Cigar Review: CroMagnon Blockhead

In August 2018, the last time we published a full review of a CroMagnon cigar, I stopped just short of begging forgiveness. “We’ve been operating StogieGuys.com since May 2006,” I wrote. “As a result, for over twelve years, much of what I’ve smoked has been dictated by necessity for this website. And while I’m sure you won’t shed any tears in my honor (despite being a lot of work, running a cigar site is a rewarding, entertaining endeavor), you can probably appreciate my predicament. Sometimes I just want to smoke—and, yes, write about—an old favorite.”

This was how I started my review of the CroMagnon Cranium, a blend that—at that time—had already been the subject of three previous articles at this website. Today, though, I’m not going to any lengths to explain myself. While CroMagnon is nothing new (either, as I’ve already stated, to this website, or to the cigar marketplace as a whole) we have not yet written about the Blockhead vitola. So here we are.

As a reminder, the CroMagnon recipe calls for a dark Connecticut Broadleaf maduro wrapper, a Cameroon binder, and Nicaraguan filler tobaccos from Estelí, Condega, and a small farm just south of the Honduran border. It is handmade for RoMa Craft Tobac under the direction of Skip Martin at the Fabrica de Tabacos NicaSueño S.A. factory in Estelí.

Blockhead (6 x 54) is box-pressed. It retails for about $11 for a single, or $100 for a box of 10. Not unlike the Cranium, it has a dark, reddish exterior leaf with moderate oils, plenty of tooth, and a couple noticeable veins. At the foot, the pre-light notes remind me of dark chocolate and syrup. The rough cap clips cleanly, and the cold draw is nearly effortless—noticeably clearer, in my opinion, than the Cranium.

Once lit, the body seems to be less intense than other CroMagon cigars. While it’s still a thick, leathery cigar with notes of black pepper, espresso, and chalky earth, the familiar char has been replaced with sweet notes: honey, graham cracker, and Cuban coffee with sugar.

In my previous comments about the Cranium, I had written, “To write this off as a power-bomb would be to overlook the expert blending that so clearly went into the cigar’s creation. There’s a complexity and balance here that’s often missing from many straightforwardly strong cigars. Creamy peanut, dark chocolate, and hickory add layers. And the strength level dips and surges—an effective strategy that ensures interest is not lost.”

With the Blockhead, all those supremely tasty flavors are there. But the aforementioned sweetness continues to surge along the way. As the cigar progresses, the combustion properties are stellar. The smoke production is voluminous, the ash holds well, the burn line is straight, and the draw is smooth.

I think this is my favorite CroMagnon vitola—and that’s saying something. What an immensely satisfying, well-balanced smoke. I’m settling on a deservedly wonderful score 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