During the winter time, things can get pretty cold up here in the U.S. northeast. Unless you have a sweet home lounge in the basement, garage, or he-shed, chances are you're going to be on the cold side while enjoying that delicious tube of dead leaves. Comfortably numb is sometimes the best you're going to get. That was the goal when I grabbed the Espinosa Comfortably Numb Vol.3 and I have to say, it did warm the soul on a cold winter's night. I had just smoked Vol.2 about a month ago, which I enjoyed, and was anxious to see how the next volume compared. Did this latest version bring the groovy vibes like before? I'd say yes, just with different moves.
The Deets
Cigar: Espinosa Comfortably Numb Vol.3
Origin: Estelí, Nicaragua
Factory: Tabacalera La Zona
Size: 6 x 52
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Habano
Binder: Mexican San Andres
Filler: Nicaraguan
Appearance 10/10
I was digging everything about this cigar. Near invisible seams, veins are non-existent, wrapper has a velvety feel, smooth & flat cap, correctly applied band, blemish free, and I couldn't find anything to gripe about.
Draw 8/10
Usually I do a mini exam on a cigar to decide what I am going to use for cutting. I'm not sure why exactly, but this time around I just grabbed the guillotine and chopped it. Had I done my typical inspection I would have gone with a punch. That likely would have been perfect. Instead I was left with a rather wide open draw. Oops....I was expecting it to run super hot, burn funky, and ruin my flavors. In fact, it did none of those things.
Burn/Construction 9/10
As I mentioned before in the Draw section, I was concerned with how it would burn since it was drawing like it had been blasted with buckshot pellets. I was mindful to keep my pulls on the light side, pressure wise, and it managed to perform quite nicely. I kissed it with the flame to make a correction one time, and it likely wasn't even needed. The ash stayed as long as it should and there were no wrapper snap crackle pops.
Taste 8/10
1/3 - Since Vol.2 had some ligero in the mix I was expecting it to be present in Vol.3 also. Taste wise, I'm not sure it's in this blend and my web search wasn't conclusive. I found it started out rather gentle with notes of peanuts shells, mild spiciness, and mild black pepper. There is a vegetal note that is very present. After the first 1" the retro ramps up slightly with a mix of white & black pepper. The tail end of the 1st third brings a moderate salty sensation and a lemon grass note.
2/3 - Closing my eyes and looking for what the 2nd third delivers, I find the notes are the same as before, but they've become richer. Spiciness has reached medium and there is a very faint sweetness in the back. The ramp up of boldness & richness provides a flavor profile that while not exactly complex, it is balanced out nicely.
3/3 - Fresh leather is added to the mix. We're pushing medium+ now with the spicy note being up front. That speckle of sweet in the back continues to hang on throughout the session. The last 10 minutes had some citrus bitters, but they were the enjoyable kind.
Overall 8.8/10
For a cigar that is under the $10 price point I'd say it did a fine job. To be honest though, I've always enjoyed Espinosa blends and am hard pressed to find a cigar of his that I can say "I don't like that one". It's a solid looking cigar, performed well, and has a med/med+ balanced body. I'd safely peg this cigar in the fiver category all day.
**Number of cigars smoked for the review: 1