Foundation Olmec Maduro Toro (YNCCRW)

[Low]

Let's get this out of the way, I am a Foundation fanboy. I think Nick Melillos is a genius when it comes to blending a cigar and weaving a story into his sticks. As many of you know, him and Steve Saka were the driving force behind the Liga Privada line when it was first introduced, and are probably my #1 and #2 in terms of who I'd love to see blend cuban tobacco. I wouldn't normally go for something this size, as I rarely go this wide, but Nick has stated that he blends to a toro, and from what I've sampled, it's the best size. Sorry for only one picture, I actually get lost smoking these and forgot to snap extras.

Double punch, soft flame toasted, paired with ice water.

Cold draw / aroma / appearance - The wrapper is flawless, and has just a little touch of tooth. Fragrance of hay, chocolate, roasted nuts, and espresso comes off the foot. Cold draw is more of the same. My only complaint is that it is a box press, which I'm not a big fan of. 

First Third - Immediate flavoring of black and white pepper, love the floral like flavor of the white. Roasted walnuts, leather, oak, are all bold, with a subtle hint of sweetness that is distinctly raisins. Maybe just a touch of bread. Finish is smoked chocolate.

Second Third - Black pepper persists, but is now complimented by green pepper, bringing earthiness. The walnuts are roasted deeper, the leather fades back while the oak becomes charred, and bread is still hanging around. The raisin sweetness has gone caramel, and the chocolate is still present. Finish adds an espresso flavor. 

Final Third - Too many flavors to give brief descriptions, so I'm just going to list them since basically everything came back and some. Black pepper, white pepper, green pepper, roasted walnuts, charred oak, leather, hints of citrus peel, caramel, bread, espresso, raisin, graham cracker, sourdough, chocolate. If you've ever had one of those bonkers Nicuraguan espressos, then you can see the picture I'm painting. One thing I didn't mention earlier on is the smoke. It has been steadily building, starting as a fairly dry smoke gaining creaminess, until it felt almost like syrup. 

9.5/10 - This is my favorite new world cigar and I think everyone should own at least one box in either wrapper (or both like me!). The heavier Foundation Cigars all improve with age, so I can see this in maybe 3-5 years being a serious competitor for a perfect score. I know I mentioned pepper a few times, but it's nowhere near the pepper bombs that you'll see Tatuaje, Warped, LFD,  and to a lesser extent, Plasencia pumping out. I also know that we don't usually talk about price point, as it shouldn't influence a review, but I belive there's nothing on this planet at $13 usd a stick that comes close. This is a perfect example of 90 minutes well spent. 

[Tunkat92]

I love this stick, never picked up a whole box but I regret not doing so. I've had all but the biggest vitola and toro has the best profile to me.

[Lamboinee]

  On 2/27/2023 at 5:29 AM, Low said:

Warped

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Do you find all Warped to be pepper bombs? I think maybe I've avoided the Warped pepper sticks.  great review.

[Low]

  On 3/1/2023 at 4:50 AM, Lamboinee said:

Do you find all Warped to be pepper bombs? I think maybe I've avoided the Warped pepper sticks.  great review.

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I've only had a couple, and found them all to be very heavy on pepper, so I've avoided them for a few years. Any recommendations? Maybe I unfairly included them 

[Michael303]

  On 2/27/2023 at 5:29 AM, Low said:

9.5/10 - This is my favorite new world cigar... 

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Great review. I have one I'm looking forward to hopefully smoking later this week. I'm hoping the smaller vitolas come close because I'm typically not interested in sticks much bigger than a robusto.

  On 3/1/2023 at 4:50 AM, Lamboinee said:

Do you find all Warped to be pepper bombs? I think maybe I've avoided the Warped pepper sticks.  great review.

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I haven't been much of a Warped fan but the Upper Realm was excellent. Worth trying if you haven't yet. 

[Lamboinee]

  On 3/1/2023 at 5:01 AM, Low said:

Any recommendations?

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I haven't found the La Colmena; Guardian of the Farm (I highly recommend the Apollo vitola, can't say much for other sizes), and, to a lesser extent, the La Colmena Black Honey (slight pepper).  Also, the most recent Upper Realm release didn't strike me as a pepper bomb but I have only smoked one of them. 

 

  On 3/1/2023 at 5:12 AM, Michael303 said:

Worth trying if you haven't yet. 

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Second that motion.

[Low]

  On 3/1/2023 at 5:12 AM, Michael303 said:

I haven't been much of a Warped fan but the Upper Realm was excellent. Worth trying if you haven't yet. 

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  On 3/1/2023 at 5:16 AM, Lamboinee said:

I haven't found the La Colmena; Guardian of the Farm (I highly recommend the Apollo vitola, can't say much for other sizes), and, to a lesser extent, the La Colmena Black Honey (slight pepper).  Also, the most recent Upper Realm release didn't strike me as a pepper bomb but I have only smoked one of them. 

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Added both to some wishlists. I have too many NC to smoke at the moment  

[Lamboinee]

I see an alternative route.