Stogie Reviews: Avo XO Trio Intermezzo

11 Sep 2007

From the fertile Cibao Valley in the northern region of the Dominican Republic comes the Avo XO Trio series, an attractive line of six cigars blended for a rich flavor with a smooth body. Unlike the ultra-mild Classic series, of which I am not a fan, Avo Uvezian created the XO Trio line for a slightly fuller taste.

Avo XO Trio Intermezzo The Intermezzo is a five and ½ inch by 50 ring gauge stick that’s soft and spongy to the touch. At about $7.60 apiece, it sports a clean Connecticut Shade wrapper adorned by the traditional mahogany-colored Avo logo.

I had no trouble establishing a nice, even burn with a few wooden matches. From there, the first few puffs are predominantly salty, a characteristic that leads me to believe the Dominican binder and filler is at least partly made up of Olor tobacco.

(Davidoff, which owns Avo, also uses Olor leaves to balance out the flavor in its wonderful Grand Cru series.)

Fortunately, the one-dimensional taste quickly matured to reveal light complimentary notes of syrup, butter, and ginger. Even as a spice builds into the final third, the stogie remains mostly mild-bodied. Some sour flavors get in the mix during the homestretch, but these can be minimized by taking your time.

While the ash is a bit flakey and unstable off the foot, the draw is clear and the burn stays even throughout the one hour and 20 minute smoke.

When you get right down to it, I find this stick to be very enjoyable – especially in the middle where a well-balanced, aromatic smoke dominates the palate. I noticed no chemical aftertaste, an unimpressive trait that’s all too common among Connecticut Shade stogies.

So even for its somewhat expensive price, I’m recommending the Avo XO Trio Intermezzo as a nice morning/mid-afternoon smoke, and giving it three and ½ out of five stogies.