Cigar Review: Defiance – The Guardian

In Puros Veritas, or so the band says. This new venture, Defiance, by Xikar was introduced at the 75th RTDA in Houston. Rummaging through my humidor, this cigar caught my eye and my curiousity with its oily sheen and the Xikar band on it. I’d forgotten it was in there. So, I figured, why the hell not? Size: 6 1/2×52 Filler: Seco, Viso, Ligero Binder: Nigaraguan Sun Grown Corojo Wrapper: Nicaraguan Shade Grown Criollo

Looking at this cigar, it looked very well made. A nice oily sheen to the wrapper, it was smooth, with slight veins. Gently squeezing it, there were some tight spots and a couple soft spots, so I had my doubts. I clipped the cap and took a pre-light draw. Sweetness and cocoa hit my lips. Very good draw, not too loose, not too tight.

Lighting it with a match (I ran out of butane just as I was initially trying to light it), I drew in and a mild leathery, coffee flavor coated my tongue. At first not too much smoke, and it seemed the draw might become too loose, but it never did. The taste is definitely mild. The leather flavor was prominant with the coffee providing a nice backdrop. This profile never changed, but it was very pleasant. Normally, a fuller-bodied smoker, this provided a nice change of pace. Another surprising aspect was the creaminess that went along with this cigar. It richly coated my mouth; definitely something I like with the milder cigars. Okay, I like it with all my cigars. Also, after the first inch burned through, this thing became a power smoke-house! The volume of smoke was outstanding Burn-wise, it didn’t do too badly either. It maintained a mostly even burn, slightly canoeing every now-and-then, but never needed a touch-up. Also intriguing was the band where it displayed the instruction “Do Not Remove.” Being the rebel that I am, and the curious cat, I had to and here’s the message I got:

DON’T ALWAYS DO WHAT YOU’RE TOLD, EH?
WELCOME! WE’VE BEEN LOOKING FOR YOU AND OTHER FREE THINKING CIGAR SMOKERS LIKE YOU.
JOIN US AT WWW.DEFIANCEALLIANCE.ORG
RULES ARE FEW. PERKS ARE MANY. CONFORMISTS NEED NOT APPLY.

Overall, I was very impressed with this cigar. It definitely exceeded my expectations, which I must admit weren’t too high at the beginning. This would be a good cigar for all the mild cigar lovers or for those that like something light and flavorful with their first cup of coffee in the morning. Warning: Do not smoke this too quickly. It will become very harsh and bitter if you don’t take your time with it. Cigar Rating: To find out more about the Defiance Alliance and their quest to protect cigar smokers’ rights, visit www.defiancealliance.org.

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   Inspector says:

   September 15, 2007 at 9:14 am

   Nice review. Nice promotion idea with this band, they have a very neat site and the cigars look good.