A while back, a dear friend sent me today’s La Colmena Unico Especial and I’ve been wanting to document my experience with it ever since! After battling allergies and other issues for the longest time, I finally feel like today is the day that I can experience this beauty the way it was meant to. I’ve never enjoyed one of these before, so this will be an eye opener!
I love a closed foot and being able to sample a bit of the wrapper leaf before the rest of the tobaccos are ignited. This foot has a neat twist in it and allows for just a tad bit more of an experience than the usual strip of tobacco.
Book leather, hay, and a touch of honey grahams are what I can extract from this Ecuadorian DesFlorada wrapper. The leather is so prominent that for a few seconds it feels like I’m smoking this cigar surrounded by stacks and stacks of old bibles.
Cream, leather, peppercorn, woods, and hay are what I’m experiencing in the first few moments. There’s a curious weight to the body that I didn’t expect after all this time, and it’s really hitting the spot. I’m a bit surprised that this is a medium-full, pushing full-bodied cigar.
Taking a nip of Laphroaig Cairdeas really sets things in motion, teasing out sweeter tasting notes in contrast to the peat. The long finish of this pour serves me well, creating an interesting pairing for quite a while between sips.
Butterscotch and leather up front with a salt and pepper finish is how I’d classify the Unico Especial when paired with this particular Laphroaig. Just wow… You gotta love it when a pairing idea knocks it out of the park!
Setting my scotch aside to let the cigar perform solo again, I’m still amazed at the body of the La Colmena Unico Especial. It’s dense, chewy, and has quite a bit of punch to it. The flavors are way more vibrant than most Connecticut shade cigars, and this one has several years on it.
The second third opens up with leather and mocha with a finish that settles in like espresso. The leather here becomes multi-faceted, displaying a dynamic range of leathery impressions that I’m really getting into. This gives it a stately air, making me feel much more sophisticated at the moment than I have any rights to.
And I believe this is where I’ll take my leave today and continue to ponder this Unico Especial in solitude.
Cheers to a wonderful week ahead!
Suggestions
If you’re like me and slept on these back in the day, don’t worry! Kyle Gellis is getting ready to release more of them this year. In fact, I saw some in the aging room at El Titan de Bronze just two days ago on a visit to Miami.
If you’re looking for something to hold you over until the highly anticipated shipment arrives, I’d point you directly to the La Colmena Reina, a Small Batch Cigar exclusive belicoso that has an extra inch on it. While the last shipment of Reina doesn’t have the same kick to it that these Unicos have, Reina is an amazing experience in their own right. We wrote about it as another Cigar of the Week here in the past.
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