Origin : Nicaragua
Format : Lonsdale
Size : 6.5 x 44
Wrapper : Ecuadorian Cubano
Filler : Nicaraguan/Dominican
Binder : Honduran/Nicaraguan
Hand-Made
Price : $115.99 / Box of 25
The Siglo Limited Reserve III Lonsdale is a Nicaraguan cigar created by master blender Frank Llaneza. Overall, this is a very nice and spicy cigar which offers great complexity and balance throughout the entire smoke. It comes in a variety of sizes: Torpedo, Churchill, Corona, Grand Corona, Toro, Robusto, and today’s featured vitola, the Lonsdale. These cigars were a new release for Altadis, USA in 2009.
Appearance : Rating: 
The cigar’s color is that of a semi-dark chocolate bar. One can see 2.5 veins running the length of the cigar.
The cigar felt very firm to the touch. It actually made me wonder if it was a bit on the dry side. Since this type of firmness can be due to a humidor issue, I checked other cigars in the humidor which were perfectly humidified. Hence, this firmness can be attributed to well-packed tobacco.
The band was very simple with the word “Siglo” in large block lettering with the phrase, “Limited Reserve” written in smaller, cursive lettering. The band is bright yellow with gold smaller bands at the top and bottom of the cigar band.
Construction and Pre-Light : Rating: 
The cigar looks like it just has one cap keeping it all together. Unfortunately, the wrapper looked like it was unraveling at the cap line. Fortunately, the cut (with a Boston Cigar Little Guy V-cutter) fixed the issue. It seemed that after the cut, the rest of the wrapper was in very good shape.
The ash was light grey and tight. Throughout the smoke, the burn was very even. About an inch of ash was obtained before tapping it off in the ashtray.
Removing the band proved to be a small challenge as some of it was stuck to the wrapper. After a little maneuvering, the band was removed; and the wrapper was left intact.
Flavor : Rating:
Whatever the cigar lacks in construction, it makes up for it in flavor. First, it felt very spicy to the tongue. It had a nice peppery and salty taste reminiscent of Flor de Filipinas cigars (subject of another review).
The flavor on the pre-light draw felt very earthy and barnyard-like. The draw itself was tough which seem to correlate with the hardness of the cigar. This confirms that this is a well-packed cigar.
After lighting the cigar, the first draw was very spicy and peppery. This was the feeling through pretty much the entire cigar although leathery notes were picked up towards the middle of the cigar.
The retrohale felt equally as spicy. The smoke was abundant, and it rose quickly.
All flavors were well-balanced towards the second half of the cigar.
Value : Rating:
At around $5.00 per stick, this is a good value for a cigar that will really please with its flavor profile. Quite honestly, I have paid more money for cigars with the same, balanced flavors. So, if one is looking for a good cigar for a great price, this one is worth considering.
Overall Rating : Rating:
This cigar is a really good one. For someone looking for a medium to full body cigar with a strong spicy taste, this is definitely a winner. Although the cigar suffered some construction issues, I was not too terribly upset as I was able to fix it with the cut, and I got tremendous flavor out of it. This was a good 1.5 hr smoke which was a great experience given the great enjoyment I got out of it.
