Favilli Cosecha 2016

Inspiration for cigars comes from all places, whether it be a quirky concept to a way to honor a person, celebrate an anniversary or pay a heartfelt tribute to a country and its tobacco. In the case of the Favilli Cosecha 2016, it is a cigar that was created to celebrate Nicaraguan tobaccos from a single crop year.

It was created by Claudio Sgroi, the former president and master blender of Mombacho Cigar S.A., which now sells its products under the Favilli name in the United States. Sgroi had the idea of select tobaccos from a single crop year, or cosecha, in Spanish, and then give the tobaccos and cigars extended aging, releasing them five years after the tobacco was harvested. And while Sgroi left the company at the end of March 2021, the project has lived on.

The 2022 release marks the fifth installment in the line, which debuted under the Mombacho name in 2017, using tobaccos from the 2012 cosecha. It would add releases in the three subsequent years, though the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the release of this cigar, meaning it comes with additional aging.

• Mombacho Cosecha 2012 (6 x 52) — July 2017 — 500 Boxes of 10 Cigars (5,000 Total Cigars)
• Mombacho Cosecha 2013 (6 x 52) — July 2018 — 800 Boxes of 10 Cigars (8,000 Total Cigars)
• Mombacho Cosecha 2014 (6 x 52) — June 2019 — 750 Boxes of 10 Cigars (7,500 Total Cigars)
• Mombacho Cosecha 2015 (6 x 52) — June 2020 — 430 Boxes of 10 Cigars (4,300 Total Cigars)
• Favilli Cosecha 2016 (6 x 52) — February 2022 — 250 Boxes of 10 Cigars (2,500 Total Cigars)

As you will notice, this is now known as the Favilli Cosecha; that is because in December 2021, Mombacho Cigars S.A. announced that it was changing its name to Favilli for its U.S.-bound releases, which came as part of a settlement with Tropical Tobacco, Inc./AGANORSA Leaf.

This will be the series most limited release to date, with production limited to just 250 boxes of 10 cigars, which were produced at Casa Favilli in Granada, Nicaragua. Boxes have an MSRP of $200, while individual cigars are priced at $20 before taxes.

Like its predecessors, this newest version is a 6 x 52 toro and a Nicaraguan puro, though this version’s uses leaves from the 2016 crop. The tobaccos have undergone over five years of total aging, and in this case, a bit more since it is being released nearly a year after its typical release, as previous installments have come out either in June or July. There was no release during 2021.

• Cigar Reviewed: Favilli Cosecha 2016
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Casa Favilli
• Wrapper: Nicaragua
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Length: 6 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 52
• Vitola: Toro
• MSRP: $20 (Box of 10, $200)
• Release Date: February 2022
• Number of Cigars Released: 250 Boxes of 10 Cigars (2,500 Total Cigars)
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

The first thing I notice about the Favilli Cosecha 2016 is that despite having a foot band, there is no branding on the cigar, a point that isn’t as critical if buying these by the box, but something I would like to see for those buying single cigars. The wrapper is very good looking as it has a bit of mottling, a decent vein structure and just a bit of oiliness on the fingers, though the overall impression is of a drier leaf with a very fine texture. It is rolled firmly, with two samples qualifying as hard and showing essentially no give. Visually, each looks quite good with flat seams and no bumps or other irregularities, each of the caps is created quite well and finished off by a tight twist of tobacco. The foot has an aroma that makes me think of an orange peel or zest at first sniff, sort of like the aromatics of certain cocktails. There’s no cocktail behind that first aroma, however as it quickly shifts to dry wood shelving and a bit of black pepper. It’s a smell of being in an empty or lightly filled aging room, the place in a factory where the cigars rest between being rolled and being packaged. The more I sniff the foot, the more bits of creaminess and peanut butter emerge, making for an enjoyable evolution of the aroma. The cold draw on the first sample is just a bit firm, something I attribute to a tightly packed head more than anything, as the other two are smooth and easy. The flavor is a bit more rounded than the aroma, as the wood is slightly damp and there’s a bit of earthiness behind that, a profile that is on the mild side of the spectrum. I also get a bit of oiliness from the flavor, similar to peanut or almond oil.

I’ve often thought of the Cosecha Series as offering a fairly refined flavor profile and the first puffs of the Favilli Cosecha 2016 are no exception. It starts with a mellow, slightly creamy profile that has peanut butter cookie and a middle-of-the-road earthiness, as it’s neither heavy and rich nor dry and bright. There is a bit of light pepper in the mix as well, which offers a subtle accent but is not driving the experience, at least not on the palate. As is often the case, the pepper is more prominent in the nose, both by way of a more intense first impression and a lingering tingle. By the one-inch mark, the cigar is showing some good complexity while staying balanced, though there are a few puffs where the black pepper is sharp from a physical sensation perspective. There seems to be room for more complexity, so I’m intrigued to see just where it might go from here. The final puffs of this section see peanuts join the flavor, and more of a peanut shell flavor than the actual nut. Flavor is medium-plus, body is medium, and strength is mild. Construction and combustion are both very good, with an occasionally firm draw as my only note.

The flavor of the smoke takes on a bit more of a powdery texture as the second third gets underway, a subtle shift that softens up the profile without affecting the flavor. That also softens up the retrohales, at least at first, as the pepper is subtle before opening up following the exhale, an unfolding that seems to find every receptor in my nostrils. One sample has a noticeably sharper pepper than the other two, hitting the tongue and nose with almost needle-like sharpness, though more in the sense that it is very focused as opposed to too intense. Yet this change is enough to have me not quite as enamored with the cigar as I was with the others. The peanut shell flavor from earlier never dominates the flavor, but serves as a bridge to a bit of wood and toast, a flavor that is in a similar family but has a distinct impact on the taste buds. Flavor is still around medium-plus, though as noted before, is a bit sharper than the first third, while body is just north of medium and strength is now medium. Construction remains very good across the board.

The peanut flavor from earlier has softened into a bit of peanut butter, complete with a touch of oiliness to give the flavor a more lush expression than it as had thus far. It’s not long into the final third that the peanut gives way to a rich earthiness that coats the palate without overpowering the taste buds, save for the one sample with the sharper expression of black pepper. There are some flirtations with creaminess as the body thickens up heading into the final inches, and while I like the addition, I find myself wishing it came with a bit of sweetness. A rich, dense earthiness drives the cigar as it begins its final inch or so, and there is just a bit of sharpness beginning to emerge on the finish, having the same initial sensation that I get from a Negroni but with a smokier, earthier and more pepper-forward profile. Flavor finishes medium-full, body is now medium-full, and strength is medium-plus, but I’m wondering how much I will be feeling this once I put it down. Construction remains very good, though I find one sample to really slow its combustion rate. Draw, smoke production, and the burn line are all very good.

Final Notes

• My note about the lack of a primary band also serves as a reminder that I think it’s a good idea to have some blank cigar bands among your accessories. They are a cheap and easy way to keep a note as to what a cigar is, where it came from, when it was rolled, or why it’s otherwise special and in your humidor.
• The back of these bands are not stamped with the month and year that the cigars were rolled. This was something Mombacho Cigars S.A. was previously doing and you can see it as part of a recap of a visit I paid to Casa Favilli, and which I think is a great touch that the factory adds.
• In addition to the bands not having any branding on them, the boxes do not have any either.
• We received box number 28 out of 150.

• While photographing the box, Brooks Whittington noted that the slots holding the cigars are more of an oval shape that he didn’t recall seeing very often.
• In April 2022, Favilli announced The Granada Line, its revamped trio of core line offerings.
• The Favilli Cosecha 2016 is by no means packed with nicotine, but the final third could give your system a bit of a test.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.
• Final smoking time was two hours and 30 minutes on average.