Herrera Esteli Norteño Lonsdale Review

Herrera Esteli Norteño at Famous Smoke Shop

• Size: 6.5″ x 44 (Robusto)
• MSRP: $93.00 (box of 10); $9.30 for a single
• Country of Origin: Nicaragua
• Wrapper: Mexican San Andres Maduro
• Binder: Nicaraguan
• Filler: Nicaraguan Esteli and Jalapa Tobaccos
• Body: Medium Full to Full
• Strength: Medium
• Humidor Time Prior to Review: 4 months
• Cigars Smoked Prior to Review: 6
• Source: Purchased with Personal Funds
• Date Smoked: March 31, 2019

After a substantial hiatus from cigar reviews I’m back with a review of Drew Estate‘s Herrera Esteli Norteño in Lonsdale. I picked a box of these up for $25.46 shipped from JR Cigars back in November. Here’s what I got:

What a screaming deal for $25. I believe the story goes that they are re-doing the packaging on this blend, so they were blowing out the old stock at a deep discount. Or so the story goes. They are surprisingly good, and I probably should have bought a couple boxes in retrospect as I’ve been smoking them pretty heavily over the past couple months. Time to write a review before I smoke ’em all up.

The brief background on the blend is that this is the Maduro “expression” of the original Herrera Esteli. It’s a different blend from the Herrera Esteli, but has some similarities. Here is a link to the manufacturer’s page where you can learn a little more about the blend and watch a video. I have a box of Herrera Esteli Miami’s, and I prefer this bolder maduro blend.

Appearance and Pre-Light Aromas

The most visually striking aspect of this cigar the oval box press. It’s a thin cigar. I was surprised when I pulled them out of the box. Removing the cigar from the cellophane reveals an attractive stick. The milk chocolate wrapper is lightly veined. The seams are tight and near invisible. The surface of the cigar is smooth and uniform in appearance, but the wrapper has a light toothiness to it. The cigar feels about average in weight for its size. Topping things off is an expertly applied triple cap. Nice looking cigar.

Smelling the wrapper yields deep earth, cedar, and barnyard aromas. Smelling the foot provides aromas of sweet cedar, honey, and earth. Nice and sweet.

I clip the cap and take a test draw. The draw is a little snug but I get notes of cedar, brown sugar, and raisin. I light up and start toasting. Start time is 3:40 P.M.

The First Third

I try to take my first puff, and the cigar is stopped up and it’s difficult to get smoke. I cut a little bit more from the head of the cigar. The draw opens up. It’s still on the snug side, but smoke is issuing freely, and I’m getting some of the flavors I’ve grown to know and love as I’ve smoked this box of cigars. There is a thread of sweet flavors that runs through most of this stick. Right now it’s milk chocolate. I also get a light nuttiness and a spicy finish. It lingers on the tongue.

I’m getting some aromatic cedar and pepper through the nose. Sounds intense but it’s smooth and easy to retrohale. Meanwhile, a little creaminess develops on the draw. The cigar is unfolding in front of me. Great start.

It’s a nice day in S.W. Florida. I mowed the lawn earlier this afternoon, and managed to work up a sweat. That probably says more about my level of physical fitness than the heat, but that full Florida sun can cook you just about any time of the year. Temps are beginning to creep up and it’s around 80. The oak and mango tree are blooming, and lots of little birds are chirping and hopping about. Summer will be here before we know it.

10 minutes in and our Norteno is swimming along. The flavors have not changed much. The aroma is sweet. The draw is cream, chocolate, light cedar, light nuts, and pepper. The retrohale continues to be aromatic cedar with a light peppery finish. I’d peg the body of this stick a solid medium. The burn is even and half an inch or so of flaky gray ash is forming.

I was at a little social on Friday evening and spoke with a couple guys into cigars. Both recommended the Nub series. I have been meaning to try them for a while, but the entire Nub concept was never inherently appealing to me. They are on my list, but along with dozens of other smokes. Looks like I need to bump them up the queue. I know Oliva makes good stuff so I’m sure they aren’t bad, I just found it interesting to see them recommended by 2 different people in 2 different conversations in the same night.

On the flavor front the cedar is growing in intensity. Both on the draw and in the retrohale. It is becoming a highly aromatic stick. But I’m still getting some chocolate and nuts. Can’t complain.

The ash was growing long, and these narrow ring gauge cigars aren’t known for their long ashes, so I decanted it into my ash tray. For those wondering, I have a couple ash trays – the one shown in the picture, and a plastic cup holder ash tray I keep in the tray attached to my folding lounge chair.

The wind shifts and oak tree blossoms rain down from overhead. Little yellow finches bob around in the tree limbs. It’s a nice quiet Sunday afternoon. I’ve been running hard here with work the past month or so, and have been in the office every Sunday. And yesterday my day was taken up with volunteering and working on one of my rental houses. I get today all to myself and am enjoying it immensely.

Time for a flavor update: light cream, cedar, chocolate, black coffee, and black pepper. The coffee is a new development, replacing the nuts and adding a darker element to the mix. The retrohale remains peppery and it triggers a loud sneeze. I puff quietly as we sail into the second third.

The Second Third

Smoke time is 35 minutes. The burn has been razor sharp. The ash is solid and the cigar is producing plenty of smoke. This stick has been a consistently good smoker for me, and the initial tightness in the draw was unusual. I’m glad a second cut fixed it.

Our flavors continue to be mostly cedar, chocolate, coffee, and pepper. There continues to be a nice sweetness to this cigar that finds itself on both the draw and in the retrohale now.

I’m currently reading Jim Collins’ classic Good to Great. He recently appeared on the Tim Ferriss show, and my girlfriend has a hard copy of Good to Great I’ve been meaning to read for a while. I finally decided to put the Kindle down and read a little physical paper for a change. I’m maybe a third of a way through, and while the smug self importance of the book is a little annoying, I have to admit it has been interesting so far. The concepts of Level 5 leadership, getting the right people on the bus – these are all good things to think about, and perhaps try to incorporate into my own little ventures.

Meanwhile the burn on my Norteño is turning just a little wonky. I give it a small touch up.

The flavors have shifted. The cedar is growing deeper, the coffee a little bolder and richer. The chocolate is still there but it’s morphing into more of a dark chocolate. Pepper has pulled back, but it remains present on the finish. The retrohale continues to include a punchy cedar, but I can also taste some chocolate and coffee there as well. There aren’t a ton of flavors but I’m getting some depth and nuance out of them. The story of the cigar is gently arcing rather than twisting and turning in a series of abrupt transitions.

I’m pleased to report the burn is back to even. The body remains near medium. Perhaps a little closer to medium full. No strength at this point.

I’m getting some caramel notes now in the retrohale. It lends a toasty element to the stick. We are past the half way point and heading into the final third.

The Final Third

Smoke time is an hour and 10 minutes.

The coffee flavor has grown in intensity. I’m beginning to get some intense espresso type flavors. It’s lending a borderline fruitiness to the blend, but it isn’t quite a fruit – at least to my palate.

Speaking of espresso, I finally decided on an espresso machine. Regular readers may recall I embarked on that journey a couple months ago. I settled on a refurbished Profitec Pro 500 (non PID).

I’ll spare everyone the deep analysis, but I agonized over the decision for weeks. All roads were leading towards a $3,000 espresso machine. There are a number of small incremental upgrades with these machines. An extra $300-$400 will get you this or that, and it keeps going and going. I spent $1250 on my refurbished machine. Still a ton of money, but new it would have been close to $2,000, which then gets you justifying the $2,300 machine, then the $2,700 machine, and then the $3,000 machine somehow. This made the decision much easier and kept the price down (relatively speaking) to the point where I was no longer marching on the upgrade treadmill.

The cost may sound nuts, and it is, but I’ve spent more than that on cigars over the past couple years alone, and I fully expect this machine to last me a decade at least. The coffee has been great and I’ve enjoyed dialing in my shots and exploring the hobby. It’s one of those things you can enjoy every day.

The chocolate flavors have kicked into high gear. I’m getting a beautiful blend of milk and dark chocolates now. The cigar is getting very good. It mixes well with the coffee and caramel. Cedar is still present, but it’s ebbing. I’m a sucker for a sweet cigar and the Norteno is delivering in spades.

Suddenly the cigar goes out. Damn, what the heck happened? I let it cool before relighting. We are now at the band, which I’ve managed to singe while relighting. I get the band off with a little effort. It pulls away cleanly. Here is your band shot:

The sun has broken away from the trees, bathing me in warm light. I move my chair before bursting into flames. I’m still getting the same flavors as before, with the addition of a light leather. No surprises there if you follow my reviews. It fades away after a few puffs as I settle back into coffee, chocolate, and caramel territory. The cigar continues to be rich and sweet.

My new position allows me to admire the freshly manicured lawn. There is something about enjoying a cigar after you mow the lawn that I especially appreciate. It has been dry here the past few weeks, but the back yard is still green and lush.

A little earth finds its way into the equation. A savory counterpoint to the sweet flavors. It’s a good addition at this point.

As I get down to the final inch light leather returns along with cedar. These flavors mingle with the earth, chocolate, coffee, caramel and pepper. The nub is growing warm, and I’m getting hungry, so I decide to pack it in at this point. But you could easily smoke for another 10-15 minutes. As it stands I am getting close to the 2 hour mark.

Herrera Esteli Norteño Lonsdale Review – Final Thoughts

For $2.50 I wasn’t expecting much, but this was a nice cigar. Great dessert like flavors with a few transitions. Decent complexity, although the flavors themselves are simple and there aren’t tons of them. While this particular cigar had a couple burn issues, that has been the exception to this box (that figures).

All said I’ve found the Norteno to be a pleasant and satisfying stick. I love those sweet flavors, and this blend is smooth and doesn’t whack you with nicotine. I’d certainly buy them again at this price, but suspect that ship has sailed. I would still recommend them in the $5-7 range. I don’t pay MSRP for anything unless I’m at a brick and mortar, but I’m frugal and expect that most cigar smokers are.

Final Score: 4.2/5 or a “2” on my 0-2 scale. Boxworthy at this price, but worth buying again regardless.

Final Smoke Time: 1 hour 50 minutes.

I recommend purchasing the Herrera Esteli Norteño at Famous Smoke Shop. Please consider that purchasing things through any of the links on this website, including Amazon.com, helps support the website and keeps it going. Any and all support is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.