My Father Le Bijou 1922 Toro

Today's review is of one of the new cigars to come out this year, the My Father Le Bijou, from Don Pepin Garcia. Le Bijou means "the Jewel." This one is the Toro size, measuring in at 6 x 52. The original My Father was made by Pepin's two children in honor of him. Pepin must have really liked this idea because this edition of the My Father is to honor his father. This is a different blend of all Nicaraguan tobacco (though I am not sure of the exact difference) with a Habano Oscuro wrapper. This wrapper really sets it apart from the other My Father line. This one is very dark and toothy and very attractive. I have been waiting to try this cigar since I first heard word about it, and when i was at the Illusione event, I noticed they had a few boxes sitting behind the counter unopened. Later that night, Dion from Illusione cigars also noticed and asked if he could get one, so they opened up the box for him. This was my chance! I convinced them to figure out the price for a single and sell me one even though they hadn't even been entered into their system yet.

Like most of Pepin's cigars, the construction on this is impeccable, with a perfectly applied triple cap. The draw is pretty much perfect, with predraw flavors of cedar and classic spicy Nicaraguan tobacco that Pepin is fond of. After lighting, velvety rich smoke really coats my palate, with full earthy flavors and a spicy finish. Even after just a few minutes, i can tell this is going to be a complex, tasty cigar. There is a certain creamy characteristic to this cigar, but not like the light milky creamy flavor that I normally think of when I call a cigar creamy. This one is more like your favorite Stout or Porter beer, a dark creamy flavor with a dark chocolate bite to it.

After the first inch or so, I heard a cracking sound and looked down to see a crack forming in the wrapper right below the second band. This does not thrill me at all. Hopefully it remains small and doesnt unravel the cigar. Thankfully, I was able to smoke through it without it being too much of an issue, but still, i hate seeing that on a premium cigar. This is a solid medium/full bodied cigar with a full, rich flavor profile.
you can see the crack by my thumb

Overall, this is definitely a cigar to keep an eye out for! I really enjoy the original My Father line, and the Le Bijou is yet another Pepin cigar I really love. This has a richer flavor profile and is very complex. I don't know if I like it more than the other My Father line, but after smoking a few more I have a feeling i might! Even with the crack in the wrapper, which I am just assuming is a fluke, I definitely recommend this smoke. These aren't cheap, i think i paid about $10.50 for this cigar. At that price this won't be one I will smoke on a regular basis, but I would definitely like to get a few more to have in my humidor.