating, though once out of the clear sleeve, its ring gauge shows. The pigtail cap and covered foot add to the cigar’s appearance, extending the length just a touch. All three cigars have what I’d call an oily wrapper leaf, not so much by way of sheen, but the texture is unmistakably oily. Two cigars have wrappers with a reddish-brown color, while the third cigar is less visually dynamic with a mottled, matte brown color that is also notable for the contrast it has to the bright bands. The covered foot doesn’t offer much in the way of aromas, making me think of a brown paper grocery bag at first, then some dry leaves. The cold draw is smooth and has an interesting woodiness with a bit of soil and cream, though one cigar repeats the paper-and-leaves combination as well.

The Bosphorus Laguito No. 6 starts with some light earthiness and pepper for the taste buds, while I get a little pepper and powder through the nose on the first retrohales. While I wouldn’t call it a mild start, it also isn’t particularly aggressive or attention-grabbing. There’s a bit of sweetness floating around, reminding me a bit of the brandied cherry that garnishes a Manhattan. One cigar has a bit of dry earth, which gives it a more complex and engaging profile than the other two. About a half of an inch in, some more creaminess joins, giving the cigar an enjoyable flavor and some depth of the body. Retrohales have a light earth and a decent amount of black pepper that tingles the nose with an unfolding texture of smoke. The resting aroma of the cigar is just a touch smoky, not quite campfire but more like the aroma of an order of burnt ends. After the first clump of ash comes off, I get a bit of peanut shell in the flavor but most notably as the last part of the finish. Retrohales stay peppery and enjoyable, as while they tingle my nostrils, there’s a bit of softness to them now. After starting around medium-minus or maybe even just more than mild, the flavor is now a solid medium, body is medium-plus and strength is mild. Construction is very good thus far, with no combustion issues, plenty of smoke, a smooth draw and an even burn line.

As the second third of the final cigar gets going, I notice a split in the wrapper developing a bit further up and approaching the secondary band, something I hope doesn’t become an issue. There’s a bit of harshness that emerges at the start of the second third of the Bosphorus Laguito No. 6, as a puff delivers a sensation that seems to come from the wood and pepper, but with those flavors sharper and out of balance. I also get a touch of irritation at the top of my throat. It’s not enough to completely detract or distract from the flavor, but it is enough to force my attention to be split. The flavor continues to get fuller in intensity, not really changing the core components but just turning up the volume a bit. Everything stays fairly balanced, though the earth and pepper both stand out as the kick drum and snare do in a song. The pepper’s intensity had dialed back just a touch in retrohales, though it feels like a fuller flavor with a decently long finish. Flavor finishes medium-full, body is medium and strength is medium-minus. The combustion, smoke production and draw remain good, though the burn line begins to get a bit uneven, reaching the point where it needs a touch-up in the third cigar to even things out.

The final third starts off with some rough, dry earthiness that isn’t great on my palate, though the addition of some mixed nuts and black pepper try to get the flavor to a more enjoyable spot. There’s also something going on that gives the flavor some sharpness and funkiness, seemingly coming from the wood, but again, I can’t attribute it to a specific component. While I was hoping it would be a fleeting sensation, it appears to be intensifying with each puff, as the wood is now sharp and stinging on my taste buds. Even the retrohales pick up the sensation, which surprises me as sometimes they can salvage the experience, but not in this case at the moment. I keep holding out hope, but as the bands come off, the flavor doesn’t improve and, if anything, continues a freefall from the rather impressive height they reached in the transition from the first to the second third. Every puff gets sharper and harder to enjoy, so much so that were this not a review, the cigar would have been in the ashtray by now. Some creaminess comes in at the tail end of the cigar, but it fights with the funkiness and ends up succumbing. Flavor is a sharp medium-full, body is medium and strength is medium. Thankfully the construction stays solid on the whole, with one cigar needing a relight but otherwise no issues. Unfortunately, it’s little consolation to a flavor that has really gone off the rails.

Final Notes

• The third cigar had a noticeable bend to it when it arrived at the office. I didn’t notice it at first when I looking at the cigar head-on, but it did become noticeable as I rotated the cigar.
• I am absolutely perplexed as to what happened to the flavor in the final third, especially since it happened in all three cigars.
• As mentioned above, the bands changed for this release, and I think I like this updated version just a touch better than the original.
• Each of the three cigars has a touch of nicotine strength to them, as I can feel it once the cigars are done and I stand up.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.

• The company lists these as a 6 1/2 x 56 toro gordo. The numbers above are the measurements we found for the three cigars used for this review.
• Final smoking time was two hours and 20 minutes on average.
• Site sponsors Atlantic Cigar Co., Cigars Direct, Famous Smoke Shop, and Smokingpipes carry the Bosphorus Laguito No. 6.