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Cigar Review: Padrón Serie 1964 Exclusivo Natural

1 Apr 2015

There’s a lot to admire about Padrón Cigars. Like the company’s status as arguably the pinnacle of excellence in the industry. Or the dedication displayed by Cuban émigré José Orlando Padrón to labor as a carpenter until he had the capital to establish a cigar factory.

Exclusivo NaturalAnother admirable trait is the company’s focused portfolio. Instead of coming out with a new series every year, Padrón only makes a few lines—lines that are crafted well and almost universally celebrated. As the Padrón website explains, “When Padrón is on the label, quality is a matter of family honor.”

One of those well-crafted lines is the Serie 1964, also known as the 1964 Anniversary Series. It was launched in 1994 to commemorate Padrón’s 30th anniversary (there’s also a 1926 Serie that honors the year of José Orlando Padrón’s birth.) The Serie 1964 has 11 box-pressed vitolas, each available in either a sun-grown Natural wrapper or a dark Maduro leaf. All of the tobaccos in the Nicaraguan puro are aged for four years.

The Exclusivo Natural (5.5 x 50) has a clean, dry, milk chocolate-colored wrapper with only the thinnest veins and barely noticeable seams. The cold draw has hardly any resistance, and the pre-light notes off the foot are nutty and creamy. The double bands are, at this point, classic and instantly recognizable. Included on the bottom band is an “individually numbered guarantee label” to help safeguard against counterfeiting.

At the outset, the profile from the Exclusivo Natural is oak, vanilla, cedar, black pepper, and almond. The texture is silky, and the spicy aftertaste lingers well on the palate. As it progresses, flavors of peanut and coffee come and go. At the midway point there’s a harmonious concoction of dry spices, and the finale has loads of warm tobacco and mixed nuts.

I smoked three Exclusivos for this review, and each exhibited construction qualities on par with the Padrón standard. The gray ash holds remarkably well off the foot, the burn line requires zero touch-ups along the way to keep it even and lit, the draw is effortless, and the smoke production is high.

As you probably already know, the Padrón Serie 1964 Exclusivo Natural is not an inexpensive cigar. Expect to pay around $11-12 for a single. The good news is you get a high-quality stick with balanced medium-bodied flavors for your money. I’m partial to the Maduro-wrapped 1964, but this specimen is no slouch and worthy of four and a half stogies out of five.

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

Patrick A

photo credit: Stogie Guys

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