Felipe Gregorio Fusion

Torpedo

I did not have a lot of expectations for this stick. It was dirt cheap. The band was simple (which is good, as I don’t want half the budget on a $3-stick going to band-printing), and the stick seemed pretty well constructed, though light. Onward!

Statistics

CotM: October 2012







Chosen by: cmich

cmich





Shape: Torpedo







Size: 6″1/2 x 52







Country of Origin: Nicaragua







Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habana 2000







Binder: Nicaraguan







Filler: Nicaraguan







Color: Colorado Maduro







Strength: Medium







Price Paid: $2.00







Smoke Date: 7/01/2013

7/01/2013





Age: 7 weeks

Accessories Used

Cuban Crafters Perfect Cutter (Silver & Carbon Fiber), Bugatti B-2002 lighter with “pyramid” double-flame torch, Handmade English walnut ashtray made by wedgewoodrings. Also pictured: half of a dog.

Pairing

Golden Monkey Imperial Yunnan Chinese black tea, served in a Japanese blue dragonfly teapot with matching cup. One of my absolute favorites and a standby.

Appearance/Nose

This cigar looked nicer than it should for how cheap it was. The Habano wrapper was smooth and brown, and the torpedo was well-constructed. The band was very simple, but unique and recognizable. It reminded me a bit of a jewelry store logo. The nose gave off scents of hay, barnyard, and caramel, with some pepper at the foot.

Construction

There were no major soft or hard spots. The wrapper felt dry with a little bit of tooth. There was a very large vein on either side, running the whole length of the cigar. The ash was firm and white-gray. It stayed put for about an inch at a time. There was a small zig-zag crack in the wrapper near the head, but it never split or became troublesome.

Cold Draw

Just a clip of the torpedo lent a semi-tight cold draw with notes of hay and straw.

Smoking

First third

The first puff had a strong taste of honey and flowers. Very promising! The flavor immediately evened out into a sweet, cookie-like breadlines with notes of caramel. Very smooth, quite delicious.

The burn was even at the start, but also quite fast. The first half inch was gone only 5 minutes in.

The sweet cookie taste was joined by a slightly bitter, zesty orange peel taste about an inch in. The burn remained sharp right into the second third.

Second third

The flavor profile remained much the same through the second third: cookie, citrus peel, honey.

The burn remained razor sharp. The draw remained medium-tight (which was intentional, as it is the way I like my torpedos).

Final third

Entering the final third, the floral notes from the beginning emerged again.

The citrus notes got turned way up, and they brought. Little spice with them. This stick was full of surprises!

Notes

Draw: Medium-tight

Medium-tight





Body: Mild-medium

Mild-medium





Primary Flavors: Fortune Cookie, citrus

Fortune Cookie, citrus





Smoke Output: Medium

Medium





Smoke Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes

Overall

For how cheap this cigar is, I was really expecting it to be simple. It was not. The flavors were tasty and complex, and the burn was sharp. However, it was a bit on the mild side, and the stick burned a lot quicker than 6.5″ x 52 would be expected to. Great for a cheap stick, and I definately wouldn’t turn one down–I might even buy some to keep around just because the quality-to-price ratio is so high–but overall, the FG Fusion is not something I will be craving.

Rating