Cain Nub Habano

I have been excited about the opportunity to try the Cain Nub Habano for a while, and a few weeks ago my local cigar store got a box in stock so I added this along with the Cain Nub Maduro to my humidor waiting for the perfect time to enjoy a smoke.

Last night was one such time, we had a gift card to a local restaurant that I have never been a fan of, but hey free food is still free food so we loaded up the family truckster and headed over to grab a bite to eat. This place is like a local interpretation of Romano's Macaroni Grill - a place I am not too fond of, so eating at the imitator of a place I don't like to begin with means my expectations really weren't that high.

Now with that being said, we did order an appetizer called Italian Sausage Ragu, which consisted of a very loose ragu of sausage and peppers and onions over some really good polenta, a dish I suspect I could duplicate given a little time in the kitchen, but that is a story for another day and most likely another blog.

After dinner we had to make a stop at PetSmart to get some filters for my sons fish tank, and I knew I was thirsty so I insisted we stop and buy a bottle of Gin so some adult beverages could be enjoyed.

The post dinner evening was agreed upon with the plan being we build a fire in our outdoor fireplace, pour some drinks and I would get to enjoy a cigar. Perhaps I should have taken as a sign the standing water we still had in our outdoor fire pit, or the fact the wood I did get set just wouldn't burn, or the fact the kids just wouldn't sit still and relax - all factors that came into play, but all that would contribute to the fact the cigar I was smoking was really a let down.

Let's back up here a second, the Cain Nub Habano is an extension of the Cain line of cigars. If you have read any of my other reviews, you know that it is a straight Ligero leaf cigar, the strongest of the tobacco plant, how hard it is to blend and not over power, blah blah blah blah blah.

The fact is the Cain Nub Habano is an extremely well put together cigar, the firm nature demonstrates just how much tobacco is packed into its little 4 inch by 60 ring gauge body. I utilized a punch like I prefer to do, roasted the foot and finally took a draw. And caught my breath and took another draw. And upon exhaling what little smoke I got again took an even stronger draw.

After three or four very strong draws I was rewarded with a thin whisper of smoke. So I looked at the foot and noticed I had a pretty strong consistent cherry across the entire surface, and I could tell by the color just how hot it was burning, but there just wasn't much smoke. And so I drew again, and again, and again. Finally I am rewarded with a substantial amount of smoke, and I thought to myself, let the tasting begin.

And as I finally got this cigar going, I took note of just how one dimensional it was. The flavor was good, not great but good. It offered a warm toasty note with a smooth finish, there were subtle hints of coffee, but they were subtle almost like a weak cup of coffee. The smoke was good, at least what there was of it. The draw was firm, too firm in my opinion. I found myself really working at it to keep it smoking well.

The coffee flavor sorta of bounced in and out, the subtleness to it fading in and out, almost teasing me saying something like, "Hey, I'm here, come and find me." And find it I wanted to because I think if it had been allowed to develop it would have led to a decent cigar.

Not that it was bad, because it wasn't. The problem I see is that when compared against its bigger brother, the Cain Habano, this little Nub simply is overshadowed. Where the Cain Habano offered up some truly complex tasting notes, the Cain Nub Habano falls flat, like I said earlier like a weak cup of coffee, or soda that has lost its fizz.
I have seen this done with other Nub cigars, standing it on its ash to demonstrate just how tight a cigar it is, and how much tobacco is present, I used this picture to show exactly that, and to suggest that perhaps there was too much tobacco leading to a very tight draw that you really had to work for.

In the grand scheme of things if you were offered this cigar to smoke, smoke it. If you were paying to smoke this cigar, pass on it and seek out a Cain F, or the bigger Cain Habano or Maduro. Like I said, it is not that it was a bad cigar, it just was a very one dimensional cigar.

And whether I am simply a cigar snob, or just overly picky - I have to tell the truth and the truth in this situation with this cigar left me disappointed. The bright spot in all of this was as the evening drew to a close, I returned my lighter to my humidor and I looked over the inventory still to be enjoyed and I smiled knowing there are some truly great cigars just waiting their turn to be enjoyed.

Until we smoke again...