Principle Cigars Accomplice Holiday Bauble 2024 – Perfecto (4.5 x 60)
The Particulars
| wdt_created_by | cigarkey | brand | cigarname | vitola | strength | wrapper | binder | filler | infused | sweettip | origin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| mcclossm | Principle Cigars Accomplice Holiday Bauble 2024 - Perfecto (4.5 x 60) | Principle Cigars | Accomplice Holiday Bauble 2024 | Perfecto - 4.50" x 60 | Medium | Ecuadorian Habano Vuelta Abajo, Natural | Dominican Republic (H-192 Habano Hybrid, Aged 17-Yrs) | Dominican Republic (Two Regions) / Peru (Pelo de Oro) / Pennsylvania (Broadleaf) | No | No | Kelner Boutique Factory, Dominican Republic |
| COMPANY / BRAND: | Principle Cigars |
| CIGAR: | Accomplice Holiday Bauble 2024 |
| VITOLA: | Perfecto - 4.50" x 60 |
| STRENGTH: | Medium |
| WRAPPER: | Ecuadorian Habano Vuelta Abajo, Natural |
| BINDER: | Dominican Republic (H-192 Habano Hybrid, Aged 17-Yrs) |
| FILLER: | Dominican Republic (Two Regions) / Peru (Pelo de Oro) / Pennsylvania (Broadleaf) |
| INFUSED: | No |
| SWEET TIP: | No |
| ORIGIN: | Kelner Boutique Factory, Dominican Republic |
Prolegomenon and Other Random Thoughts
The Principle Holiday Bauble is an annual winter release that’s part of the Accomplice line. It’s called the Bauble because they’re styled to look like an ornament finished off with Christmas themed bands. To say the Holiday Bauble is a unique vitola is an understatement. It’s a short, fat Perfecto, but both ends are closed and tapered like the head of a traditional parejo. This means the head is finished with a pigtail, while the foot gets a traditional triple cap. You could technically smoke it from either end, as you need to clip both ends of the cigar, unless you want to light a fully closed foot. If it came with a traditional cut foot, I think this would just be a short Gordo. But the double-closed feet do lend to the ornament look, which was the goal.
They’re all made at the Kelner Boutique Factory and notable with this release is the Ecuadorian Habano Vuelta Abajo wrapper, Dominican Dominican H-192 Habano Hybrid binder that’s a vintage from 2007, and some Peruvian Pelo de Oro in the filler.
| Journaling Date | Cigar | Appearance | Draw | Burn | Flavors | Overall Experience | Base Rating | Buy Again? | Final Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-12 | Principle Cigars Accomplice Holiday Bauble 2024 - Perfecto (4.5 x 60) | Good | Good | Good | Excellent | Great | 4.50 | Signs point to yes (recommended) | 8.83 |
The Review
This review for the Principle Cigars Accomplice Holiday Bauble 2024 - Perfecto (4.5 x 60) is based on the journal entry dated 2026-01-12
Appearance & Construction (0-3): Good (3)
So the 2024 doesn’t have the tooth of the 2023, but it does have more sheen and mottling. Like the 2023, it has a pigtail at the head and a triple cap at the foot. The seams stand out with slightly raised edges, but they’re all tight, and the triple cap on the foot is immaculate. The bands never change on the Bauble, except for the year, so it’s the same red and green fabric. Overall, it looks well-rolled and has a good feel to it.
Draw (0-3) & Burn (0-4): Good (3) / Good (3)
This example had a slight crack occur in the head with the punch, but Ciglue fixed it up beautifully. I used the 14mm punch on the foot, and that was fine. But then I almost dropped my lighter on light-up because a small piece of flaming tobacco fell out from the punch hole on the foot and onto my finger holding the lighter. Little bastard Bauble! 😅
But the draw is good with just a hair extra resistance, and the burn starts beautifully even and crisp. The downside is with the mid-50-degree weather, the wrapper develops a couple of minor cracks and starts to peel away. I experienced the same with the 2022, and it’s still ironic that a holiday-themed cigar that’s sold and will likely be smoked in colder weather has these more temperature-sensitive wrappers. But it’s notable that the 2025 uses MSA, which is heartier and more cold-weather resistant, so maybe they learned? I go for the Ciglue to see if that can help secure the wrapper and it does a beautiful job of holding the wrapper and recovering the burn. Ciglue 💯 saved this cigar twice.
The ash on this one is missing the oil crystals, but it didn’t have the tooth of the 2023. It’s a very light gray that’s flaking a bit but holds nicely to the band. Can’t complain when it stacks and holds.
Flavor Profile (0-5): Excellent (5)
Like the 2023, cedar, earth, baking spice, and salted caramel sweetness hit first. This blend just slaps. Referring to the 2023 review, it has cinnamon, cedar, malty chocolate, nuttiness, leather, baking spice, salted caramel sweetness, and a smooth, thick creaminess on the back end. There’s a good kick of pepper that’s coating the back of my mouth, but it’s overall very refined and smooth; the well-aged tobacco is doing its thing.
Hell, this is just such a great blend, I’m phoning it in and repeating my 2023 notes because they hold true. 😅 The salted caramel sweetness is driving in the second third. But there’s a really nice savory meatiness to this as well. Malted chocolate, earth, the entire spice rack, cedar, peanut shells and almonds, and light floral notes. Still creamy, still refined, still incredibly well-balanced. There are minor transitions in strength and tweaks to the flavors in the blend, but this is fantastic. The way the caramel lingers on the tongue… 🤌🏻 There are no real changes in the final half, just a banger of a cigar.
Overall Experience (0-5): Great (4)
This blend is straight FUCKING FIRE🔥. Find the 2023 or the 2024, you’ll be glad you did. If Principle offers the sampler again with a mix of prior years, don’t hesitate to get that!
Review Base Rating (0-5):
4.50
Would I Buy It Again?
Signs point to yes (recommended)
Review Final Score (0-10):
8.83
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!
| Times Journaled | Base Rating | Buy Again? | Final Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4.50 | Signs point to yes (recommended) | 8.83 |
| Journaling Date | Cigar | Appearance | Draw | Burn | Flavors | Overall Experience | Base Rating | Buy Again? | Final Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-01-12 | Principle Cigars Accomplice Holiday Bauble 2024 - Perfecto (4.5 x 60) | Good | Good | Good | Excellent | Great | 4.50 | Signs point to yes (recommended) | 8.83 |
Journaling Photos
The Flavor Wheel
| Category | Strength |
|---|---|
| Baking Spice | 2.00 |
| Pepper | 1.00 |
| Coffee / Espresso | 2.00 |
| Anise / Licorice | 0.00 |
| Sweet | 3.00 |
| Chocolate | 2.00 |
| Bready / Toasty | 3.00 |
| Woody / Charred | 2.00 |
| Grass / Hay | 1.00 |
| Earth | 1.00 |
| Leather | 1.00 |
| Floral / Aromatic | 0.00 |
| Fruity | 2.00 |
| Nutty | 2.00 |
| Salty / Mineral | 1.00 |
| Creamy | 3.00 |
| Musty / Barnyard | 0.00 |
| Bitter | 0.00 |
| Smooth | 3.00 |
| Harsh | 0.00 |
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.
| Category | Strength |
|---|---|
| Baking Spice | 2.00 |
| Pepper | 1.00 |
| Coffee / Espresso | 2.00 |
| Anise / Licorice | 0.00 |
| Sweet | 3.00 |
| Chocolate | 2.00 |
| Bready / Toasty | 3.00 |
| Woody / Charred | 2.00 |
| Grass / Hay | 1.00 |
| Earth | 1.00 |
| Leather | 1.00 |
| Floral / Aromatic | 0.00 |
| Fruity | 2.00 |
| Nutty | 2.00 |
| Salty / Mineral | 1.00 |
| Creamy | 3.00 |
| Musty / Barnyard | 0.00 |
| Bitter | 0.00 |
| Smooth | 3.00 |
| Harsh | 0.00 |
Questions on how the ratings work?
Check out the detailed explanation here.
Want to Comment?
Leave a comment on the source IG post
