The Particulars

The Review

This review for the Montecristo Dark (No. 444) - Petit Corona (4 x 44) is based on the journal entry dated 2026-01-28

Appearance & Construction (0-3):  Average (2)

I’m going to assume it’s an Ecuadorian Connecticut seed wrapper, but it’s surprisingly dark because you usually only see these as shade-grown. This cigar is a medium milk chocolate brown with a light sheen and a lot of fine tooth to it. But it also has a large hole in the wrapper leaf (not exposing the binder) and a number of thick veins relative to the cigar’s size. It’s a very firm roll too. Otherwise, it’s fairly nondescript with the classic brown and white MC band and a decent roll. What’s interesting is how thick the cap is. When I used the punch, it was nearly a 1/4″ thick layer of leaf on the cap.

Draw (0-3) & Burn (0-4):  Average (2) / Great (4)

The draw is on the tight side but acceptable and the burn starts nicely. The ash is very light gray, almost white with minimal cracking. The ash holds to just past the halfway point before falling. The burn line is razor-sharp and dead nuts even the entire smoke.

Flavor Profile (0-5):  Good (3)

Woody, earthy, and leathery right off the bat. There’s a barely-there dark fruity sweetness and a bit of baking spice. Black pepper starts to pick up about 1/4″ in and grows in strength. There’s a malty, rye bread flavor to it. The finish is smooth, mildly creamy, but it’s a very dry profile overall to start. There’s hints of natural bitterness and a slight harshness from the black pepper, but it’s a smooth blend overall.

Being a Petit Corona, it’s going quick, so the second half introduces more coffee and a mild almond flavor. Still heavy on the dry malt with rye bread, cedar, leather, and earth. Black pepper is a strong medium-full and tingling. The sweetness is still barely registering, leaving this as a very dry profile that forces a little extra salivation. But still very smooth with a medium creaminess that’s punctuated by the consistent and strong black pepper. I keep getting the mental image of malty powdered baking cocoa and coffee grounds slathered over rye bread. Not an appealing image, but not a bad blend.

Overall Experience (0-5):  Good (3)

This would make a good morning cigar with coffee when you need a quick one. The downside is it might be a little boring for some and there are definitely better morning coffee options out there. It comes off as a bit traditional, very Dominican. It’s not endearing or incredibly flavorful, but it burns beautifully and might really land with the palate of a mellow cigar smoker who wants just a little bit more punch.

Review Base Rating (0-5):

3.50

Would I Buy It Again?

Most likely (good stick, but look for a deal)

Review Final Score (0-10):

7.00

Overall Score and Individual Journal Entries

While the review is based off one instance of journaling this cigar; there’s a number of reasons you can have different experiences smoking the same cigar multiple times. A blend can evolve with age (for better or worse), palates evolves, preferences change, and sometimes you just get a bad example!  This section captures the ratings from each journal entry and the related journal photo.  Below you’ll find an aggregate score based on every time the cigar has been journaled. Unless it was a gift or on-off smoke, this section will be updated every time I journal this cigar!

The Flavor Wheel

With every cigar I journal, I capture simple ratings of the basic flavor categories that I experience.  These are more generalized than what you would see in a review, but a distinct profile can still be built out.  When multiple instances of the same cigar have been journaled, the scores are averaged out in an attempt to build a reliable flavor profile based on my palate.

The values entered for the strength of each flavor range from 0 to 3.

• 0:   No flavor detected
• 1:   Mild flavor
• 2:   Medium flavor
• 3:   Strong flavor

Note: desktop / large screens will see a flavor wheel while mobile / small screens will see a bar chart.

With every cigar I journal, I capture simple ratings of the basic flavor categories that I experience.  These are more generalized than what you would see in a review, but a distinct profile can still be built out.  When multiple instances of the same cigar have been journaled, the scores are averaged out in an attempt to build a reliable flavor profile based on my palate.

The values entered for the strength of each flavor range from 0 to 3.

• 0:   No flavor detected
• 1:   Mild flavor
• 2:   Medium flavor
• 3:   Strong flavor

Note: desktop / large screens will see a flavor wheel while mobile / small screens will see a bar chart.