Arturo Fuente Don Carlos Presidente

Arturo Fuente started in West Tampa in 1912 after Arturo Fuente left Cuba. Fires and the Cuban embargo forced the family to rebuild more than once. Carlos Fuente Sr. took over the company in the 1950s and later moved production from Nicaragua to the Dominican Republic, where Tabacalera A. Fuente still makes the brand. Don Carlos is named for him.

The first cigars sold in 1976 from the Fuente factory in Estelí and used a different wrapper than the line known today. That factory was destroyed during the Nicaraguan Revolution, and the family left the country. In 1986 the blend came back from Santiago as a Cameroon wrapped Dominican cigar, built from vintage leaf aged as long as ten years and finished with extra aging after the roll. Carlos Fuente Jr. has kept the line in the core portfolio since. The Presidente is the 6½ × 50 size. Early Don Carlos production was limited to a couple of vitolas. It released around 1997, when the line grew into a full size range. It remains a regular production cigar from Tabacalera A. Fuente.

Stogie At A Gance

Check out our curated playlist for the Don Carlos Presidente here.

Review

First Third

Lots of smoke and a sweet aroma. On the light, earthy and spicy notes on the palate, maybe some dark chocolate as well. Little to no pepper. Light sweetness on the palate, plus a slightly salted peanut on the palate and finish. Some cedar comes through, with a slight pepper on the retrohale. Taken together it is slightly creamy spiced nuts. Cedar comes back with a slight sweetness and a black coffee note. The sweetness almost turns into dried fruit, still with cedar and some peanuts on the palate. Near the end of the first third there is almost a slight beefy or savory note. Not very present, but noticeable. Still nutty with a touch of spice, and less sweetness on the palate.

Second Third

Starting the second third, the woody note evolves. Less cedar and more of a general wood or sawdust note, still with some nutty notes on the palate and a slight black coffee note on the finish. The beefy note starts to come back with the wood, still salted nuts and coffee on the finish. Pretty smooth. Coffee and wood get stronger. A slight pepper develops on the finish, still very smooth. The cigar really undergoes a transition here. A little more pepper in the profile, and the cedar has turned into more of a smoked wood note. Coffee and nutty notes remain. Just past the halfway point of the second third, strength picks up, but the finish is still very smooth. Flavors become more robust and hit a little harder, but still find a way to stay smooth on the finish. Cedar, slight chocolate notes, and a slightly peppery nutty finish. Getting to the end of the second third, cedar and chocolate become more pronounced and the pepper picks up slightly.

Final Third

In the final third, almost a spiced chocolate cookie note. Very rich flavor, with a spiced nut note on the finish. Very robust. The cookie note continues on the palate, almost like a Madeleine cookie, with a little bit of spice. Pepper is definitely picking up, but the finish smooths it out while there is still a decent amount of pepper on the retrohale. The cookie note is still there slightly, but not as strong, leaving a spicy nutty and almost creamy note on the finish. Strength is definitely starting to pick up. There is an earthiness that comes with the pepper now, and almost a pizza dough like note as well, maybe yeasty or dough like. Slight sweetness comes back with some chocolate nuts. Still a lot of pepper on the retrohale, but not on the palate. More earthy notes come out nearing the end of the cigar. Pepper is still present, some leather, all intertwined with spice. A slight hint of that cookie note comes back, along with the nuttiness, but is quickly overtaken by the earthy pepper notes on the retrohale and finish. One more slight note of the Madeleine cookie, with lots of pepper, some leather and earth. Medium long finish.

Score

91/100