Macanudo Maduro Staff Review
Macanudo is one of the most recognizable brands in the cigar industry. Today I’m smoking an original blend in the lineup, Macanudo Maduro, in a 5.5-by-49 Robusto called Hyde Park. Macanudo Maduro is an old-school smoke that’s held a spot in retail shops for decades alongside the iconic Macanudo Café. Macanudo is one of the first brands new cigar lovers try because it’s mild and available almost everywhere cigars are sold.
When the brand debuted in 1968, Macanudo was originally made in Jamaica. It wasn’t available in the U.S. market until 1971, but it became one of the most popular non-Cuban cigars sold in America following the Cuban trade embargo of 1962. Macanudo proved premium cigars made outside of Cuba had a future with American consumers. Today Macanudo is made in the Dominican Republic, and the brand is owned by General Cigar, the parent company of non-Cuban Cohiba, Partagas, and Punch cigars.
Macanudo Maduro comes in a basic brown box of 25 cigars. They’re dressed in black-and-white bands with shiny gold lettering. With all the choices out there today, Macanudo Maduro is an easy cigar to overlook if it weren’t for its famous name. The cigar is blended from a reliable and mellow recipe of premium long-filler tobaccos, grown in the Dominican Republic and Mexico, that are finished in a dark-brown Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper. When I pull a Hyde Park from a fresh box, it looks a bit rugged and possesses a semi-oily sheen.
Nutty and sweet notes of pepper and wood characterize an inviting cold taste after I clip the cap and draw air through the cigar before lighting it up. The Connecticut Broadleaf wrapper shows a handful of veins from the head to the foot, and the density is consistent when I gently squeeze the cigar. After toasting the foot for a few minutes, creamy notes of coffee bean, spice, and anise stimulate my palate while a soft aroma settles in the nose.
Sharp notes of dark chocolate precede a bittersweet aftertaste in a sequence of several smooth draws throughout the first ten minutes. Hints of pistachio, nutmeg, and cinnamon develop against a steady backdrop of cedar and black pepper. Macanudo Maduro is a no-frills smoke. It’s neither overly complex nor unpleasant, and it’s not too strong. Its sweet, rudimentary flavor makes it a great smoke to savor with a cold stout or a classic bourbon like Jim Beam.
Throughout the second half, the draw stays consistent, but I’ve had to touch up the burn on my Hyde Park three or four times with my torch lighter. The wrapper’s coarse texture causes the cigar to combust unevenly at times, but it’s corrected by the time the band is off and I’m enjoying the final third.
Macanudo Maduro finishes with a woody punch of espresso bean and dark cocoa powder before the cigar expires in my ashtray. Hints of pepper and cedar linger in a soft aftertaste for a few minutes when the cigar is done. Due to a few performance issues and a slightly chalky texture, Macanudo Maduro earns an 84-point score. Add this old-school smoke to your regular rotation for a decent, dark profile that won’t overwhelm your palate with too much spice or nicotine.
Macanudo Maduro is appealing if you’re looking for a solid standby to toss in the coolerdor and share with newbie smokers who want to try a good Broadleaf cigar. I recommend buying a box when they’re on sale to maximize the discounts you get from your pals at Holt’s.
