Kristoff Guardrail Robusto

It’s been about nine months since the 2022 PCA Convention & Trade Show, and as I think about the event and what stood out, especially in light of the cigar being reviewed today, there is definitely something that stood out: Glen Case, owner of Kristoff Cigars, had a near-death experience since the last time I saw him, and about two-and-a-half years prior to the trade show.

Right behind that was that the company managed to keep the news of such happenings seemingly completely under wraps.

A distant third: that the company was using the experience as the inspiration for a new cigar line, and that new line uses tobacco from Zimbabwe.

First things first: in what would have been the end of 2019 or early 2020, Case was in Oklahoma for an event, and as he tells the story, he was out on a motorcycle doing about 65 mph around a curve when the back tire gave way, causing the bike to crash into a guardrail. His injuries were extensive enough to require him to be in the hospital for eight days, followed by time in a wheelchair and extensive physical therapy.

Case didn’t want word of this getting out, so it didn’t, at least not on any sort of widespread basis until he decided to turn the event into the inspiration for a new cigar line: the Kristoff Guardrail.

Aptly named and coming with a chrome band and box accents with the image of a set of motorcycle handlebars, the Guardrail is also quite notable for using tobacco from Zimbabwe in its filler. Case has declined to go into specifics about the leaves other than to say he was excited to use them in this new line. Dominican-grown tobacco joins that leaf in the filler and is also used for the binder, while the wrapper comes from Brazil.

The Kristoff Guardrail is offered in three sizes:

• Kristoff Guardrail Robusto (5 1/2 x 54) — $10.20 (Box of 20, $204)
• Kristoff Guardrail Churchill (7 x 50) — $10.40 (Box of 20, $208)
• Kristoff Guardrail Matador (6 1/2 x 56) — $10.60 (Box of 20, $212)

The cigars are produced at the Tabacalera von Eicken factory in the Dominican Republic, a factory formerly known as the Charles Fairmorn Factory.

• Cigar Reviewed: Kristoff Guardrail Robusto
• Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
• Factory: Tabacalera von Eicken
• Wrapper: Brazil
• Binder: Dominican Republic
• Filler: Dominican Republic and Zimbabwe
• Length: 5 1 /2 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 54
• Vitola: Robusto Extra
• MSRP: $10.20 (Box of 20, $204)
• Release Date: October 2022
• Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

As I slide the Kristoff Guardrail Robusto out of the cellophane, I’m struck by the interesting juxtaposition of the darkness of the wrapper and the reflective chrome color of the band. It’s one of the shinier bands I’ve seen, though not mirrored enough to have me recommending using it to see if there’s something in your teeth. The wrappers are very dark; depending on the cigar and the ambient light, they remind me of a very dark chocolate or a dark, rich and damp earth color. Each of the three cigars used for this review looks like it’s rolled quite well, while some inspection reveals a generally firm and dense cylinder of tobacco. The cap is certainly the eye-catcher with its tight coil, though clipping it off proves to be interesting as the top of the cigar feels dry, and the flatness of the cap under the coil occasionally leads me to clip it too close towards the shoulder. The covered foot is also visually interesting, as it covers the edges of the cigar but then looks a bit messy in the middle as the tobacco is scrunched and extends away from the cigar. The wrapper has a dry, woody smell that reminds me of dried tree bark, followed by a can of mixed nuts. I don’t get a lot of distinct aromas from the foot, but there are traces of tobacco piles, root beer, a bit of wood and some rich earth. There isn’t much outright sweetness or pepper in the aroma, but a bit of chocolate makes an appearance from time to time on the taste buds, though isn’t consistent. The cold draw is smooth and easy, and its flavor profile varies a bit from cigar to cigar, with flat root beer, damp leaves and damp, rich earth all making appearances.

The Kristoff Guardrail Robusto starts enjoyably, if fairly tamely, in terms of flavor. There’s not a big explosion of pepper or anything like that, but rather a rich earthiness, a bit of melted chocolate, hints of creaminess and then some pepper on the tail of the finish. Retrohales are pretty mellow as well, offering just a touch of a pepper that serves as an accent to the flavor that matches its intensity. It’s a retrohale in the first inch or so that kicks things into gear, hitting my nostrils with a lively white pepper. From there the cigar begins to intensify its flavor and body, hitting my palate with a robust, if somewhat thin, earth and pepper that has a bit of gruffness as the smoke hits my palate. The draw opens up a few ticks as soon as the first clump of ash comes off, and the cigar ups its smoke production as a result. After a medium-minus start, the flavor is now around medium, body is medium-minus, and strength is mild. Construction is very good thus far, especially with the increased smoke production.

While the second third carries on from where the first third wrapped up, at some point ahead of the midway point, the profile begins to lose a bit of its richness and depth as the flavor dries out and the body thins out a bit. It eventually gains some of it back, and while I can’t quite pinpoint the exact change, I do think the cigar hits a fairly decent spot ahead of the midway point. The smoke is still earthy and textured, but it softens the edges with some creaminess just enough to avoid any irritation or unpleasantness. The midway point of the cigar sees the flavor turn a bit fuller and more intense as the earth starts to develop, picking up a rougher expression and some black pepper that lingers on the palate. Two of the three cigars run into the same burn line issue right around the midway point, with the cigar shoveling to the point of needing a touchup and then quickly getting back on track. There’s a steady building of pepper both through the nose and on the palate, a change that takes the profile into medium-plus range, while body is closer to medium and strength is approaching medium. Previously noted burn issues aside, the Kristoff Guardrail Robusto smokes without much issue.

The final third hangs onto the robustness that the second third developed and for the most part, stays agreeable without straying into irritation territory. Beyond that, I get a bit of dry chocolate, almost hitting my taste buds like a dry chocolate frosting that I’d expect to find on a cupcake. The black pepper has dialed back just a bit and is now much more of an accent than a driving component. I could use a bit more creaminess, but that doesn’t seem destined to rejoin the profile. In the final inches, the profile picks up a bit of heat from the pepper, not quite red chili pepper but something that gets me thinking in that direction. While I wouldn’t say that the final third brings in the creaminess I was hoping for, there is a subtle softening of the profile, which is definitely welcomed as the cigar picks up a bit of dry, light rockiness as well, but I will say that this latest change gives the cigar some impressive complexity as things come to a close. Flavor finishes medium-plus, body is medium-plus and strength feels shy of medium. No further construction or combustion issues arise and all three samples are able to be smoked down to a pretty small nub.

Final Notes

• The Kristoff Guardrail shipped in mid-October 2022, being sent to stores with the Kristoff PCA 2022 Signature Series, the limited edition release that was only available to retailers who attended the 2022 PCA Convention & Trade Show.
• I was really conflicted when hearing the news of Case’s injury, as between the fact that we live in separate places and the COVID-19 pandemic, I really wouldn’t have had a way to see him or notice he had disappeared from public view, yet at the same time I also feel like I should have noticed that I hadn’t heard from him during that time.
• I had forgotten that this cigar used tobacco from Zimbabwe in the blend, and after smoking it, I’m quite intrigued by what this leaf contributed to the blend.
• None of the three samples gave me any significant nicotine
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.
• Final smoking time was two hours and 25 minutes on average.