Fonseca 5/50

DISCLAIMER: I've recently taken up smoking cigars as a hobby and want to share my experiences with various smokes with all of you. Before I get to far into this review let me lay the groundwork for this and future reviews.

First, I'm a relative cigar newbie so read accordingly. I'm a big fan of top25cigar.com, and will be adopting their "no snob" approach to reviewing my smokes. Second, since a line of cigars can vary from stick to stick you shouldn't form an opinion on a brand unless you've smoked a couple of them. Third, inform yourself from a variety of sources. Read onlines reviews (like those at top25cigar.com), ask friends, and once you find a smoke you like ask your local tobaccanist for a similar cigar you would like to try.

I'm going to develop a scale for the cigars, 1 to 5:
1. "Hyman Roth" A dog turd of a cigar, one I won't smoke again, and would warn others not to try.
2. "The Fredo", this stick tries, but nothing I would actively seek out mostly because I'm unsure if it will result in a pleasing smoke.
3. "The Brasi" a solid cigar that will be a trustworthy smoke pulled from your humi.
4. "The Consigliere" a sophisticated smoke, one that I will smoke again and would recommend to friends with confidence.
5. "The Don" An exceptional cigar, worthy of purchasing by the box. A choice smoke that I would pass out at a daughters wedding.

Now that the groundword is laid, on with the review.


With the beautiful (for Nebraska) weather we are experiencing, I took the opportunity yesterday afternoon to light up a cigar while studying outside on my patio. I grabbed a Fonseca 5/50 from my humi. The 5/50 is a robusto, not suprisingly its 5 inches in length, with a ring guage fo 50. The label is gold with a distinctive script F in red with the word Fonseca running down the middle of the F.

The 5/50 has a connecticut wrapper, light in color. The wrapper had a creamy aftertaste, common with other connecticuts I have smoked. The 'gar lit nicely, the first third burned a little uneven, but was near perfect after that, and had good draw throughout . The taste was slightly bitter at first, but that quickly vanished, replaced with a nice mild and smooth smoke. This was a perfect afternoon cigar, because it was so smooth and light.

The stick had a woody tast, but no noticeable flavor; not bland, just unexciting. It produced a nice amount of smoke. The ash was was a medium gray and held together pretty well, however you could see it breaking apart in places.

Final grade: 3
I'll try the Fonseca again, under the right conditions. Perfect for a time when you want a cigar but don't want it to knock it off your feet.

Read how others rated of the Fonseca 5/50.