Leafy Times » Diablo Pimiento (6.5 x 46)

I hate gimmicky packaging. Diablo cigars have it in spades. Does it follow that I hate Diablo cigars? Nope.

Consisting of a Dominican & Nicaraguan longfiller blend wrapped in a dark Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, Diablo cigars have been around for a while. I remember Brother Dicksbain purchased one from Vendome when we first started smoking cigars back in 2005. I remember him telling me it was just “OK.” With that less-than-stellar review, I never bought one for myself.

Until last week that is, when Famous-smoke.com’s “Monster Deal” featured a box of Diablo Pimientos for just $39.95, including shipping. I checked out the reviews on top25cigars.com and was surprised to find that these cigars have been ranked rather well. So I decided to gamble.

I know I tend to overrate cigars (e.g., CAO America), but Diablos are actually fantastic little smokes. They have a “peppery” aftertaste that is very similar to an OpusX–it’s not as refined as an OpusX and it doesn’t have the same depth. But the overall taste is in the same family. Think of it as a cheaper, dumber cousin of the OpusX. Simply marvelous for $1.60 a stick.

(If they cost $1.60 a stick everyday, I would give them a 9.0).