Quick Smoke: Casa Bella Gran Toro

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.”

From Sindicato—a unique cigar company founded by a group of veteran tobacco retailers—comes Casa Bella, a five-vitola line that won’t break the bank. For just a couple bucks you can try the Gran Toro (6 x 60), a huge smoke featuring an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper around an Indonesian binder and a filler blend of Dominican and Nicaraguan tobaccos. Clearly, this blend is positioned to compete in the value space of the market. Yet the bland, nutty, sometimes buttery, sometimes papery flavor of the Gran Toro makes me wish I would have spent more on a better, more interesting cigar. For me, when I smoke Sindicato, I’ll be focusing on Hex and Affinity.

Verdict = Sell.

–Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys