The Cigar:
Guardian of the Farm, Apollo, Seleccion de Warped 6×44
The Blend:
Nicaraguan Puro
Wrapper: Corojo 99
Binder: Corojo 99
Filler: Corojo 99, Criollo 98
Rolled at TABSA in Nicaragua. Box Date: Sep ‘21
Pre Light:
Body: Nut, chocolate, barn yard
Foot: closed
Cold Draw: Nuts, more nuts, and a side of nuts. (cashew the dominant note)
Tangibles: Milk Chocolate brown wrapper, no tooth, smooth. Lots of veins, tight seams, firm pack.
This cigar is nothing new to the market, having been in the Aganorsa stable since August of 2016, nor is it new to my humidor or regular rotation of cigars. In fact this cigar has landed in the top 10 of CA’s yearly COTY contest. The purpose of these reviews is to review cigars I’m smoking, and simply noting how they’re performing at the time, so smoking cigars that have been long available will happen with some frequency. Though, to note, there are some cigars that will come that will be very hard, or impossible, to find, but I’ll review nonethe
While I’m familiar with this cigar there is no doubt that smoking something for critical purposes is different than smoking it casually. I’m much more conscious of the flavors and nuances during a critical review than I am when smoking casually, trying to pinpoint each note with as much precision as I can. This vitola is always a thing of beauty in the hand, and the Guardian of the Farm Apollo is no different. Firm and even feeling, this is a beautifully rolled cigar.
The dominant pre-light notes on both the body and the cold draw was nuts, much more on the cashew side in that it was a smooth and buttery nut. The closed foot delivers this in spades when lit. The first puffs are a rich buttery nut that coats the pallet and portends great things to come.
As the cigar gets rolling, the burn is perfect and a nice milk chocolate comes into the forefront with a light spice note. A salty earthiness also comes in to offer a nice balance. The buttery cashew note continues on the retro hale, with a faint and fleeting caramel. While note peppery the spice is quite pronounced, the inherent sweetness of the Aganorsa leaf makes the spice reminiscent of a habanero, not due to the spice it offers but the sweet undertones. At times there is a fuity note, hinting at a strawberry that will momentarily come in, but it doesn’t last for long among the other notes. The finish, not longing lasting, is dry wood, like pencil shavings.
Before the first third comes to a close the cigar goes through a noticeable transition. The spice is no longer a sweet peppery note but is definitively cinnamon. The dominant note becomes milk chocolate and is joined by earthiness and the sweetness of the corjo that balances between fruit and floral. The retrohale continues to be dominated by the sweet cashew but the cinnamon makes it’s way there as well and offers great balance.
The burn gets very slightly off into the second third after the ash fall off but it never needs to be touched up and the draw continues to be perfect. The flavors continue to be dynamic with the sweetness becoming dicidely more floral and just beyond the halfway point a pretzel note, and the dry wood of the finish make there way into the draw. The strawberry hints from the first third come as more of a cherry as the cigar develops.
In the final third another transition takes place, the cinnamon and spice notes are all but gone as the cherry fruit note becomes more apparent and is more subtle, liked a baked good, than a fresh cherry itself. A very sweet caramel, bread and graham note round out the flavors with great balance. Sweet caramel lingers on the finish and lasts for over thirty seconds. As the cigar closes out it continues to pour off flavors all the way through the nub finishing with strong caramel, graham cracker and white chocolate.
The strength and body of the Guardian of the Farm, Apollo are both solidly medium throughout the full stick. Performance was flawless aside from the aforementioned slightly askew burn line that self-corrected.
While I’ve long liked this cigar and smoked many of them without any issues to performance, I’ve never taken the opportunity to review one, and give it the focus demanded of a critical review. I’m glad I took the opportunity to do so, and given the experience, I’m thinking (as I do every time, I review a cigar) I should smoke more of my cigars absent of distraction.
This cigar is box worthy, and worth aging to see how the flavors will develop over time. Surprisingly affordable this cigar is able to be enjoyed at any time, and good enough to be smoked on special occasions. The complex flavor journey makes it suitable for many pairings to enhance the flavors throughout.
Final Verdict: Kyle Gellis is blending savant, if difficult to keep up with his endless releases. When you’re able to find and smoked Warped cigars the experience is always worth it. This is especially true of this collaboration. As this cigar is part of my rotation it is worthy of yours as well,and if not able to find or buy by the box, it is worth tracking down and enjoying.
Smoke time: 2 hours 6 minutes
