Quick Smoke: Hammer + Sickle Hermitage No. 1 Robusto

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.”

The first thing that stands out about this box-pressed Robusto is the wonderfully sweet aroma from its Ecuadorian Habano wrapper. The smoke, though, doesn’t begin that way, but rather with a somewhat charred, meaty taste. That gives way fairly quickly to a woody sweetness with a little pepper in the background, all of which changes throughout the smoke. According to Hammer + Sickle, the blend was redone a few years after the Hermitage’s introduction. It now features a Honduran Criollo binder and filler from Germany, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic. They combine to create a well-balanced, medium-strength smoke I highly recommend. With an MSRP around $9, it’s well worth picking up.

Verdict = Buy.

–George E

photo credit: Hammer + Sickle