Name: Vengeance Maduro Ligero
Vitola: Robusto (5.5 x 50)
Wrapper: Brazil
Binder: Honduras
Filler: Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Nicaragua
Body: Medium
Smoke Time: 1H 15M
Price: $7.70
Continuing my review of Exclusive Cigars’ offerings, I smoked the Vengeance Maduro Ligero. Exclusive Cigars introduced their Vengeance line with the Series ‘98 in 2008. I really liked the Series ’98 so I was very excited to check out the Maduro Ligero. With clear skies and temperatures in the mid 70s, it was the perfect day for a cigar.
It is noted that Exclusive’s website shows only the Dominican Republic and Honduras for fillers. To be consistent with my review of the Series ’98, I have referenced Perelman’s for this review.
Appearance
The cigar has a handsome dark chocolate wrapper, with 1 to 2 prominent veins. There was also a nice oily sheen to it. The wrapper looked slightly marbled, which I thought gave it sort of a great rustic look. “Charming” would be another way to put it. Most of the cigar felt firm with a little bit of give. The exception was the foot, which felt a little soft. The whole thing was finished off with a triple-cap.
A sniff of the wrapper revealed an aroma of earth and the foot smelled like fruity chocolate.
Pre-light
The cap cut easily and the medium-firm draw was earthy and fruity. No spice was noted.
The Smoke
The cigar opened up with a wave of earthy flavors taking the center stage. Some coffee was in there but the earthiness was definitely the star of the show. The flavors were also rich, like walking into the soil section of a nursery. The rich earthiness lasted until the end of the fairly long finish. Each puff effortlessly generated thick clouds of smoke and I was definitely enjoying the cigar.
The earth and coffee combination lasted through to the second half of the cigar at which point they were joined with leathery flavors. The leather added another dimension to the overall richness of the cigar. Exclusive described flavors of dried apricot, which I did not taste. The closest that I noted was the fruitiness in the pre-light draw.
Around the middle of the cigar a spiciness developed on the tongue which provided a welcomed change. By this time the coffee flavor had faded so that only the earth and leather were present and it remained that way until the end of the smoke.
I did not run into any burn problems despite the oily wrapper. It definitely helps that the RH in my humidor is in the mid to high 60s. The ash looked structurally weak and it fell every inch or so, but I don’t think it affected the burn or reflected poorly on the construction at all.
Final Thoughts
The cigar offered some complexity and tons of flavor. I particularly enjoyed the richness of the flavors. Although “ligero” is part of its name, I feel that this cigar is a solid medium-bodied smoke. I don’t dislike maduros, but I don’t go chasing after them either. That being said, if I was ever in the mood for a maduro, this would probably be one of my top picks. It is definitely worth the price.
Rating: 
(4/5)
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