Supreme Leaf Perfecto

Late last year, AGANORSA Leaf shipped retailers the seventh vitola in its Supreme Leaf line, a 6 x 54 perfecto. Like the other sizes in the line, the Supreme Leaf Perfecto is a Nicaraguan puro covered in a corojo 99 wrapper and it is being made at the Aganorsa factory located in Estelí, Nicaragua.

The MSRP for the Supreme Leaf Perfecto is set at $16.99 per cigar and the first shipment is limited to 1,500 boxes of 10 cigars. Those cigars were only sent to retailers that are AGANORSA Select Accounts, a retail loyalty program used by the company.

“Our Aganorsa Leaf Select Partners choose each year to make a significant commitment to our brands,” said Terence Reilly, vp of sales and marketing for AGANORSA Leaf, in a press release in September. “We wanted to reward them with an exclusive size of our most coveted cigar.”

• Cigar Reviewed: Supreme Leaf Perfecto
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: Aganorsa
• Wrapper: Nicaragaua (Corojo 99)
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Length: 6 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 54
• Vitola: Perfecto
• MSRP: $16.99 (Box of 10, $169.90)
• Release Date: December 2023
• Number of Cigars Released: Regular Production
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Redux: 3

From a visual perspective, the Supreme Leaf Perfectos are covered in attractive milk chocolate-colored wrappers with noticeable oil and some slight mottling. All three cigars also have a number of small bumps under their relatively smooth wrappers and are nicely firm when squeezed. Aromas from the wrappers include very sweet cedar leading dark chocolate, bitter espresso, earthiness, barnyard and light lemon zest. Due to the smaller foot opening, there is not much difference in the scents from the feet, although I do pick up a new dry hay note and more earthiness. Flavors from the cold draw are quite distinct with cocoa nibs, cedar, leather tack, creamy almonds, pepper and honey sweetness all vying for attention.

It takes a bit to get the foot lit, but once that happens and I take a few puffs, I pick up some spice on my tongue and a gritty earthiness note that quickly transitions to main flavors of creamy cedar and leather tack. Secondary flavors of cocoa nibs, bitter espresso, dry straw and light lemon zest show up at various points, while the retrohale features small amounts of both red pepper and milk chocolate sweetness, neither of which seem to be getting stronger as the first third burns down. The flavor is at medium-plus, while both the strength and body manage to cross into solid medium territory. When it comes to construction, there is more than enough dense smoke from all three cigars, and the draws give just the right amount of resistance after straight cuts. However, one cigar needs a minor burn correction to keep on track.

While cedar remains one of the top flavors during the second third of the cigar, the leather tack recedes to the background, replaced by a distinct toasted bread flavor. Additional flavors of hay, coffee grounds, generic nuttiness and cinnamon flit in and out, and on one cigar—the second one I smoked—I notice a vegetal note that is present on the finish for a short time after the halfway point. The retrohale features more of both the red pepper and milk chocolate sweetness that I picked up in the first third, but it is a relatively small increase for both. Flavor bumps up to medium-full, and the strength increases a bit to land at medium-plus, but the body stays put at a solid medium. There are absolutely no issues whatsoever regarding the construction of all three cigars, as the burn lines, smoke production and draws all work together seamlessly.

The amount of red pepper on the retrohale increases during the final third, but unfortunately, the amount of milk chocolate sweetness does not, causing a bit of a disconnect when it comes to the overall balance. With that said, the toasted bread and cedar combination remains on top of the profile until the end of the cigar, followed by secondary flavors of gritty earth, bitter espresso, dry straw, cinnamon, roasted peanuts and slight leather. The flavor remains at medium-full, but both the body and the strength increase enough to end at medium-plus and medium-full, respectively. Finally, while the draws and smoke production continue to give me no issues for all three cigars, two of those cigars need a burn correction with my lighter before I am finished.

Final Notes

• This is the third Supreme Leaf vitola that measures 6 x 54.
• Since the Perfecto was shipped to retailers, AGANORSA Leaf has released two additional vitolas: a 5 x 56 Gran Robusto made exclusively for Havertown, Pa.-based retailer Wooden Indian Tobacco Shop and a 4 1/2 x 50 Rothschild.
• Of the nine vitolas in the Supreme Leaf line so far, only two are not box-pressed: the Perfecto and the Toro that was released earlier this year.
• Formerly named Casa Fernández, the company changed its name to AGANORSA Leaf in April 2018 in order to transition from a name that references its owner to one that ties in with the larger agricultural empire of which it is a part.
• The Supreme Leaf Torpedo took 15th place in halfwheel’s 2022 Top 25 awards. 
• Yellow, orange and purple/blue are bold color combinations for a cigar brand, but I do have to admit that I know exactly what cigar I am looking at the second I see the band or box.
• Interestingly, the three cigars I smoked for this review had noticeably different-sized foot openings.
• The ash on these cigars was impressive: each cigar held its first ash until well past the beginning of the second third before falling for the first time.
• AGANORSA Leaf advertises on halfwheel.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.
• Final smoking time averaged one hour and 49 minutes for all three samples.
• If you are looking to purchase any of the Supreme Leaf Perfecto, site sponsors Atlantic Cigar Co., Corona Cigar Co., JR Cigar and Smokingpipes have them in stock now.