Origin : Dominican Republic
Format : Petit Robusto
Size : 4 1/2 x 50
Ring : 50
Wrapper : Dominican Republic
Binder : Dominican Republic
Filler : Dominican Republic
Hand-Made
Price : ~$4 each

This is my review of the Arturo Fuente Chateau Fuente Natural (4.5×50). I picked these up as a 5-pack from CigarMonster.com.

Nose : Rating:
I picked up a mixture of cedar and other woods. There was strong earth coming off of it, but not much else going on here.

Construction : Rating:
The wrapper on this is a rich brown color with flat smooth veins running throughout. The brown in the wrapper isn’t one consistent color, it is mottled throughout. I found the band to be quite stylish with the red and green against the gold. It is elegant and not gaudy. The Chateau Fuente is 4 1/2 x 50 sized.

Flavor : Rating:

First Third:

The initial draw was completely dominated by a sweet creaminess. Several draws in, there’s a nice black pepper that picks up considerably and then falls off. The creaminess and pepper rise and fall almost like counter-waves to each other as I proceeded through the first third.

Second Third:

The pepper and cream from the first third just fall away and you’re left with a deep earthy flavor. About halfway through the middle third the pepper came back but almost like just a highlight to the earth.

Last Third:

In the final third the earth falls off right away and the spice becomes like white noise. It’s there but you can only taste it if you’re focused on it. The strongest flavor in the last third is toasted nuts.

Burn / Draw : Rating:
No issues from toast to finish on this one. Total smoking time was approximately 50 minutes and it wasn’t the best day for taking my time as it was quite cold and windy.

Value : Rating:
The Arturo Fuente Chateau Fuente Natural is available typically around $80 a box for 20 cigars. That works out to $4 per cigar which is not bad. This particular vitola makes for a nice smoke, but I can’t help but feel one of the larger vitolas might pack more complexity in the flavor department.

Overall Rating : Rating: < 21/25 || 84%* >
The Arturo Fuente Chateau Fuente Natural is a great little smoke that won’t blow you out in strength or flavor complexity. Its price makes it an affordable choice for most aficionados. I’d definitely recommend picking up a sampler of the different sizes and trying it out for yourself.

* Any cigar below 60 will be in the ‘yardgar’ category. Between 60 and 74 should be an every day smoke. Between 75-85 should be in the great smoke category, and anything above that should be in the excellent smoke category.