Illusione of Excalibur #1

There’s a saying about things coming full circle, and in the case of this cigar, it was Dion Giolito of Illusione getting to create a new blend for a brand that was one of the formative ones he smoked before he got into making cigars.

The cigar, the Illusione of Excalibur #1, is a 7 1/4 x 54 double corona that is a Nicaraguan puro using a corojo 99 wrapper grown in the Jalapa region, a corojo 2012 binder also from Jalapa, while the fillers are criollo and corojo leaves grown in Estelí. It is produced at AGANORSA Agricola Ganadera Norteña S.A. factory, the Nicaraguan factory that was previously known as TABSA and where the majority of Illusione’s portfolio is produced.

The blend is the creation of Giolito and Justin Andrews, business development manager of Scandinavian Tobacco Group (STG), and the result of more than a year of development.

“When GCC asked me to do a collaboration and offered up Excalibur, I immediately jumped at the opportunity,” said Giolito in a press release. “In college, the Excalibur #1 Maduro was my go-to when I could afford them on a college budget. My buddy George and I would enjoy them after class or band practice. They were a real treat back then, and they still are to this day. For my part, I wanted to make a cigar in the spirit of Excalibur with a bold character and packaging that pays homage to the brand’s origins. I believe this blend really hits the mark.”

It is also a limited edition, with 4,960 boxes of 10 cigars produced and pricing set at $19.99 per cigar. The cigar went on sale on July 4.

“Dion Giolito and Illusione’s success in the premium cigar category has been driven by his rigorous standards for tobacco and his ability to create cigars that wow the market,” said Andrews. “So when it came to developing a blend for Excalibur, Dion was our hands-down first choice. I’m very proud of how this project came together. My only regret is that we couldn’t make this a full-time launch.”

• Cigar Reviewed: Illusione of Excalibur #1
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Agricola Ganadera Norteña S.A.
• Wrapper: Nicaragua (Jalapa Corojo 99)
• Binder: Nicaragua (Jalapa Corojo 2012)
• Filler: Nicaragua (Estelí Criollo & Corojo)
• Length: 7 1/4 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 54
• Vitola: Double Corona
• MSRP: $19.99 (Box of 10, $199.90)
• Release Date: July 4, 2022
• Number of Cigars Released: 4,960 Boxes of 10 Cigars (49,600 Total Cigars)
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

Looking at the Illusione of Excalibur #1 gives me the same reaction as when I stand next to most pro athletes, which is that, well, you look like a regular person, just bigger. The cigar is rolled well from a visual perspective and very firmly from a tactile one, almost to a point of being hard. The color of the leaf is incredibly even, a brown that reminds me of a typical coffee bean color or a dried mud hue. While it doesn’t have a lot of visual sheen, the wrapper has a smooth, even slightly glossy texture to it. The foot has a light and bright aroma that combines dry wood that reminds me of a pencil at times, some lively black pepper, and a sweetness that has me thinking of plain bubble gum, though having not chewed any in years, I’m not completely sure on that descriptor. The cold draw on two cigars is very good, while the third is just a bit firm but not feeling obstructed, with the flavor leading with pork chops before adding a bit of dry wood and finishing with pepper that is more about the tingle on the lips as opposed to on my tongue.

There’s a decent amount of black pepper to be found in the first puffs, enough that it is the first thing that I write down, and even though I wait a few puffs before my first retrohale, my nose is already tingling from that pepper. Supporting notes of light wood keep the profile from becoming heavy, and there’s not much in the way of earth to be found as of yet. There are some hints at creaminess as the first couple of puffs unfold, though it too is on the lighter end of the spectrum, almost reminding me of smelling powdered creamer and in some cases, a powdered donut, while other times I get more of a decently creamed coffee. I don’t want to imply that the flavor was disjointed to start, but the organization and cohesion of the flavors improve noticeably, after the first clump of ash gets knocked off, the wood shifts to a baked pretzel flavor and the body thickens up just a bit. That flavor and profile hold for much of this section, until I get just a bit of liquid smoke ahead of the second third starting, which even in its small quantity adds a lot of character and complexity to the profile. Construction is generally very good, though even a slightly firm draw seems to limit the flavor’s potential to fully develop. Construction and combustion are both very good, though it seems that the wrapper leaf is more fragile than I gave it credit for, as it starts to crack on occasion. Flavor is medium-plus, body is medium, and strength is mild.

The second third gradually transitions that liquid smoke flavor back into a dry firewood flavor, a slow process that makes use of the cigar’s length so that it’s not really noticeable until the midway point when the wood finally takes over and is quickly accented by black pepper both on the palate and through the nose. Whatever creaminess the cigar had from earlier is largely gone, or at least relegated to the very fringes of the profile. While the flavor has some touches of earthiness, I’m hesitant to fully commit to the word, largely because the profile is still bright and somewhat light, even though it is still hitting the senses with plenty of pepper. It’s an interesting and engaging combination that gets my mind searching for appropriate descriptors. There is a bit of a shift in the way the pepper hits my taste buds as this section comes to a close, as instead of going right for them as it did earlier, it spreads out across my tongue, providing a gentler tingle that suggests a complexity that comes with some age, as if the flavors have had a chance to intertwine as oppose to simply being a group of components. Flavor is still medium-plus with occasional ventures into medium-plus, body is medium-plus, and strength is mild-plus. The burn line isn’t even but doesn’t need a touch-up, and other than some wrapper leaf cracks, construction is very good, as is combustion.

The final third of the Illusione of Excalibur #1 finally brings about some true earthiness, not that the profile was necessarily missing it or suffering from its absence, but it is a box that has largely remained unchecked to this point. It’s a pretty significant step forward for the cigar, and one that for my palate isn’t one in the right direction. For as much as I like an earthy profile, it pales in comparison to what was offered in the first third in terms of complexity, layering and overall interest. One interesting and positive change that comes along with the earthiness is a smoky chocolate flavor that adds both components in almost equal amounts to give the cigar some of its complexity back while also broadening how many areas of the flavor wheel it is covering. A bit of black pepper takes the reins for a bit before the cigar finishes with a sharp white pepper that stings the taste buds and back of my mouth more than I would like, and the signal that it’s time to put the cigar down after a very lengthy smoking time.

Final Notes

• I wish the gold on the blue sections of the band popped a bit more. It’s readable as is, but it feels like the brown shade of the wrapper and that particular blue makes it hard for that gold to stand out.
• It’s a shame to see a cigar that has such a good flavor yet has to contend with the distraction of a cracked wrapper.
• That cracked wrapper also created a decent mess as those wrapper ashes would detach separately from the rest of the ash.
• I’m pretty partial to the original Cuban Hoyo de Monterrey band, so any offshoots of it have me a bit wary. I’m not inherently opposed to the blue or the additional portion that has been added on, but I’m not quite crazy about both of them. It’s not bad, but I think that original Hoyo de Monterrey band is pretty close to perfect in terms of color and execution, so I’m not fond of seeing it adapted or added onto.
• This is especially true since the foot band is essentially a repeat of what has been added onto the primary band. It would be one thing if that foot band contributed something unique and additional, but now I feel like that primary band is being messed with for no good reason.
• Speaking of the Cuban Hoyo de Monterrey, the Double Corona in that line is one of my favorite cigars. It measures 194mm (7 5/8 inches)  long with a 49 ring gauge. I’m a bit disappointed that this cigar doesn’t mirror those dimensions.
• This is the second time that Dion Giolito has collaborated with another significant and much larger cigar maker for a project, as he previously worked on a brand called Nostoros with Drew Estate. That line debuted at the 2009 IPCPR Convention & Trade Show, went on sale in the spring of 2010 and was discontinued in September 2010.
• I didn’t pick up much in the way of strength, which given the size of the Illusione of Excalibur #1 is fine with me. I don’t think I’d react well to a nicotine buzz on top of the flavor and smoking time.
• Both General Cigar Co. and Illusione advertise on halfwheel.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.
• Final smoking time was four hours.
• Site sponsors STOGIES World Class Cigars carries the Illusione of Excalibur #1.

Patrick Lagreid

I strive to capture the essence of a cigar and the people behind them in my work – every cigar you light up is the culmination of the work of countless people and often represents generations of struggle and stories. For me, it’s about so much more than the cigar – it’s about the story behind it, the experience of enjoying the work of artisans and the way that a good cigar can bring people together. In addition to my work with halfwheel, I’m the public address announcer for the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks during spring training, as well as for the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League, the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury and previously the Arizona Rattlers of the Indoor Football League. I also work in a number of roles for Major League Baseball, plus I'm a voice over artist. Prior to joining halfwheel, I covered the Phoenix and national cigar scene for Examiner.com, and was an editor for Cigar Snob magazine.