Arturo Fuente Anejo no.77 (shark)

Todays review is of another Fuente Anejo, this time the rare size nicknamed the Shark. This 55/8 x 54 ring gauge cigar has a very unique shape, the top half being round, and the bottom half being box pressed. I won't go into full detail about the Anejo blend, as iv'e already reviewed an Anejo before, you can go back and read about it here if you would like.

The wrapper on this cigar is very dark with a great oily sheen and plenty of tooth. I love the unique shape of this cigar. This is a hefty cigar and is very nicely constructed.

The predraw is strait up chocolate and nicely aged tobacco. The initial flavors upon lighting are of strong espresso and velvety dark chocolate. There are tons of deep, dark flavors in this smoke, and a definite leather note that reminds me a bit of the Ashton VSG (another cigar rolled by Fuente). The burn line is slightly wavy, but nothing that needed correcting. At the halfway point there is a slight dried fruit-like sweetness, somewhere between raisins and apricots. I think that the sweet character comes from the wrapper being aged in Cognac barrels. The ash on this thing is incredible! As you can see from the picture, these are so well constructed and solid that you can stand the cigar up on its ash.

This was by far the best Anejo I have smoked! This had about 2 years of age on it and I think that helped round out this flavorful blend of aged tobacco. The wrapper really makes this cigar what it is in my opinion, adding a really nice depth of flavor. I had a Left Hand Oktoberfest with this cigar and the malty beer really worked well with this cigar. These retail for $10.25, but like most premium Fuentes, are usually found with a fairly steep markup. If I am going to smoke an Anejo, I definitely prefer the Shark!