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Quick Smoke: Viaje C-4

5 Aug 2012

Each Saturday and Sunday we’ll post a Quick Smoke: not quite a full review, just our brief verdict on a single cigar of “buy,” “hold,” or “sell.”


Viaje, known to my colleague as “the undisputed king of releasing tons of different cigars in difficult-to-find quantities,” introduced the Summerfest, Roman Candle, TNT, and C-4 not too long ago. Each brings unique physical attributes to the table. The C-4’s contribution is a box-press and closed caps on either end of the five-inch smoke. Once lit, the dark Nicaraguan corojo ’99 wrapper combines with the Nicaraguan binder and filler to produce a bold taste of black coffee, pepper, and roasted nuts. The texture is dry yet mouth-coating. I find tons of flavor with hardly any spice, and the construction is good. I’d fully recommend the Viaje C-4 if the price were in the $5-7 range. But for around $11 apiece, I’m not sure I’ll be seeking it out again in the near future.

Verdict = Hold.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

4 Responses to “Quick Smoke: Viaje C-4”

  1. mighty Sunday, August 5, 2012 at 5:42 pm #

    I am still unsure why there has to be lots of these expensive cigars out there, where I think or say the exact same thing: "This would be a good cigar in the $5-7 dollar range, but for over $10 bucks, I won't be seeking out another."

    Is quality tobacco that hard to find/limited that lots of these cigars can't be produced in that $5-8 dollar range?

    • Louis C.K. Sunday, August 5, 2012 at 6:57 pm #

      The fact that Viaje is pretty small has to have something to do with it. They don't move product in bulk so they have to keep the profit margins higher to make the operation sustainable.

      In addition, I often think the psychology of price is at play here. A limited edition for $11 sounds like it should be really good and worth seeking out; a limited edition for $5 sounds like a value stick made with sub-premium tobacco.

  2. mighty Monday, August 6, 2012 at 12:44 am #

    I hear what you are saying Louis, and totally agree. I wasn't just trying to pick on Viaje, but just the Cigar Industry in general.

    Sometimes we also see the opposite extreme where every cigar released by whatever company is somehow a "small batch" or "limited", etc.

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  1. ART FACTS: Innovative, symbolic and soft images - Monday, August 6, 2012

    […] Quick Smoke: Viaje C-4 Viaje, known to my colleague as “the undisputed king of releasing tons of different cigars in difficult-to-find quantities,” introduced the Summerfest, Roman Candle, TNT, and C-4 not too long ago. Each brings unique physical attributes to the table … Read more on Stogie Guys Online Cigar Magazine […]