Cigar news: At the very least , an unusual cigar story. It is better explained by the crew who developed the products due to their passion for cigars.Introducing The Besa Cigar.
The Besa is a 6 x 50, medium bodied cigar, blended with an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, an Ecuadorian Sumatra binder, and a Nicaraguan-Dominican filler. Cigar enthusiasts will experience notes of cedar, hazelnut, cocoa, and with a peppery finish. With an MSRP of $12.00, this cigar is arguably worth every penny. Click here to experience for yourself.
Who is Skanderbeg?
Gjergj Kastrioti, known as Skanderbeg, was an Albanian military commander who led the rebellion against the Ottoman Empire.
As a member of the noble Kastrioti family, he was sent as a hostage to the Ottoman court.
He was educated under the noble Kastrioti family and entered the service of the Ottoman sultan for twenty years.
He later became the ruler of Krujë, Sfetigrad, and Modrič in 1443.
Rising to the rank of chief military commander of the League of Lezhë in 1444, he helped the league consolidate nobility throughout what is today Northern Albainia.
For the first time, Albania was united under a single leader.
The rebellion led by Skanderbeg brought Albanians from many different regions together.
With military skills that have been compared to Alexander the Great, Skanderbeg’s army victoriously marched through Ottoman territory, winning battle after battle from 1443 to 1468.
To this day, Skanderbeg is well known and admired by Albanians all over.
What does “Besa” mean?
Besa is an Albanian cultural precept, translated as “faith” or “oath”, it means “to keep the promise” and “word of honor”.
Besa contains mores toward obligations to the family and a friend, the demand to have internal commitment, loyalty and solidarity when conducting oneself with others and secrecy in relation to outsiders.
During the Ottoman period, the besa would be cited in government reports regarding Albanian unrest, especially in relation to the tribes.
In World War II under German occupation, Albanians rescued and hid over 2000 Jews from Nazi persecution, motivated in part by the cultural institution of besa that emphasises aiding and protecting people in moments of need.
“Bac, U Kry!”
“Bac, u kry!” is an Albanian slogan that was used during Kosovo’s independence from Serbia in 2008. The quote translates to “Uncle, it’s over!”, essentially meaning “Dude, it is done!”
As always, how and where I receive the cigar, does not impact my subjective take on the smoke. I suggest , trying the cigar yourself and make your own judgment.
Brand/Name of Cigar:1102Cigars.com/Besa Cigar
Country of Origin: Nicaraguan-Dominican
Size: 6 x 50
Wrapper:Ecuadorian Habano
Binder:Ecuadorian Sumatra
Filler: Nicaraguan-Dominican
Shape: Toro
Price: $12.00 MSRP. I received the cigar gratis for review from 1102 cigars.
Where Smoked: Los Angeles, Ca. November, 13, 2022
Appearance/Construction: A very dark wrapper with an oily touch . Well crafted with no obvious flaws or issues. Texture is smooth, and solid. Might be worth buying just for the great band that circles the cigar. I wish I had a helmet that I could walk around Los Angeles like the one Skanderbeg is wearing.Feels like it will smoke like a big cigar.
Flavor/Taste and Aroma: First Third: Opened with a smooth mix of maple, caramel and milk chocolate. Mild to medium and pleasing to the palate. Hoping it will continue to get a bit more complex with additional flavors.
Second Third: A very liberal influx of pepper with a bit of hard edge. Not harsh but could have presented itself with a more subtle way to introduce the spice.
Final Third: Spice mellows a bit and we also get an interlude of mint, grass and cashews. More balance to the cigar which helps with the overall profile.
Smoking Characteristics: Plenty of Grey ash and smoke was billowing throughout the presentation. The burn was somewhat uneven from the start but eventually for the most part, corrected itself. Stayed lit with no issues there.
Conclusion/Overall Impression and the numbers: After sitting in my humidor for over two months, it needed another month or so to even out the flavor profile. The potential of an outstanding cigar is there but did not as of yet materialize.
Will try again in several months as I do have one more of this cigar in my humidor. Suggest buying several but let them sit for 4-6 months.
Appearance/Construction: 3.5 out of 5
Flavor/Taste and Aroma: 3.5 of of 5
Smoking Characteristics: 3.2 out of 5
Final overall: 3.4 Respectable smoke
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