Camacho Corojo Gordo

It’s been nearly 2 years now since Camacho took the extensive steps of completely re-marketing their entire brand and lineup of cigars to fit their new strategy of bold cigars. Scrapping multiple lines and reblending all but 2 cigars in the lineup, it’s safe to say Camacho made some serious waves in the cigar world.

Of the cigars to be reblended was their core cigar, Camacho Corojo. This was not a complete overhaul, only tweaking the blend to fit the more bold flavor profile of today’s smoker. The cigar focuses on Camacho’s unique crops of authentic Corojo tobacco, which were smuggled out of Cuba when Habanos switched over to the more mold-resilient Havana 92 and Havana 2000 tobaccos. Using a puro-blend of the Corojo tobacco, the Camacho Corojo is, in theory, a vintage-style Cuban cigar grown in the Honduras (sure there’s a few other steps involved, but think outside the box a little with me…)

Camacho Corojo Gordo Breakdown

While the new, reblended Camacho Corojo has been out for nearly 2 years now, the Gordo vitola was only recently launched in February. This is Camacho’s best-selling vitola (as you may expect), so adding the size to their core cigar was an expected move.

Like all of Camacho’s new cigars, the Corojo Gordo looks amazing (I’m a big fan of the redesign)! The band is big, bold, and positively eye-catching – the boxes are no different. I really love these boxes, they use no clasp for the lid, allowing it to open and close freely – and the weight of the thick lid alone holds itself shut. This is one of those boxes you’ll keep after the cigars are long gone…

The cigars are big and beefy, though they feel light in the hand, which tells me they are not very densely packed. There is a nice, creamy and buttery hue to the wrapper (right in my wheelhouse). The head is triple capped, as it should be, representing the vintage Cuban style. All signs point towards a good smoking experience.

Cigar Smoking Experience

As expected, the draw is very easy, make sure not to cut too much off the head – better yet, use a punch cut on this one. The Gordo lights up fairly quick for its size, instantly showing large amounts of smoke on each puff. Flavors begin with hay, caramel, and tang – it is a full-mouth feel with a lot of flavor right away.

Soon there is a good amount of spice added, though it’s not “sinus-clearing spice”, it’s subdued and very pleasant. Additional flavors are of cedar and a familiar, Cubanesque muskiness – this is a pretty distant flavor though. I’m not a huge fan of large ring gauge cigars, but so far, I’m certainly not minding this one. The cigar feels good, it looks good, the draw is easy, and the flavors are big and in your face – what’s not to love?

While the ash holds for a good 2.5″ (maybe more), I did have quite the canoe forming at the 3″ mark. I’ve smoked quite a few of these cigars now, and none had any issues, until I smoked the cigar for this review – it happens to the best of ‘em. I’m thinking there were some serious changes happening in the climate, as the cigar also formed a crack through the wrapper, near the head of the cigar. A few minor adjustments and I was back on track!

Flavors are FULL, strength is medium/full, and body is medium/full. The cigar shows warm flavors of cream and caramel, as well as more cedar and hay from before. Near the ending portion, I also noticed a return of the spices, only being a bit more interesting at this point – there was a mixture of black pepper and Mexican peppers, most noticeably Jalapeño. Throughout the smoke, the flavors stay pretty consistent, the cigar focuses more on its whopping, full flavor kick, easy draw, and smoke output.

Summary

This may not be the size of choice for the aficionado, but when smoking a Gordo, this would sure be one of my first choices (I’m actually having trouble thinking of a better “big cigar” at the moment). The Corojo Gordo delivers as promised, with big & BOLD flavors, it’s a profile you’ll notice right away without having to put too much thought into it.

Pros: Easy draw – large smoke output – full flavors – good “anytime smoke”

Cons: Lacks depth and evolution

Would I smoke this cigar again? Without question – yes. This cigar is great for those occasions when you don’t want to spend time sifting through your humidor wondering what is the right cigar for the occasion. Just grab one of these and let ‘er do her thing! It’s an “anytime cigar” (on the stronger side), but I’d prefer it as a late afternoon smoke.

Rate this cigar! Have you smoked a Camacho Corojo Gordo cigar? If so, please rate it for us.