Today, we are reviewing the Casa Carrillo Social Media Exclusive Blend 3. This is our third of three reviews in the Casa Carrillo Social Media Exclusive collection. 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 company offered the Social Media Exclusive 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.”
Casa Carrillo Social Media Exclusive Blend Packaging
As we have discussed in our previous two assessments of the Social Media Exclusive Cigars, Cigar Coop doesn’t typically review this type of cigar. This is because the Social Media Exclusive Collection isn’t available for sale, and we typically only review cigars in commerce. Occasionally, we review a cigar like this, but it is never Cigar of the Year Countdown eligible because it is not in commerce.
Today our focus will be on Blend 3. One note: Casa Carrillo provided 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 3.
SPECIFICATIONS
Blend and Origin
For completeness, we list all three blends in the Social Media Exclusive Collection. We first highlight today’s blend, Blend 3.
Blend 3
This blend features an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper and a Mexican binder.
All three blends in the Social Media Exclusive Collection measure 6 x 52. Blend 3, along with Blend 1, comes in a parejo shape. Blend 2 came in a Piramide shape.
Appearance (*)
The Ecuadorian Habano wrapper of Social Media Exclusive Blend 3 had a medium-to-dark caramel color with a slight rosado tint. The wrapper surface had a light sheen of oil. The surface showed visible veins and prominent seams.
PERFORMANCE
Pre-Light Draw (*)
A straight cut removed the cap of Social Media Exclusive Blend 3. After removing the cap, I began the pre-light draw ritual. The cold draw delivered wood and earth notes. Overall, this wasn’t a very good pre-light draw. Because the pre-light draw isn’t factored into our numerical merit score, there was no point deduction here. At this point, it was time to toast up the Social Media Exclusive Blend 3 and see what the smoking phase would have in store.
Tasting Notes
The Social Media Exclusive Blend 3 opened up with notes of earth, cedar, and natural tobacco. Early on, the earth notes took center stage, with cedar and natural tobacco in support. By the middle of the first third, the natural tobacco notes joined the earth. Toward the latter part of the first third, some mixed pepper surfaced on the tongue in the background. Meanwhile, the retrohale was mostly cedar with a touch of mixed pepper.
During the second third of the Social Media Exclusive Blend 3, the natural tobacco notes became more dominant. The natural tobacco had some sweetness. The earth notes settled in the background alongside the cedar and pepper. Meanwhile, pepper gradually increased on the tongue. The pepper also became the main note on the retrohale.
There wasn’t much change in the final third. Natural tobacco remained the primary note and leaned sweeter. The pepper stopped increasing in intensity and remained a background note with the earth and cedar. This is the way the Social Media Exclusive Blend 3 came to a close. The resulting nub was soft to the touch and cool in temperature.
Burn
The burn line had a slight curvature. The Social Media Exclusive Blend 3 kept a straight burn path. This cigar did not require excessive touch-ups to keep the burn on track. Overall, the resulting ash was light to medium gray. The ash was skewed toward the looser side. Meanwhile, both the burn rate and burn temperature stayed within ideal ranges.
Burn of Casa Carrillo Social Media Exclusive Blend 3
Draw
The Social Media Exclusive Blend 3 had a draw with a touch of resistance. If you have read my assessments, you will know I consider this a positive. At the same time, this was a low-maintenance cigar to derive flavor from.
Strength and Body
Social Media Exclusive Blend 3 came in at a solid medium for both strength and body. Strength and body didn’t increase much along the way. In terms of strength versus body, both attributes balanced each other nicely, with neither overshadowing the other.
BANDING AND PACKAGING NOTES (*)
My comments on the banding and packaging are identical to when I assessed Blend 1:
Both the bands and the 3-count coffin 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 artisan cigar look gimmicky. On a side note, I was fine with the logo on the slide-top coffin.
Casa Carrillo Social Media Exclusive (Left to Right: Blend 1, Blend 2, and Blend 3)
OVERALL ASSESSMENT
Final Thoughts
If you didn’t read my assessments for Blend 1 and Blend 2, I have some preliminary thoughts on the project:
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 a whole, I thought the Casa Carrillo Social Media Exclusive was a nice release. With three blends, one has to be the top performer, and one has to be the bottom performer. In my case, I liked Blend 2 best, with Blend 1 a very close second. At the same time, one blend has to fall to the bottom, and in this case it is Blend 3. Blend 3 wasn’t bad, but it was boring. The flavors delivered were pretty much mediocre to average, and there wasn’t enough complexity to hold my attention. In the end, I can’t assign a value rating because there is no MSRP, but if Blend 3 were for sale, I’d probably pass on it.
