Cigar Review: Umbagog Corona Gorda
7 May 2020
The Umbagog line from Steve Saka’s Dunbarton Tobacco & Trust is one of a select few blends that have been featured heavily in my personal rotation during the quarantine. I suspect Umbagog’s inclusion has a lot to do with my desire to not want to sacrifice quality while keeping my cigar budget relatively in check.
As you may recall, Umbagog (“oom-bah-gogâ€) was announced in the summer of 2016, along with a flurry of other new releases across the industry. (At that time, cigar makers, brand owners, blenders, and factories had been frantically scrambling to meet the August 8 deadline set forth by the FDA; cigars introduced after August 8 would have had to go through the FDA approval process before being sold or marketed). Saka called Umbagog an “extreme value-priced ten-count bundle†using a Broadleaf wrapper that didn’t visually make the grade for his more expensive Broadleaf cigar, Mi Querida. The cigar is named for a New Hampshire lake that’s a favorite fishing locale of Saka’s.
Umbagog “is a perfect cigar for my time upon her waters,†writes Saka on the Dunbarton website. “It is robust and durable, designed to endure the rigors of outside activity with its thick Broadleaf capa and easy-burning liga. This is a cigar that doesn’t pretend to be special or seek to elicit the ‘oohs’ or ‘aahs’ of the cigar snobs. It is an honest, hardworking cigar that is meant to be smoked, chewed upon, and lit however many times you wish.â€
The Umbagog recipe calls for a Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper around Nicaraguan binder and filler tobaccos. It is handmade at the Nicaraguan American Cigar S.A. factory (NACSA) in Estelà and available in six formats: Corona Gorda (6 x 48), Robusto Plus (5 x 52), Toro Toro (6 x 52), Gordo Gordo (6 x 56), Short & Fat (4.75 x 56), and Churchill (7 x 50).
I paid $8.25 apiece for five singles in the Corona Gorda vitola. With its firm roll, tight seams, well-executed cap, smooth cold draw, and mouth-watering pre-light armoa of hickory and cocoa, there’s nothing appearance-wise to suggest this is a value bundle cigar. And, no, I can’t really tell what’s wrong with the wrappers on the five I smoked for this review. The lone exception, I suppose, is the simple, understated band, which has no raised lettering or frills of any kind (OK in my book, since I’d rather pay for the tobacco).
Quick side note: The original band (as seen here in Saka’s Instagram post announcing the blend, and here in our first review) was brown lettering on white—not the current white lettering on green. I asked Saka about this last week. “The brown on white was a temp ring used on a few hundred cigars to ensure they were imported before the FDA Aug. 8 deadline, as the green ones were delayed from printer,†he wrote via a Facebook message. “They were all sold as ‘misfits’ to one vendor before we officially launched the brand with the correct packaging.â€
Beyond the wrapper, Saka has said this cigar isn’t exactly the same blend as Mi Querida, though it’s very similar. Think different primings or grades of tobacco, but the same basic Nicaraguan components. I actually think Umbagog is smoother and slightly milder than Mi Querida, which I would characterize as moist and full-bodied with a grainy texture, ample spice, and notes of espresso, cinnamon, damp wood, and leather. In contrast, the Umbagog Corona Gorda is a drier, woodsier smoke with a bready texture and plenty of earth, cocoa powder, charred oak, and white pepper.
The physical properties are absolutely stellar. The draw is smooth throughout, the smoke production is better than average, the straight burn line is razor-sharp, and the white ash holds well off the foot.
I realize the term “value bundle†is relative. There are plenty of factory seconds and discount smokes out there, and I wouldn’t put Umbagog close to that category. This is only a value play when viewed against the rest of the Dunbarton portfolio, which is made to Saka’s exacting standards and therefore commands relatively expensive prices. Whether you decide to take the Corona Gorda for a spin while golfing, fishing, or simply sitting back with some sipping rum, I think you’ll be pleased. In my book, it earns four stogies out of five.
[To read more StogieGuys.com cigar reviews, please click here.]
photo credit: Stogie Guys
Sounds interesting . I’ll give it a try if I can track it down in Canada.
Nice review. I have enjoyed the flavor of these sticks and I have made multiple purchases of the Umbagog,(5 or 10 pack) and many of them were packed so tight I couldn’t get a reasonable draw, even when attempting a draw poker. So I have kind of given up on them.