“A Modern Cigar With Old School Roots”
—Leonor Abzaradel
(Platinum Nova Cigars)
What Makes It Special
The hilarious Great Lakes Smoke Show (GLSS) “Smoke the Chooch” trivia giveaway is no mirage. GLSS Co-host “Cousin Frank” Minutillo is quick to remind everyone that “we’re not foolin’ around here!”. A few days after winning the show’s February 22nd prize cigar package, five Platinum Nova cigars (“The Leo 11”, “The 484”, “The Platinum Batch Toro”, “The Mirage”, & “The Sultan”) arrived at my door on another “happy afternoon”.
“The Mirage” Platinum Nova Cigar expression sounds mysterious, so I decided to investigate this beautiful optical-illusion stick, which features an Ecuadorian-Sumatra wrapper leaf. Sumatra tobacco migrated from the Indonesian Sumatra Island, where it is known as “black tobacco”. Ecuador Sumatra, made by blending Cubano and Sumatra varieties, is a mild and sweet leaf that produces sweet floral and earthy notes of cinnamon.
Platinum Nova Cigars CEO Leonor “Leo” Abzaradel, aka “Cigar Blondie”, describes “The Mirage” as “a beautifully constructed earthy and full flavored cigar that will give you notes of leather, white pepper, and dark chocolate”. Nova Cigar Headquarters is located at 85 N. Congress Avenue in Delray Beach, Florida. Nova cigars can be purchased online at NOVACIGAR.COM.
Mirage
Brand: Nova Cigars
Vitola: 6×60
Filler: Dominican
Wrapper: Sumatra-Ecuador
Binder: Piloto
Age: 3-4 Years
Price: $18
Visual / Pre-light Draw
This is a bulky looking cigar displaying a nice medium brown color. The thick bumpy veins look like they are popping out of the cigar, like cool overlapping war wound stitches. The wrapper is slick but bumpy at the same time, and has a nice oily feel. There is also a nice subtle softness to it.
The turquoise colored octagon shaped label has a decorative shiny platinum border displaying “NOVA” Platinum Cigar. The back portion of the label displays a globe, in Leo’s hope “to put our cigars in the hands of the whole world”. A separate lower secondary label displays the cigar’s name “Mirage”, superimposed over the same turquoise colored and shiny platinum bordered linear label.
There is a nice fresh farm barnyard scent on the wrapper, with nice big oats and berry flavors on the medium dry draw. Both labels were easily removed without disturbing the beautiful construction of the cigar.
First Third
Immediate BIG high volume smoke output and BIG mouth coating creaminess that blankets the entire palate, and just stays there, amazing! The cigar pulls nice and easy, has fresh flavors of earthy hay, with a nice subtle hint of chocolate spice on the finish. I immediately found myself relaxed, feet up, and sitting back, only a few minutes into this cream bomb cigar. The chewy creaminess seems to melt in your mouth and reveals additional flavorful earthy notes that not even a thesaurus can describe. This is a big, easy going, flavorful, and slow burning stick that wowed me from the start!
Second Third
The ash confirmed the amazing quality of the well packed tobacco, which held perfectly into the second third, then fell off with dignity. The constant creaminess of the cigar becomes a little spicier, but more chocolate notes become present. Leo emphasized that “Mirage means espejismo in Spanish – something desired and unique”, which definitely defines the relaxing phenomenon going on in this lengthy second third experience.
Final Third
I just bottle killed the Seagrass! The high volume smoke output and slow even burn remained consistent. Those previously mentioned white pepper, leather, and earthy cinnamon notes became prominent along with the consistent chocolatey creaminess of the cigar. There is no rushing through this delightful and unique experience, which I enjoyed until my fingertips no longer could. This cigar is extremely flavorful and definitely worth every penny!
This is a Hawaiian cream breeze bomb pairing, with a BIG watergate salad, pistachio and marshmallow flavored finish. The unusual awesomeness of this two hour long experience captures the enjoyment of eating those chocolate and pastel colored easter basket candies, all at once. This cigar and pairing got me in the zone, and will undoubtedly fade away all your worries into a non-existent “Mirage”.
The Pairing
Spring is in the air, and the pastel label colors on the 2021 San Francisco World Spirits, double gold winning Barrel Craft Spirits Seagrass Rye Whiskey, nearly mirrors that of the Nova cigar brand. The bottle’s back label explains: “Seagrass is a blend of American and Canadian rye whiskeys, meticulously sourced and finished in casks from three distinct areas of the world. It highlights the grassy oceanside notes we love in rye and the opulence and spice of finishing barrels”. The rye whiskey blend is uniquely finished in Martinique Rum, Madeira & Apricot Brandy barrels, and bottled at a cask strength of 59.92% ABV. This rye recently made waves in the whiskey community after making the #2 spot on former Whiskey Advocate reviewer Fred Minnick’s Top 100 American Whiskeys of 2021.
Paired with “The Mirage”, there were BIG hard candy flavors, reminiscent of those multi-colored candy canes or popping a handful of tropical skittles in your mouth. It is obvious that the creaminess of the “Mirage” is enhancing the fruity flavors of the whiskey, while mellowing out its high proof. Then comes a smoked pineapple flavor followed by bursts of fruit infused cocktail juice, as if drinking it straight from the can. This is a Hawaiian cream breeze bomb pairing, with a BIG watergate salad, pistachio and marshmallow flavored finish. The unusual awesomeness of this two hour long experience captures the enjoyment of eating those chocolate and pastel colored easter basket candies, all at once. This cigar and pairing got me in the zone, and will undoubtedly fade away all your worries into a non-existent “Mirage”.
Acknowledgment
Thank you to the GLSS crew & Leonor Abzaradel for the amazing cigar package. My next quarterly Great Lakes Smoke Show “Whiskey Week” appearance will be on Tuesday May 10, 2022.
Check out Leanor’s GLSS podcast appearance here:
Photography by: James Archie
