Plasencia Year of the Dragon Review
Since debuting in 2021 with the Year of the Ox, Plasencia’s Zodiac series has been a consistent feature early in the year’s cigar release calendar. The Year of the Ox was marketed only for international retail, while the following Year of the Rabbit and Year of the Tiger releases made their ways to domestic store shelves. For 2024, Plasencia continued the tradition with the Year of the Dragon, which boasts both the smallest release since the Year of the Ox at just 3,000 boxes of 10 cigars and the distinction of being the first torpedo vitola in the series.
Priced at about $45, the Year of the Dragon is anything but a cheap cigar. This impressive offering comes packaged in a red and gold box, colors associated with luck in Chinese culture. One can only hope that luck transfers over to everyone reading this Plasencia Year of the Dragon review by allowing them to find one of these limited edition cigars, as I’ll spoil the review right here and now by saying that I absolutely loved it.
Critical Stats:
- Vitola: Torpedo
- Size: 6.5×54
- Wrapper: Nicaraguan
- Binder: Nicaraguan
- Filler: Nicaraguan
- Strength: Medium-full to Full
- Smoking Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
First Third
Even from the cold draw, this Plasencia Year of the Dragon review convinces me that I’m going to be smoking a fairly complex cigar. Heavy pepper presents immediately, alongside new leather and mossy earth. It’s a good sign when I haven’t even lit up a cigar yet and I’m already enjoying it.
As pleasant as sucking on an unlit cigar to discern its finer unlit notes is, I finally get back on track and light it. My reward for taking this step is a heavy black pepper that coats the back of my throat, following very naturally from what I tasted in the cold draw. However, this cigar isn’t and (again, spoiler) never proves to be a one-trick pony. Alongside the pepper, a distinct note of fresh-cut pine lumber provides balance, while a creamy undertone keeps it from being too aggressive. All of this is within the first few puffs, and so far I have to say we’re off to an excellent start.
Once the cigar has really gotten itself going, the pepper notes calm down to a more modest level, allowing the creamy tone and a nice note of natural vanilla to wend their way to the forefront. The draw of this cigar is wonderfully open, and it’s a prolific smoke producer.
A bit further in, that black pepper is back to full throttle. However, a toffee sweetness has emerged alongside a general baking spice note. At the same time, a touch of cocoa powder, just barely discernable, is starting to make its presence known. The smoke is still rich and thick, and the flavor so far has been an excellent progression through some of the more prominent tastes of extremely fine Nicaraguan tobacco.
Toward the end of the first third, the toffee sweetness is building, and a hint of mesquite wood also shows up. Another welcome arrival is that of a latte-esque coffee note. The ash is firm and the draw is nicely open. The only construction complaint I have is that the wrapper is burning a bit unevenly. A very light touch-up fixes things quickly, but I’m a little surprised I even had to do that much with how well this cigar is performing in all other regards.
Second Third
Going into the second third, the Plasencia Year of the Dragon treats me to the more desserty side of what Nicaraguan tobacco can do. Nutty sweetness, reminiscent of candied pecans at Christmastime, leads the charge on this point. While the pepper that dominated the cigar early on certainly hasn’t gone away, I’m quite amazed at how much it has calmed down. At this point, the cigar is taking a subtle and light path that I have to admit I was not expecting at all.
Gradually, the sweetness shifts to a decadent caramel. At the same time, the leather flavor that has been playing a supporting role throughout most of this smoke has gone from new leather to aged leather-bound book. Coffee and chocolate are also becoming more prominent, to the extent that I briefly get the impression of chocolate-covered coffee beans. Gradually, this combination evolves to the point that I feel almost like I’m drinking a really, really good mocha.
It also bears mentioning just how thick and well-textured the smoke is. Some cigars produce thin, wispy smoke that, while it can certainly be flavorful, isn’t really substantial. This cigar’s smoke is thick, billowing forth in large, dense clouds. This is something I’ve generally experienced most with heavily aged tobaccos (think the Padron Family Reserve series, for instance). While Plasencia has released no details about the blend of this cigar other than its status as a Nicaraguan puro, I’m entirely convinced that we’re seeing quite old, carefully selected tobaccos in play here.
As the second third ends, the woody notes become a bit more prominent, and I get an impression of the smell of cherry wood. The coffee also ramps up, taking on the tones of espresso. As I have throughout this entire cigar, I’m thoroughly enjoying the flavor. One slight complaint I do have at this point is that the cigar has developed a small wrapper crack. I should point out that this in no way affects my smoking experience, but I was still surprised to see this happen to a cigar that has otherwise been excellent with regard to construction.
Final Third
During my Plasencia Year of the Dragon review up to this point, I feel like I’ve almost smoked two very, very good but also different cigars. The final third keeps this trend going by presenting its own very unique character. The first and biggest change I notice as I go into the last third of this cigar is a rapid increase in strength. During the second third, I would have almost gone so far as to describe this cigar as a medium. Now, we’re entering full-bodied territory, and I absolutely love it.
Accompanying this change is a distinct shift in flavors, though not one so jarring that it impedes my enjoyment of the smoke. The espresso notes I was getting at the end of the second third become very prominent, while meat notes that I haven’t tasted at all in the cigar up to now make their presence known. Heavy wood notes complete this triumvirate, all while the sweetness that has been present in some form or another throughout most of the cigar remains in the background to tie everything else together. Even this has evolved, though, becoming somewhat more rum-like in character.
By the middle of the second third, the espresso flavor feels like it’s completely coating my mouth, while a slate minerality emerges. Extremely dark chocolate follows, and the sweetness is increasing a bit. The combination of rich chocolate and espresso, combined with the newly resurgent sweetness, makes me feel like I’m eating a plate of really good brownies paired with an extremely strong cup of coffee by the time the cigar is about to finish up. During this time, one more small wrapper crack appeared, but like its predecessor I was able to smoke through it with no difficulty whatsoever.
I would have been happy with the cigar to end here, as it had already more than impressed me with its flavor acrobatics. Plasencia has one more surprise in store for me, though. Just before I’m about to let the cigar die with dignity after having smoked it to the point where I’m seriously having to work to avoid burning my fingers, a brand new note of black tea that has been heretofore absent decides that it’s a good time to make an appearance. From here, I smoke as long as I can, but it’s not much longer until the Plasencia Year of the Dragon has given up the ghost after an excellent and dignified smoking experience.
Plasencia Year of the Dragon Review and Final Thoughts
Flavor
The flavors of this cigar are incredible, and smoking it is like taking in a well-conducted symphony. Each third is totally unique, giving one the impression of smoking three excellent and related, yet still somehow distinct, cigars. Not only was the Plasencia Year of the Dragon insanely dynamic, but every single flavor note worked well with all the rest.
I feel like I have to draw attention again to just how complex this cigar really was. The second third was subtle, relatively mild and sweet, while the final third was an absolutely full-bodied smoke that made sure you wouldn’t forget it anytime soon. I’m not entirely sure how Plasencia was able to achieve the sheer degree of variation involved in this cigar, but I do know that I’m very, very impressed.
Construction
Okay, here’s my one opportunity to call this cigar out for something I feel could have been better. The Year of the Dragon offered an even burn, a decently firm ash and a very open, enjoyable draw. However, there were two things missing for me here. In a cigar of this quality, I typically expect very long ashes, which didn’t happen while I was smoking my review cigar. I also had a couple of small cracks appear in the wrapper. Neither of these issues affected the smoking experience, but they’re still aesthetic issues that I feel could’ve been improved upon, especially in a cigar that Plasencia clearly put as much effort and craftsmanship into as this one.
Value
I paid $45 for this cigar, and I’m in no way unhappy. Pricing a cigar above $30 is a quick way to call its value into question in my book, but this one pretty much hit it on the head. I’m planning to buy another one of these while they’re still out there in the market, and I’ll happily pay that price again. No complaints, though I’ll freely admit that this cigar may price itself out of what many smokers are willing to spend on even the highest possible quality.
Final Verdict
9.5/10
The Plasencia Year of the Dragon came so, so close to getting a perfect 10/10. The only thing that stopped it receiving a perfect score was my minimal complaint regarding construction. To earn the highly coveted 10/10, a cigar must be, for all intents and purposes, perfect. Very, very, very few cigars can make it anywhere close, and Plasencia outperformed the overwhelming majority of the cigars on the market with this one. I’m awarding an extra half-point for the incredibly dynamic and complex flavor, getting this cigar as close to 10 as possible while still recognizing that there’s a tiny bit of room for improvement.
I can’t stress enough how much I enjoyed smoking this cigar. Every puff felt like it brought new flavors to light, and in nearly two and a half hours of smoking I never felt bored for a moment. Even with the lofty price tag, I’d highly recommend buying one of these cigars before they become too scarce to locate. I have a sneaking suspicion that this cigar is going to become something of a cult classic in years to come, so I’d say buy two and have one to smoke now and one to savor when they’ve long since disappeared from store shelves.
