Cigar Review: The Angel’s Anvil 2014 by Crowned Heads
Today I will be reviewing the latest addition to our humidor here at Emerson’s Cigars, Crowned Heads ‘The Angel’s Anvil‘. This cigar was exclusively produced for Tobacconists Association of America retailers and is a limited production run of 1000 – 20 count boxes. There is only 1 size of ‘The Angel’s Anvil’ available, a size that Jon Huber of Crowned Heads chose to model after one of his favorite Cuban cigar sizes, the classic 7 1/8 X 49 Churchill. ‘The Angels Anvil’ features an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper with Nicaraguan binder and filler.
Examining the cigar, the construction is flawless with no soft/hard spots. The milk chocolate Ecuadorian wrapper has a nice sheen to it with minimal veins throughout. Pre-Light draw gives hints of hay and a floral spice to it and has a slight resistance, but not anything I feel will effect the draw of the cigar. No flashy band but rather a simplistic, classic look reminiscent of the Cuban H. Upmann band, featuring a few design elements and lettering. Time to get to smoking!
I used a soft flame to light the cigar and the room note it generated was extremely pleasant. A mild to medium bodied profile to start with an earthy flavor with hints of cedar. The retrohale was not at all as strong as I figured a cigar with Nicaraguan binder and filler would be and allowed me to pick up the cedar flavor without any overly discomforting burn. The draw is great for a Churchill, not too tight but allowing me to get a nice full draw without much effort.
Entering the second third, the cigar has opened up a bit in both draw and flavor. It seems with every draw off the cigar the smoke output slightly increases and the flavor gently builds. The finish of the cigar has started getting longer with the cedar profile coming to the front of the cigar with the familiar earthy undertones that can be found with Nicaraguan tobacco. A slight hint of white pepper started to creep in as I rounded out the second third.
When I smoke a Churchill or similar length cigar I want it to build as it goes along. The Angel’s Anvil has been a slow steady climb of strength and flavor and has not disappointed in performance. The final third continues on with a similar profile as the second third, but slightly more intense. The pepper quickly jumps to the front along with the with the cedar but not overly dominate, the earthy note has faded but is still present. I believe once the cigar has some rest it will be a bit more balanced from start to finish and not be as extreme as the one I smoked.
I normally don’t smoke a new cigar right off the delivery truck, but I made an exception for this one. I have been a fan of what Crowned Heads have been doing and I was eager to give this one a go. This cigar was the second of two limited releases from Crowned Heads this month, the first being the full bodied Las Calaveras. These two cigars are very far apart on the spectrum as far as strength goes. The Angel’s Anvil is much more approachable for most cigar smokers but also has enough flavor and strength to satisfy the smoker who prefers something more full bodied. The Angel’s Anvil 2014 by Crowned Heads can be purchased online at Emerson’s Cigars and will be available in stores very soon!
