Stogie Reviews: Puros Indios Piramide No. 3

Frustrating. I found so much conflicting information on the web about Puros Indios – too mild or too strong, loved it or hated it – that I really didn’t know what to think before lighting up a Piramide No. 3.

Thus, for what it’s worth, I really went into reviewing it with a completely open mind.

For starters, this five inch by 50 ring gauge cigar has been a pleasure to look at for the past six months or so. That is, after all, why I kept it directly under the glass top of my humidor. The Ecuadorian sungrown wrapper provides a nice oily sheen, and I think the irregular figurado shape makes it a bit more interesting.

Before I toasted the foot or took the first puff, I expected this stogie to be light and sweet. That’s what the subtle hay and honey notes led me to believe, anyways.

But once lit, I found those aromas were mere sirens calling my ship to a rocky shore. My preconceived notion of mildness was replaced by the harsh reality of a cruel black pepper spice and burning wood flavors. Not pleasant, even for a guy who enjoys full-bodied smokes.

To its credit, the stogie does mellow out a bit after the first third, but I still found this blend of Dominican, Brazilian, and Nicaraguan tobaccos to be too harsh for my liking.

Unfortunately, the stogie is plagued by some physical flaws as well. For one, it’s very cumbersome to establish an even burn (that may or may not be a side-effect of its irregular shape). Second, on multiple sticks, I found the wrapper has a tendency to tear when the band is removed. Finally, while the ash may hold firm for up to an inch or more, the edges often flake away, which makes an awful mess.

For all these reasons – and despite its friendly price of about $4 per stick – I give the Puros Indios Piramide No. 3 a substandard two out of five stogies.

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–Patrick A