Arturo Fuente Opus X El Escorpion Natural Cigar Review
Sitting near the pinnacle of the many rare selections offered by Arturo Fuente are the Fuente Aged Selection, a lineup of cigars made from rare vintage tobaccos and released in small quantities at specific times of the year. Today, I have the privilege of reviewing one of these hard-to-get Fuente offerings, namely the Fuente Opus X El Escorpion natural.
The El Escorpion is a reference to the Scorpion zodiac sign, which was Arturo Fuente’s birth sign. Scorpio also has great significance to the family’s current patriarch, Carlito Fuente, who shipped the first Opus X cigars to the United States on his grandfather’s birthday. This, in a sense, makes Scorpio the birth sign of the Opus X series as a whole. But, enough with astrology, we’re here to smoke cigars.
Critical Stats
- Vitola: Salomon (box-pressed)
- Size: 6-3/8×50
- Wrapper: Dominican
- Binder: Dominican
- Filler: Dominican
- Strength: Medium-full
- Smoking Time: 2 hours
First Third
As one might expect from a cigar with a sharply tapered foot, the initial few draws on the Opus X El Escorpion Natural are quite tight. That said, the flavor is there immediately. No spices or peppers to start, but heavy oak and leather lead off this cigar alongside a bit of hickory nut undertone. Once the cigar starts to widen out, we’re greeted with a little bit of sawdust and hay, bringing the savory aspects of the cigar to the forefront.
My very early impression, I must admit, is that I had expected more from this cigar. So far, we’ve got some very enjoyable flavors, but nothing particularly unique. That said, we still have quite a lot of cigar to go. My patience is rewarded somewhat as the cigar finally passes its tapered foot altogether. At this point, a fairly pronounced mossy note shows up, lending the cigar a character of forest floor (in a good way, mind you.). Thus far, the El Escorpion Natural is definitely a savory cigar, rather than a sweet one. It’s also surprisingly lacking in pepper, something that sets it apart from several other Opus cigars I’ve smoked.
One thing the El Escorpion most definitely shares with other Opus X offerings, though, it its easy draw and thick, prolific smoke. I don’t foresee this cigar having any construction issues, if the early part of it is any indication. A little ways in, the leather has definitely started to fall back, leaving a combination of mossy earth, nuttiness and dry straw firmly in command of the flavor profile. There’s still a bit of a wood note going on as well, though it seems to have made a subtle shift from oak to pine sometime while I wasn’t looking.
We’re also starting to get a hint of black currant, though it’s far from a pronounced part of the cigar’s flavor. That said, when it does decide to come out and play, this note gives the cigar an intriguing juiciness that really adds something to its complexity. Thus far, my initial impression that the El Escorpion was a tiny bit underwhelming as far as uniqueness has held true. Here, though, I begin to get my first indications that there’s something really special going on.
This positive development is soon compounded by the introduction of very light sweetness, almost like a diluted honey. It’s not rich, and honestly it might be a little bit too much if it was. As it is, though, its lingering presence on the edge of the palate is quite enjoyable and, again, makes the El Escorpion a bit more adventurous than it first seemed to be.
As I keep going, I’m also noticing that the cigar’s basic notes are subtly shifting. Nuts, for instance, have been part of the flavor since I lit it up. By the time we’re nearing the end of the first third, though, I taste something more like walnuts that the original hickory I got upon lighting. These shifts are very minor, of course, but they do keep the cigar interesting.
About the last big change I notice in the first third is that the pepper I’ve been a little confused by the absence of so far finally decides to join us. It’s not potent, by any means, and it mostly sits with the now reduced leather tones to give the cigar a nicely savory back end. Moss, wood, heavy nuts, straw and the pleasant black currant juicy edge are still the main attractions. My big takeaway from the first third is that the El Escorpion took a while to come into its own, but by the time we’re getting ready to enter the middle part of the cigar it has really turned into a fairly unique and dynamic smoke.
Second Third
As the second third starts, the sweeter parts of the El Escorpion’s flavors are building, and the more savory notes are starting to fall back a bit. I’m also starting to get some extremely enjoyable coffee up front. Between the rising sweetness and coffee, I find myself wishing I had a cafe cubana to go with this.
I haven’t mentioned construction in a while, so let’s revisit it now while I lament my lack of a cup of coffee. Overall, the construction has been quite good. I’m getting good, easy draws and the burn is mostly even. That said, the cigar’s burn line has wavered a bit, and I’ve done minor touch ups on two occasions up to now. This isn’t bad at all, but I will say that I’ve had better from upper-end Fuentes.
Speaking of comparing the Opus X El Escorpion to other Fuentes, it does strike me as a good bit milder than what I’m accustomed to from the Opus X line. So far, the El Escorpion doesn’t quite have the building strength I usually get from a Lost City or, as I recently discovered for the first time, a Forbidden X. I think, though, that this might account for how subtle the flavor changes are and may be a function of age. The cigar I’m smoking for this review is an aged selection from 2018, making it around six years old. As such, I think a bit more age has given the cigar a chance to mellow just a bit and deliver subtler, if not quite so bold, flavors.
At this point, the black currant fruit note has changed to something more like a black cherry. Meanwhile, the coffee notes, which started out as more of a light, bright roast, seem to be moving toward something just a touch darker. Again, I think these subtle changes to existing notes are one of the more fun aspects of this cigar, and I’m really enjoying the effort of keeping up with everything the El Escorpion has to offer me.
One thing I think I should mention here is that the mossy flavor that was pretty much consistent in the first third has all but disappeared. This is actually okay, as its fading coincided with that little bit of a ramp up in sweetness. Together, I suspect they would have clashed, so it’s nice to see that the cigar is evolving in a way that’s so conducive to the smoking experience.
Speaking of that slight but rising sweetness, it continues to build, taking on what is almost starting to resemble a caramel flavor. Given that the coffee and walnut notes are still in the mix, this makes for a very, very pleasant core flavor. We’ve still got a touch of pepper lingering around the back, never really coming into the main flavor but also not fading away altogether.
Just as I write that, something new crops up: cayenne pepper. Like the black pepper before it, it’s not strong, nor does it seem to want to be front and center. It does, however, add one more interesting twist to the second third before we progress to the Opus X El Escoprion’s home stretch.
Final Third
As we start the final third, the El Escorpion really starts to change its spots. Up to now, the flavor changes have been slow and subtle. Now, I feel like I’m smoking a very different cigar. That cayenne pepper, though not particularly strong, really ramps up the spice part of the cigar’s flavor. Fresh leather comes roaring back, showing up in a very sudden and very pronounced way.
Some more vegetal tones also show up, continuing the El Escorpion’s habit of introducing new things when one least expects it. I’m getting something of a floral flavor, almost like the aroma of a spring flowering tree of some sort. At the same time, a touch of cocoa powder also emerges, I won’t lie, these two flavors make a very interesting combination, but they don’t necessarily complement each other perfectly. That said, I still have to give credit for the sheer level of complexity this cigar has to offer.
From here, the cigar does something it hasn’t been great at up to this point, which is hold its flavor steady for a little while. The pepper does keep building, but most of the rest of the flavor stays fairly stable. I’m starting to get a tingle in the back of my throat that reminds me that this is, indeed, an Opus X, no matter how many differences it bears with others in this extensive lineup.
As we get closer to the end, a bit of breadiness shows up, coinciding with the pepper receding again. This cigar keeps you guessing, even when its notes seem a bit random. Bringing the Opus X El Escorpion to its conclusion, this late addition morphs gradually into something resembling, no matter how utterly crazy it sounds, angel food cake.
Arturo Fuente Opus X El Escorpion Natural Review and Closing Thoughts
Flavor
The word “complexity” has come up several times in this Opus X El Escorpion review, and I’ll come back to it here. This cigar start out a little mundane, but once it gets going it really gets going. The first is a gradual lead-in followed by an impressive array of flavors, while the second third really is a masterpiece in terms of how the flavors shift to complement each other. Very subtle shifts in even the most consistent notes keep the smoker guessing along the way, making for an incredibly engaging smoking experience.
That said, things get a little weird in the final third. That floral/cocoa combination isn’t unpleasant, but it is a little weird. The final third certainly doesn’t lack for complexity, but it doesn’t have the cohesiveness that the cigar gives you most of the way along, either.
Overall, I’d say this is an extremely complex and very flavorful cigar that, on the whole, is a real pleasure to smoke. Even when I find the flavors a little odd in combination with each other, the Opus X El Escorpion natural never once bores me or throws out something I actively dislike. Picking out unusual and sometimes weird flavors is part of the fun of smoking aged tobacco, and I think anyone who decides to splurge on this cigar will have just as much fun as I did exercising their palates with it.
Construction
Overall, the construction of this cigar was good. When we consider that this is very much in the upper part of Fuente’s portfolio, however, I can’t say it’s really anything special. A few touch ups were required, which is a bit unusual from a Fuente product of this caliber, in my experience. The El Escorpion certainly won’t lose any points here, but I don’t think I can credibly award anything extra for construction either.
Value
This is where we’re going to start running into some problems, though I knew that before I even lit the cigar up. I paid about $125 for this cigar, which I knew going in is very far above the MSRP of $72.50 listed on Fuente’s website. The problem, however, is that this cigar is all but impossible to find at MSRP, meaning that practically anyone who actually gets their hands on one is likely to pay something closer to what I paid for it. This leaves us with the very interesting question of which price point I use to determine whether the El Escorpion is a fair value or not, since strong arguments can be made in favor of both.
In the end, I’m going to evaluate this cigar for the $125 I paid for it. You may disagree with this decision on the basis that Fuente never intended a cigar they price under $80 to be evaluated on the basis of a 3-figure price tag, and I wouldn’t blame you. However, I think it’s a sound one for two reasons. First, I can only ever fully review the exact cigars I smoke, and the reality is that I paid a certain price for this cigar. I knew, of course, that I was paying a premium in order to get my hands on an extremely rare Fuente, but that doesn’t change the final price tag. Secondly, I suspect that the vast majority of these cigars that enter the market will sell at prices well above MSRP. Markups are fairly common when it comes to rare cigars, and they’re a particularly common element of pricing where the rarest Fuentes are concerned. If I had to go to the lengths of paying the price I did for this cigar, I’m going to assume that most other cigar smokers would have to make similar compromises to acquire one.
Taking this into account, I can’t say I got a fantastic value for my money here. The El Escorpion is an excellent cigar, and I think most cigar smokers would find it worthwhile to buy and enjoy one, even at an elevated price. This is especially true if you’re a Fuente fan, since opportunities to get one are few and far between. That said, I really can’t justify what I paid to get my hands on one, even though I enjoyed it a great deal. At three figures, a cigar has a lot to prove, and this one just fell a bit short of hitting that threshold.
Final Verdict
7.5/10
In the end, the price I paid to smoke and review the Opus X El Escorpion natural was its undoing for the final score. The $125 I had to pay to snag one of these rare cigars during the short window in which it was available was, simply put, too much. Although the El Escorpion is complex and enjoyable enough to keep one’s mind almost fully focused on its flavor, I couldn’t shake that number from the back of my head while I was smoking it. For that reason, I’m docking 2 points for value, but adding a half-point back in for a level of complexity that (almost) took my mind off what I paid for it.
With that out of the way, let’s acknowledge that this cigar still made it to a 7.5/10 despite reminding me consistently of just how much money I was (literally) burning for the privilege of smoking it. Very, very few cigars would make the cut for such a high rating at a similar price tag, and this cigar is a perfect example of why my reviews are value-adjusted. My hat’s off to Fuente for another really excellent Opus X varietal, even if I do wish that they’d make enough that finding them at MSRP was anything near a reality for most smokers. If I ever find one of the El Escorpion maduros available, we’ll see if it can push past its natural counterpart for a higher final score.
