OCTOBER 9, 2022 - PHIL KURUT, COMEDY - CIGARS - MUSIC
K BY KAREN BERGER MADURO TORO (6 x 52)
WRAPPER: NICARAGUAN MADURO
BINDER: NICARAGUA
FILLER: NICARAGUA
My first impression of the K Maduro is that it’s quite smooth. I’ve been smokeless for just over a week, so it could be my cigar comeback impression. Who knows? I was on vacation in Hawaii, and I usually don’t smoke on vacation. Not a hard and fast rule, but I’m focused on hanging out with my family, not busting down every cigar shop door I can find. Priorities.
Frankly, the shave ice in Hawaii was better than any cigar I’ve had, but that’s another story for another time. In fairness, I’ll never be able to eat a snow cone again either.
Aside from its smoothness, the K Maduro offers earth and bits of leather on the draw. The finish is the same but more subtle. The retrohale finds earth with a light blanket of chocolate. Milk chocolate.
Perfect draw and smoke output.
Moving forward a bit, chocolate and wood begin to slowly meander into the draw. Everything is quite tame though.
Coffee, earth, chocolate, and sweetness flow in and out with subtlety. No heaviness. Earth, coffee, and a nice creamy sweetness drift from my nose, and the finish begins with a somewhat spicy coffee that moves onto an earthy chocolate.
Sitting at the halfway point, it's all smooth, steady, and subtle.
For those wondering, I was on the island of Oahu. I have a love hate relationship with beaches. I love the water, but I hate the sand and crowds. I don’t hate people, I just hate crowds of them. Maybe I’m more of a private pool person. Unfortunately, I don’t own a pool.
I also learned that I hate mouthfuls of salt water.
The drives and views were awesome. Lots of bare butt cheeks on display over there. Not the views I was referring to though.
We stayed in Wakiki, and I quickly learned I’m more of a North Shore guy. Although, I was quite entertained by Wakiki’s street people randomly swearing at the air everyday. Good times.
The burn took care of itself throughout the entire smoking experience, and I’m grateful for that.
Finishing up here, the K Maduro keeps chugging along with much of the same, but everything tends to fade without completely fading away. Final impressions - smooth but a bit too restrained.
SMOKE TIME: 1 hr. 22 mins.
RATING: 2.75 / 4 - Better than a mouthful of salt water.