Size: 50 × 184 (7.2")
Shape: Double Robusto
Filler: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Wrapper: Cuba
Smoking Time: 2 hours
Beverage: Water
There is ample confusion and mystery surrounding the elusive Edmundo Dantes El Conde. Produced in Cuba for the Mexican market, it was originally released in 2007 and limited to 600 numbered boxes of 25. Those boxes were bought up pretty quickly, probably due (in no small part) to the very, very high score it was given by James Suckling in September of 2007. It has been said that the Edmundo Dantes is a mixture of H. Upmann and Montecristo tobacco blends, and even that it really is a Montecristo but that the name was changed to avoid a trademark dispute in Mexico. It shares a name with a Cuban rum, and uses a font and emblem that is strikingly similar to that used on the Montecristo packaging. Whatever the case, the cigar became so popular that it also became fairly rare. Perhaps this is why Habanos SA re-released the Edmundo Dantes in 2008, again in 600 numbered boxes that have also become very difficult to obtain.
Due to the generosity of a wonderful friend, we were fortunate enough to obtain a few of the 2007 release as well as a box of the 2008. We thought that we'd review the 2007 today and leave the 2008 for another time.
The Conde 109 is an imposing and expertly constructed smoke that is dense and heavy in the hand. The band is much larger (and a bit darker) than a Cuban Montecristo, and it looks great on the 50 ring gauge. The head is slightly tapered, almost conical, and it fits really well in the mouth. There are no soft spots or blemishes, and it smells of cedar and fresh tobacco. The head clips easily, revealing a densely-packed cigar. The pre-light draw is perfect, not too tight and not too loose, imparting notes of moist earth and nuts.
I lit the cigar using a torch lighter, and it lit quickly and easily. The first draw rewarded me with a dense amount of delicious smoke. The flavours here included caramel, mild coffee, and a faint amount of sweetness. The burn stayed true for the first third, and the draw remained impeccable. The coffee flavours became stronger as it progressed, and the coffee was joined by the sudden appearance of chocolate and cream. The medium body and strength remained throughout the cigar, and the second half included a very prominent, pleasant sweetness that came and faded, replaced by faint notes of licorice on the finish. I did have to touch it up once near the 2/3 mark, but this didn't detract too much from the experience. Some of the cigar's youth began to show near the end of the smoke, as a vegetal and mildly acrid taste began to creep in. Nonetheless, I smoked it down to the nub.
This was an excellent cigar with a complexity and enjoyment factor that (I'm reluctant to admit) meets up to the hype. It left me feeling like I wanted more. I expect that this cigar will age very well, but it probably won't take more than a few years to lose the youth and rise up to be a superb smoke. But since it's almost perfect right now, I can't help but give the Edmundo Dantes El Conde 109 four and a half Fidels out of Five.
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