Fonseca Edition MX Robusto

In late 2019, the García family of My Father fame announced that it had purchased the U.S. rights to the Fonseca trademark from the Quesada family. As far as business transactions in the cigar business go, this deal was rather unique. Each year, a few cigar companies are sold. Most of the time, it’s one company buying out another, think STG acquiring Alec Bradley or even Ezra Zion buying Nomad. Company A acquires more or less everything owned by Company B and then folds those assets—brands, farms, existing inventory, personnel, etc.—into its operations.

This deal was not like that. Rather, the García family bought one brand from Quesada. Presumably, it didn’t even acquire the existing inventory of Quesada-made Fonseca cigars.

Predictably, My Father released a new version of Fonseca shortly thereafter, but that was in mid-2020. While that line is a Nicaraguan puro, the second My Father-made Fonseca shines a light on Mexico. It’s called the Fonseca Edition MX, and it uses a Mexican San Andrés wrapper over a Nicaraguan binder and Nicaraguan fillers.

It debuted in four sizes:

• Fonseca Edition MX Robusto (5 x 50) — $11 (Box of 20, $220)
• Fonseca Edition MX Cedros (6 1/4 x 52) — $12.50 (Box of 20, $250)
• Fonseca Edition MX Toro Gordo (6 x 60) — $13.50 (Box of 20, $270)
• Fonseca Edition MX Toro Grande (6 1/2 x 56) — $13 (Box of 20, $260)

• Cigar Reviewed: Fonseca Edition MX Robusto
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: My Father Cigars S.A.
• Wrapper: Mexico (San Andrés)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Length: 5 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 50
• Vitola: Robusto
• MSRP: $11 (Box of 20, $220)
• Release Date: March 2024
• Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

Color-wise, the wrappers are a shade darker than what I would call the classic Hershey bar brown. They are very consistent in color, with no mottling and a well-integrated vein structure. While not sandpaper rough to the touch, the wrappers have a lot of texture and not much oil. All three cigars have a medium-full aroma with the first cigar being led by the smell of melting chocolate with some scents fat-soaked bread flavors, sort of like soggy pizza crust, behind it. The other two don’t have as much of the chocolate—though it’s still there—and the savory bread flavor is more like a potato chip. The foot of each cigar seems to loosely follow the wrappers’ lead: the first cigar has sweet chocolate outpacing the smell of a bag of potato chips; the other two have a more defined barbecue potato chip flavor over chocolate and woodiness. Cold draws are generally led by cocoa, but there’s a foul funkiness, which reminds me of dirty water that has been left out to fester, and then some earthiness and raisins. All three cigars are medium-full, and the draws are great.

There are three similarities between the first puffs of the three cigars: the flavors tend to be muted, none of them are led by a chocolate flavor, and they are each medium-full. Two cigars are defined by bread flavors, dry salted crackers in one and soft, warm pita bread in another. Secondary notes include woodiness, chocolate, terroir and saltiness. The first 10 to 15 minutes have an edgy earthiness, but eventually, the strongest flavor is some version of the potato chip flavor that I smelled on a few cigars. I find most puffs to have the flavors somewhat muted, as if the final 20 percent of the experience has been cut off. Earthiness, saltiness and a gritty pepper only further that effect, though some puffs have a really interesting fruity sweetness—maybe a lychee—or a vinegary mustard flavor. The cigars finish with an aggressive earthiness that is stronger than the greasy potato chip flavor was initially, though there are also fewer flavors to be found during the finish: black pepper, dryness and some creaminess. Thanks to an uptick in saltiness during the retrohales, my mind leads me to some unique dry flavors like nuttiness and sunflower seeds. Secondary flavors include leather, white pepper and herbs before a dry creaminess, pasta and some more aggressive pepper enters the finish. Flavor is medium-full, body is full and strength is medium-plus. None of the cigars have any construction issues during the first third. I find the ash wants to hang onto the cigar a bit more than normal, though once the first clump falls off, it seems flakier than I would have expected.

Around the time when I remove the main band, the profile enters a new chapter. The nuttiness that was occasionally found during the first third is now as present as any other flavor. Furthermore, it seems to have bucked the trend that I found in the first third. Whereas many of those flavors felt somewhat muted or hitting a ceiling, this particular sensation gets to explode on the palate. Chronologically, it starts with peanuts and then transforms into toastiness and/or unsalted plain popcorn; many puffs have both the toastiness and popcorn, and some only have one. Secondary notes include earthiness, creaminess, black pepper and some saltiness. Other puffs are much more like the first third, led by a mixture that I’d describe as “earthy,” though lacking distinct flavors like minerals and terroir. Unfortunately, there are occasional puffs that have a foul secondary flavor that reminds me of rotten water. The retrohales of the Fonseca Edition MX Robusto are also very different. Some puffs have a Thousand Island dressing-like sensation, but the more unique ones remind me of horseradish, attacking my nostrils with bright sharpness. The final cigar has the horseradish, though it never gets to be as intense as the other two cigars, and retrohales are regularly led by a sunflower seed-like flavor. Flavor is medium-full, body is full and strength is medium-plus. It’s a very delicate balance to keep the smoke production up to avoid the cigar going out, but also not getting the cigar too hot to make the flavors harsh and bitter. While I managed it okay during the first parts of the second third, I’m unable to do so without the assistance of a lighter during the latter parts, and all three cigars need at least one touch-up to help with declining smoke production.

If I were to have stopped smoking this cigar halfway through, I would have been left wondering where the typical Mexican San Andrés flavors are. It’s unfair and probably inaccurate to say that all cigars with Mexican wrappers have a specific flavor, though I tend to find at least one of two commonalities: a distinct earthiness and/or a semisweet chocolate. While the cocoa never makes a strong appearance—and no appearance in the final third—the San Andrés earthiness is present here. It’s hardly dominant, but it’s the leading flavor of a core that includes dry nuttiness and woodiness. Underneath is some sugary sweetness and I get some fatty meatiness as the cigar burns on. The finish is pretty similar, though I taste some of the greasy potato chips that I once found as an aroma, along with some mild cinnamon. Retrohales aren’t as exciting as the middle parts, though the mixture of nuttiness and creaminess is a reprieve from before. The horseradish can still be found, joining a sugary barbecue sauce sweetness as distant secondary flavors. As the finish develops, saltiness and the earthiness pick up. Flavor is full, body is close to full and strength is medium-plus. Two cigars need another touch-up with the lighter as smoke production continues to be an issue.

Final Notes

• In addition to the old and discontinued Quesada-made Fonsecas, there’s also the Cuban Fonseca brand, which is in production.
• The Cedros size comes in a cedar sleeve, the other three vitolas do not.
• A decade ago, this blend would have stuck out as being not very My Father-like as it really lacks a big pepper presence. Fortunately, the company’s portfolio of blends has added a lot more diversity in flavor profiles. While pepper was present, it was never a focal point in what I tasted.
• As is seemingly always the case with My Father’s packaging, both the design and printing of the bands is very well done. There are so many detail elements, including some you may not see like the gold-foil My Father logo on the secondary band that is covered up by the Fonseca logo when the band is attached to the cigar. It wasn’t all that interesting, but if you smoke this cigar, I’d suggest taking 30 seconds to look at the packaging up close.
• Flavor-wise, I scored this cigar in a way that is probably more rewarding than my own subjective enjoyment. The question we are asked is “how well does the flavor do from a technical standpoint,” and not “how much I enjoyed it.” Being asked to evaluate the technical aspects versus the emotional response is one of the many unique parts of reviewing something versus just consuming it. Another way of thinking about this is that your favorite car to drive might not be the one that is the fastest around the Circuit de la Sarthe.
• While I’m sure there are lots of great pairings, at the midway point of the second cigar, I wondered how this would taste with some sparkling water. Just a bit to help change the palate, plus the carbonation would seemingly do wonders.

• My Father lists the cigars at 5 x 50, the ring gauges variedly wildly enough that I double checked the measurements.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.
• To smoke the cigar from start to just under an inch left, it took right around one hours and 50 minutes.
• Site sponsors Atlantic Cigar Co., Cigars Direct, Famous Smoke Shop, JR Cigar and Smokingpipes carry the Fonseca Edition MX Robusto.