Cruzado by Illusione
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Criollio
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan & Honduran
Made In: Nicaragua
Size: 6×44 Elitas
Price: About $8 per single
Cigar Background: Cruzado Cigars are made by Dion Gilito, maker of the ever popular Illusione cigars. This cigar is billed as a different flavor profile of the Illusione and a medium bodied cigar. The Illusione cigars are predominantly corojo tobacco with one part criollio tobacco. The Cruzado is the opposite, with predominantly criollio tobacco with one part corojo tobacco.
Construction & Appearance: Nice looking cigar with a milk chocolate colored wrapper and a pigtail cap. The roll is good however there is one little hole in the wrapper.
Smoking Characteristics: The cigar has a good draw with a bit of resistance. The burn line is fairly straight but thick and somewhat bubbly. The ash is a dark, charcoal color but held on nicely with only a little bit of flowering here and there. The cigar burned very slow and lasted longer than what I was expecting for the size I had. The body starts out full and backs down to medium to full but . The strength is medium on this cigar and the flavor is full.
Flavors: The Cruzado starts with a woody core with some coffee and spice. The second third becomes a little creamier and adds some nice cocoa notes to the mix. The spice mellows down in the second third only to pick back up in the final third.
Final Thoughts: When all is said in done, I enjoyed the Cruzado. Although the Illusione and Cruzado’s are similar, the one favor that separates these two is the spice of the Cruzado. It is not a lingering pepper taste that burns out your palate but a nice tingly spice that lets you know it’s there. As far as which one I prefer, I am still undecided. I like both a lot and I think it’s going to depend on my mood as to which one I grab for.
Worth a Shot: Yes
Buy Again: Yes
Enjoyablity: Great
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I love both Illusione and Cruzado, I probably couldn’t choose between the two.
Thanks for the review.
I am pretty sure Dion did a deal with the devil to make great cigars… Smoke em up as they are great cigars! This is the only cigar that I have ever smoked that gave me a flavor I would describe as Rye.