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Stogie Reviews: Arturo Fuente Forbidden X (CRA Exclusive)

3 Feb 2011

Details on the Forbidden X, which isn’t mentioned on Fuente’s website, aren’t easy to come by. But this much is clear: The cigar was released as a “Cigar in a Bottle”—which had a Forbidden X encased in a bottle of Grand Pommier XS Calvados.

The pairing wasn’t a coincidence. The tobacco, which comes from the same Fuente Dominican farms as the tobacco from the Opus X, is aged for five years and finished in Calvados barrels imported from Normandy, France.

The samples I smoked were part of the Cigar Rights of America (CRA) sampler series. I smoked two for this review (one from the second sampler and the other from the holiday sampler).

Both samplers, which include ten cigars and yearlong memberships in CRA, sold for $100, which would be a fair price just for the cigars (it’s an even better deal considering the worthy cause). According to CRA’s website, the holiday sampler is still available.

Even though the tobacco is sourced from the same farms that produce Fuente’s popular Opus X, the Forbidden X offers a distinctive and unique flavor profile. The wrapper is lighter in color (because it is shade-grown) and not nearly as rustic as Opus’ reddish rosado sun-grown wrapper.

The toro-sized Forbidden X is far more balanced than the standard Opus X, lacking the sometimes overpowering spice of the Opus. More medium-bodied (although it ramps up in the final third), it has hints of salt and pepper, with dominant paper and cedar notes. Occasionally, I pick up subtle fruit, oak, and brandy notes, imparted, I suspect, by the Calvados barrels.

As one would expect from a smoke that, if you can find it outside the CRA sampler, will sell for well over $30, the Forbidden X has excellent construction. The burn is razor sharp, the light gray ash easily holds for an inch, and the draw is easy.

Cigars like the Forbidden X are special. Perhaps it isn’t the most complex smoke around, but the flavors are interesting and, most notably, perfectly balanced. That’s why the Forbidden X earns a rating of four and a half stogies out of five.

[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here.]

Patrick S

photo credit: Stogie Guys

4 Responses to “Stogie Reviews: Arturo Fuente Forbidden X (CRA Exclusive)”

  1. Dave in Ashburn Thursday, February 3, 2011 at 5:01 am #

    Thanks for this review. My local shop has a handful of Forbidden Xs for $40-something and I haven't had much success finding information about them.

  2. Todd Thursday, February 3, 2011 at 1:53 pm #

    Hard to justify that price but maybe I would as part of supporting Cigar Rights of America.

  3. Burton Friday, February 4, 2011 at 7:33 pm #

    I definitely think that cigars this expensive have to offer something really special. That said, since this particular cigar is part of the CRA sampler, it could frankly smoke like any $5 cigar, and probably be worth your while to have, since supporting CRA is included in the price…

    Thanks for the review. It has certainly piqued my interest.

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  1. Friday Blog Round Up (2/4/2011) « CigarRants.com - Friday, February 4, 2011

    […] Guys) Stogie Reviews: Arturo Fuente Forbidden X (CRA Exclusive) – Details on the Forbidden X, which isn’t mentioned on Fuente’s website, aren’t easy to […]