Arturo Fuente Special Selection Curly Head Deluxe (6.5x43)

I picked up a couple of these from Outman Knife and Cigar in Savannah, GA awhile back while at my sister's wedding. This was one of the very small selection of cigars still in stock, as Outman was going out of business. It saddened me to see a store closing it's doors that carry not only fine cigars, but bladed weapons as well. The Curly Head line of cigars is probably the most affordable offering from Arturo Fuente. It is not a long filler, but instead is labeled as a medium filler. This means it's a mix of tobacco left over from a making their main line cigars. I don't discriminate against mixed filler cigars the way some people do. As long as it tastes good and doesn't require a ton of burn corrections or relights I could honestly care less the length of the filler. With that said, how does the cigar smoke? It has a rustic look to the wrapper with variations in color along the body. There are a few rather small veins and even a couple of very small patches about mid-way down the body. The foot is not clean cut like most cigars and not really a shaggy foot, but is left unfinished with filler protruding from the body of the cigar just a tad. The body was a bit on the spongy side but didn't seem to have any real soft or loose spots on the two cigars I smoked for this review.  The wrapper is a Connecticut Broadleaf Maduro that houses a Dominican binder and a Dominican mixed length filler. The wrapper had a barnyard aroma and the foot shared the same barnyard but with a mild sweetness. I used my Xikar MTX to clip the pointy cap and found the draw to be just a touch tight and tasted of rich, sweet tobacco. I used a single flame pocket torch to toast and light the foot with no problems. The Initial third opened with a very earthy tone with notes of black licorice, espresso, and a mild maduro sweetness. There was a mild spice to the retrohale and the I found it to be very smooth and medium in body. The second third brought a few notes of leather as the espresso becomes more of a light roast coffee. There was a bitter sensation that started to linger on the palate at around the half-way point of the burn. It wasn't really enough to detract from the smoking experience but wasn't a welcome addition either.  Going into the final third the bitter sensation finally ceases as the coffee notes move to the front as some some toasted nut flavors start to emerge. The black licorice flavor that had faded in the second third makes a slight comeback as I near the end of the burn. The resting smoke on this one was rather aromatic and pleasant. The final verdict on this one? Not an Opus X, but not a bad stick with the Fuente name on it. The price point on these is around 3 bucks per stick.  The ash held to about an inch at a time and burn was a bit wavy but there were no burn corrections required. The fair amount of complexity and good flavors made this a decent smoke. I could see myself ordering a box to keep on hand as a knock around stick. You can grab a box of 25 from stogieboys.com for around 63 bucks HERE. For more information on the Arturo Fuente line of cigars visit www.arturofuente.com