Stogie Reviews: Onyx Vintage ’97 Epicure

On Saturday night I found myself at Shelly’s Back Room, a cigar bar located a stone’s throw from the White House. The room’s luxurious furniture, impressive array of high definition plasma televisions, and wide selection of bourbons and rums make Shelly’s the ideal DC locale for a relaxing evening smoke.

While the bar wields an extensive assortment of cigars, I didn’t come empty-handed. After all, I had been meaning to try the Onyx Vintage ’97 Epicure ever since it became JR Cigar’s “Cherry Pick of the Month.”

This 4 and ½ by 50 ring gauge stogie is a medium-bodied maduro with a rich, dark brown Mexican wrapper and a Connecticut Broadleaf binder. And its smooth surface and two black bands make this box-pressed stick quite pleasing to the eye.

After puncturing the head with my fingernails and fumbling to establish a proper light, I quickly found that the flavors were anything but subtle. The well-aged blend of Nicaraguan, Peruvian, and Brazilian fillers coupled with a 1997 San Andreas leaf produced savory nut and wood notes – most noticeably toasted almond. While the tastes remained unchanged throughout the second and finishing phases, they were so complex and enjoyable I never lost interest in the cigar.

Unfortunately, the construction left much to be desired. Although the edges retained an even burn, the middle of the filler burned much too slowly during this hour-long smoke, leaving an awkward conical point protruding from the foot where a gentle curved end should be. Sadly, I found myself routinely working damage control with my matches. It’s also worth pointing out that the draw was not as easy as I would have liked – especially for such a thick stick.

Overall, this cigar hit a hole-in-one on flavor, but was not up to par on construction. I give the Onyx Vintage ’97 Epicure three and ½ out of five stogies.

–Patrick A