Tatuaje Skinny Hyde

In 2012, Tatuaje released the Little Monsters, which included smaller versions of the first five Monster Releases. The blends were the same, though the Little Monsters were all rolled in 2012 and the cigars shrunk. For example, the Baby Face was a 4 3/8 x 50 version of The Face, a 6 3/8 x 56.

(The intro was written by Charlie Minato)

The cigars did keep the same unique looks as their larger counterparts: Baby Face used a strip of tobacco instead of a band, Wolfie kept the brushed foot of The Wolf and the box-pressed original Monster Series cigars translated into box pressing the smaller versions.

Two years later, Tatuaje released the Pudgy Monsters. These cigars took the same length as the Little Monsters, but used the original ring gauge of the regular Monster Series, meaning the Tatuaje Face was 4 3/8 x 56. Once again, the unique traits of the original Monster Series cigars carried over into the Pudgy versions, a sampler that included the first six Monsters Series release as well as two each of new blends, Chuck and Tiff—cigars based off the characters from Don Mancini’s Child’s Play films, specifically Bride of Chucky.

Now, two years later, Tatuaje’s Pete Johnson has a new sampler of smaller Monster Series, this time, Skinny Monsters.

It’s a grand departure from the Little and Pudgy form, with the release largely based off the Tatuaje Black Label Petite Lancero. This time, every cigar in the sampler measures 6 x 38 and is round. The cigars feature a typical parejo shape, instead of a Torpedo for the Skinny versions of The Drac and The Wolfman.

A total of 10,000 samplers are being produced, containing one of each of the Skinny versions of the first eight Monster Series releases plus Chuck and Tiff. There are also plans to release 400 25-count dress boxes of each Skinny Monster. The dress box concept follows the regular Monster Series releases. Every Monster Series release has featured 666 boxes of 13—shaped like a coffin—that are specially decorated to mimic each release.

While the dress box Skinny Monsters do constitute special packaging, the boxes are based off of the Tatuaje Petite Lancero boxes, a vertical wooden box. In addition, these cigars will be sold at a later date—specifically the IPCPR Convention & Trade Show in late July—as opposed to the regular Monster Series dress boxes, which are allocated largely to 13 different retailers each year with some other retailers receiving small quantities of one to three dress boxes.

In addition, Johnson has said that one of the Skinny Monsters may enter regular production.

With the Skinny Monsters, the Tatuaje Monster Series family now stands at 31 released cigars.

• Tatuaje The Hyde (7 x 49) — October 2015
• Tatuaje Skinny Hyde (6 x 38) — April 2016

Last year’s Monster Series release was The Hyde, a 7 x 49 churchill that was based off of Robert Louis Stevenson’s novella Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde which was first released in 1886. As with its larger brother, the Skinny Hyde incorporates an Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper covering Nicaraguan tobacco in both the binder and filler.

• Cigar Reviewed: Tatuaje Skinny Hyde
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Factory: My Father Cigars S.A.
• Wrapper: Ecuadorian Sumatra
• Binder: Nicaragua
• Filler: Nicaragua
• Length: 6 Inches
• Ring Gauge: 38
• Vitola: Petit Lancero
• MSRP: $8.50 (Samplers of 10, $85)
• Release Date: April 15, 2016
• Number of Cigars Released: 10,000 Samplers of 1 Cigar & 400 Boxes of 25 Cigars (20,000 Total Cigars)
• Number of Cigars Smoked For Review: 3

Unlike The Hyde, which features a mocha brown wrapper, the Skinny Hyde is covered in a leaf that is significantly more red and is silky smooth to the touch. The cigar features quite a few obvious veins running up and down the length, and is appropriately spongy when squeezed. Aroma from the wrapper is a combination of barnyard, hay, cocoa, cedar, roasted peanuts while the cold draw brings flavors of dark chocolate, bitter espresso, creamy cedar, leather and sweet nutmeg.

Staring out, the Skinny Hyde features a dominant leather and dark chocolate combination, followed up closely by mint, licorice, hay, leather and almonds. There is quite a bit of black pepper on the retrohale, along with some floral sweetness that seems to be gaining strength, along with a touch of spice on my tongue. Construction-wise, the draw is excellent after a simple straight cut, and the burn is razor sharp so far, while the smoke production is massive off of the foot. The strength is noticeable but not out of place, and ends the first third short of the medium mark.

There are some major changes in the profile of the Skinny Hyde during the section third, including a mint note on the retrohale that is only getting stronger as well as more black pepper. The dominant flavor is still a very nice dark chocolate note, along with other flavors of creamy oak, hay, leather, espresso beans, barnyard and graham crackers. The floral sweetness from the first third has gotten stronger as well, while the spice that was present is long gone by the halfway point. The draw and burn continues to impress, while the strength hits a solid medium point by the end of the second third.

While the mint note was strongest in the second third of the Tatuaje Skinny Hyde, the note is still quite noticeable in the final third, and the major flavor in the profile shifts from dark chocolate to bitter espresso beans. Other notes of hay, creamy oak, wheat, leather, earth and a touch of citrus flit in and out, and the floral sweetness is still a major player as well. Both the burn and the draw are excellent, and the smoke production continues to be copious off of the foot. Strength-wise, the Skinny Hyde hits a point just above medium by the time I put the nub down with a little less than an inch to go.

Final Notes

• Although the construction on all three samples was excellent, each of them also featured an extremely flaky ash that seemed to fall in small chunks the entire time I was smoking, something that I don’t remember being an issue in the larger version. In fact, you can see some of the ash on the band in the smoking photographs if you look hard enough.
• As with The Hyde, the mint note that I picked up was a wonderful addition to the profile, but it was relegated entirely to the retrohale. In other words, if you are not retrohaling this cigar, you will most likely never notice it.
• I have to say, the bands on the Skinny Monsters are a bit confusing. The band for the Skinny Wolf is nowhere close to the same color as the previous releases, and while the band on the Skinny Tiff is similar, it is not the same.
• Tatuaje Cigars is a sponsor of halfwheel.
• The cigars smoked for this review were purchased by halfwheel.
• The final smoking time for all three samples averaged one hour and 20 minutes.
• Site sponsors Atlantic Cigar Co., Cigar Hustler, Cigar.com, Corona Cigar, JR Cigar, Lone Star State Cigar Co. (972.424.7272) and STOGIES World Class Cigars (713.783.5100) all carry the Skinny Monsters.

a Rafflecopter giveaway