Today, we are reviewing the Casa Carrillo Social Media Exclusive Blend. Cigar Coop doesn’t typically review this type of cigar in writing because the Social Media Exclusive Collection isn’t available for sale. Casa Carrillo has a long history of engaging with its consumers; in the past, they have solicited feedback on blends for the Casa Carrillo Platinum Bash and Silk lines. Additionally, consumers were involved in the naming process for the Pledge cigar.
The Social Media Exclusive is exactly what it is- a social media exclusive. It’s a small-batch project that consists of three different blends in a slide-top coffin. The Social Media Exclusive was offered to consumers via social media and contests. The company did not charge consumers for it. The three blends are described as small-batch blends that have not been previously released. When Casa Carrillo announced the Social Media Exclusive project, it said these blends would “never enter standard production.”
Today our focus will be on Blend 1. One note is that Casa Carrillo did provide Cigar Coop with one of the three-pack exclusives. Since this isn’t for sale, this assessment is based on a single smoking experience (in most cases, we do two to three cigars for a Cigar Coop assessment).
Without further ado, let’s break down the Social Media Exclusive Blend 1.
SPECIFICATIONS
Blend and Origin
For completeness, we list all three blends that make up the Social Media Exclusive Collection:
Blend 1
This blend features an Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper over a Connecticut Broadleaf binder.
- Wrapper: Ecuador Connecticut
- Binder: Broadleaf Connecticut
- Filler: Nicaraguan, Dominican
- Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
- Factory: Casa Carrillo
Blend 2
This blend is highlighted by a Mexican wrapper over an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper
- Wrapper: Mexico
- Binder: Ecuador Habano
- Fillers: Nicaraguan & Dominican
- Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
- Factory: Casa Carrillo
Blend 3
This blend features an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper and a Mexican binder.
- Wrapper: Ecuador Habano
- Binder: Mexico
- Fillers: Nicaraguan & Dominican
- Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
- Factory: Casa Carrillo
Vitolas Available
All three blends in the Social Media Exclusive Collection measure 6 x 52. Blend 1 and Blend 3 are parejos while Blend 2 is a Piramide.
Appearance
For an Ecuadorian Connecticut wrapper, the Social Media Exclusive Blend wrapper is on the darker side. I’m glad this wrapper wasn’t listed as “Sshade” because it is considerably darker than most Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade. The wrapper was more medium brown. There was slight mottling. I didn’t find much oil on the surface. Some veins and wrapper seams were visible.
PERFORMANCE
Pre-Light Draw
Before lighting up the Social Media Exclusive Blend 1, a straight cut was used to remove the cap. After clipping the cap, it was time to start the pre-light draw. The cold draw wasn’t very flashy, with a mix of cream, wood, and cedar. Overall, this pre-light draw really didn’t excite me. Since the pre-light draw does not factor into the numerical score, there was no loss of points here. At this point, it was time to toast the footer of the Social Media Exclusive Blend 1 and see what the smoking phase had in store.
Tasting Notes
The Social Media Exclusive Blend 1 opened up with notes of cream, cedar, classic wood, and berry. Early on, the wood and cedar came first, with berry, cedar, and wood as secondary notes. Natural tobacco notes joined the secondary notes, and shortly after, black pepper entered the equation. Before the midway point of the first third, the berry and cream notes displaced the wood and cedar. Meanwhile, the retro-hale added another layer of black pepper with a touch of berry. The berry notes were reminiscent of E.P. Carrillo’s Short Run 2012 and New Wave Reserva releases. After the smoking experience, I found that both blends used Ecuadorian Connecticut wrappers, Connecticut Broadleaf binders, and a mix of Nicaraguan and Dominican tobaccos in the filler.
As the Social Media Exclusive Blend 1 moved through the second third, the berry notes started to recede. Meanwhile, the natural tobacco notes took a stronger hold as the primary note. The natural tobacco had sweetness with a slight amount of bitters mixed in. The berry joined the wood, cedar, cream, and pepper notes in the background.
The final third kept natural tobacco in the forefront. Meanwhile, from the background, the wood and cedar were the dominant secondary notes. Notes of berry, pepper, and cream still rounded out the flavor profile. This is the way the Social Exclusive Blend 1 came to a close. The resulting nub was soft to the touch and cool in temperature.
Burn
While the Social Media Exclusive Blend 1 kept a straight burn path and straight burn line, it needed frequent touchups to do so. At the same time, I needed more touch-ups than I preferred. The resulting ash was light gray. This wasn’t an overly firm ash, but it wasn’t loose or flaky either. As for burn rate and burn temperature, both stayed within ideal levels.
Draw
The draw to the Social Media Exclusive Blend 1 had a touch of resistance. I’ve said many times, this is an ideal way for a draw to perform in my book. At the same time, this was a low-maintenance cigar to derive flavor from.
Strength and Body
Overall, I would classify the Social Media Exclusive Blend 1 as a “bolder Connecticut”. This is a cigar that starts out with medium strength and medium-bodied flavors. There was a slight increase in both the strength and body along the way. By the end of the cigar, there was more strength and body than at the beginning, but I still classified both attributes as being in the medium range of their respective spectrums.
In terms of strength and body, both attributes balanced each other nicely with neither attribute overshadowing the other.
BANDING AND PACKAGING NOTES (*)
Both the bands and the 3-count coffee are highlighted by the “peek a boo” logo of owner and blender Ernesto Perez-Carrillo. This logo shows the top of Ernesto’s head down to his glasses almost peeking over a fence. I really like this logo, but I don’t like it on the bands. To me, this logo is better suited for swag, not a cigar band. It just made a really good artesan cigar look gimmicky. On a side note, I was fine with the logo on the slide-top coffin.
OVERALL ASSESSMENT
Final Thoughts
Before I summarize my thoughts on this cigar, I wanted to give some feedback on the Social Project. I applaud Casa Carrillo for doing a project like this, and I hope they bring this back for additional runs/blends. While I get that Casa Carrillo doesn’t want to sell directly to consumers, I do think they need to do more projects like this. Ultimately, I’d like to see names for the cigars, and I’ve already given my feelings on the bands. In my opinion, the best way to build consumer engagement is to get cigars like this into consumers’ hands.
As for Social Media Exclusive Blend 1 goes, I mentioned how this took me back to the Short Run 2012 and New Wave Reserva blends. These were fantastic cigars back in the heyday of E.P. Carrillo. While I don’t know what feedback is, I’d be curious how this cigar stacks up. I can’t assign a value rating because there’s no MRSP. However, if for sale, I would not hesitate to buy and smoke this cigar again.
Summary
- Key Flavors: Natural Tobacco, Berry Wood, Cedar, Cream, Pepper
- Burn: Very Good
- Draw: Excellent
- Complexity: Medium Plus
- Strength: Medium
- Body: Medium
- Finish: Very Good
Rating
Value: n/a
Score: 89
REFERENCES
- News: n/a
- Price: n/a
- Source: Casa Carrillo
- Brand Reference: Casa Carrillo
Photo Credits: Cigar Coop
(*) Indicates this is not factored into the score or value rating
