Article: Alec Bradley Prensado Cigar Review | Whiskey Gambler
Alec Bradley Prensado Cigar Review | Whiskey Gambler
Alec Bradley Prensado
In 2011 Cigar Aficionado gave it 96 points and the Number 1 Cigar of the Year. Over a decade later the Prensado is still in serious humidors all over the world. Some cigars earn a title. This one justified it.
Alan Rubin named his company after his sons Alec and Bradley. He built it from scratch in 1998 during the tail end of the cigar boom when many brands were fading. By 2011 he had produced the Number 1 Cigar of the Year and a 96-point rating from Cigar Aficionado. The Prensado is the cigar that put Alec Bradley on every serious humidor shelf in the country -- and it did so by delivering on flavor and construction at a price point that made buying a box an easy decision. The name itself says everything: Prensado is Spanish for pressed, and the box-press is the cigar's most immediate visual signature.
The wrapper is the first thing you notice -- a dark walnut and espresso bean Corojo from the Trojes region of Honduras, grown in 2006 and fermented and aged through 2008 before the cigar was ever produced. There is a reddish-mahogany depth to the color that catches the light beautifully. The box-press has slightly rounded corners and the triple cap is picture-perfect. Earth, spice, pine, and fireplace come off the wrapper before you even cut it. The cold draw opens with leather, coffee, chocolate, and a warming spice that coats the lips immediately. This cigar is announcing itself from the first moment you pick it up.
Made at the Raices Cubanas facility in Danli, Honduras -- the heart of the Corojo tobacco world outside Cuba -- the Prensado benefits from one of the finest growing regions on the planet for this varietal. The result is a cigar that is as complex as it is consistent, and as beautiful to look at as it is to smoke.
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First Third
A quick pepper blast on the first draw settles almost immediately into leather and coffee -- two notes that stay foundational throughout the entire smoke. The Trojes Corojo wrapper delivers baking spice and a creamy caramel sweetness alongside the savory woody aroma. Smoke output is thick and generous. The box-press draw has just the right amount of resistance. Burn line establishes cleanly. The initial medium body climbs steadily as the first third develops. Already performing at a level that justifies the reputation.
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Second Third
Cedar joins the leather and coffee in the second third and the complexity steps up considerably. A sour citrus note appears briefly before transitioning into cedar spices that fuse beautifully with the pepper. Cinnamon raisin toast with butter and brown sugar is the most accurate description of the midpoint -- a flavor combination that is genuinely distinctive. Roasted almonds add another layer alongside that wholegrain toasted quality. The caramel sweetness from the first third deepens and anchors everything. Body is reaching medium-full. This is the Prensado at its most impressive.
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Final Third
Oak, dark coffee, and earth push to the front in the final third. Sassy leather notes alongside caramel and a hint of dark fruit hold the sweetness in play while pepper and charred wood intensify on the retrohale. The bittersweet cocoa note that showed up through the second third makes a satisfying closing appearance. Strength reaches full toward the nub. The long, lush finish -- leather, coffee, and a lingering chocolate sweetness -- closes this cigar exactly the way a 96-point smoke should. A genuinely unforgettable final third.
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| Construction | Triple cap, rounded box-press, generous draw, and a burn that holds well across the first two thirds -- the Raices Cubanas facility builds this to a high standard | ★★★★☆ |
| Aroma | Earth, spice, and fireplace pre-light -- leather, coffee, chocolate, and caramel once lit. One of the most recognizable and compelling aromas in the Corojo category | ★★★★★ |
| Flavor | Pepper, leather, coffee, baking spice, caramel, cedar, cinnamon raisin toast, almonds, oak, dark chocolate -- a layered profile that earns its 96-point rating across all three thirds | ★★★★★ |
| Complexity | Distinct transitions with a genuinely surprising mid-section -- the cinnamon raisin toast note in the second third alone sets this apart from every other Corojo on the market | ★★★★★ |
| Value | Number 1 Cigar of the Year credentials at a price that makes a box purchase completely justifiable -- exceptional value for the quality delivered | ★★★★☆ |
Affiliate Partner -- Cigars International
Ready to Add the Alec Bradley Prensado to Your Humidor?
Cigars International carries the full Alec Bradley Prensado lineup with box quantities and pricing that makes stocking the humidor straightforward. 96 points. Number 1 Cigar of the Year. A permanent WG fixture. Buy a box and find out why this cigar has never left a serious humidor it has entered.
Affiliate link -- Whiskey Gambler may earn a commission at no additional cost to you.
