Origin : Nicaragua
Format : Torpedo
Size : 6 1/8 x 52
Wrapper : Ecuador Habano
Filler : Nicaragua
Binder : Nicaragua
Hand-Made
Price : $8 (MSRP)
Tatuaje Havana VI is one of the main lines of the brand. It doesn’t get much attention compared to limited editions, but this cigar, produced in Nicaragua by Pepin Garcia on the My Father factory, also deserves a test drive.
Appearance : Rating: 
This light brown wrapper had some visible veining but the seams were compact and barely visible. A nicely applied cap with a plain looking red band adorned only with the company name.
Construction : Rating: 
The cigar had a few spongy areas to the touch but overall, seemed to be packed well. It had a good burn that was fairly even except for a re-light needed just before removing the band. The draw was good but I found that the cigar burned quickly. The draw was fine. It had firm ash. Unfortunately I only had my (poor) cell phone camera with me but wanted to photograph how long the ash held. It fell off a couple puffs after I snapped the photo. The wrapper did tend to crack on occasion during smoking. The smoke output was great.
Flavor : Rating:
The Tatuaje Havana VI Artistas started off with a lot of spice that masked any real flavour until about 1 to 2 cm was smoked. Once the spice settled down it revealed mild cedar, natural tobacco, some hints of earth and cocoa. There was some peppery spice on the finish with hints of leather. These flavors dominated the first third of the cigar.
The second third had more leather notes coming through along with more woodsy flavors. There was a tad more tolerable spice at the front end of the palate with a little black pepper on the medium finish. For the most part there were no flavour transitions and the cigar remained as it was for the first third.
As I approached the halfway mark I got hints of bitter dark chocolate and toasted nut that on occasion tasted like burnt almond. The cigar was mainly earthy and grassy at this point. The smoke offered no velvety residue and was dry with no flavourful texture.
The final third offered up more of the same with some tea, wood, nuts and slight bitterness. For the most part though, the final third was like smoking hay. It was bitter and forgettable. It was dry and had notes of tannins similar to those at the bottom of a cup of strong tea. The cedar-like wood notes at the start were more like plain oak.
Value : Rating:
With an MSRP of $8.00 it is priced in line with other Torpedos but my recommendation would be to skip it altogether. There are much more flavourful cigars available for the price in consideration of what I experienced. I would not buy another.
Overall Rating : Rating:
This mild to medium strength cigar started off well but slowly deteriorated into a forgettable cigar.
