Mission Zero
As one of Cavalier Genève's most competitively priced "yard cigars," the maduro we have hitting the ashtray today has a lot to live up to. Not only from an aroma and flavor viewpoint, but from a performance and shelf appeal perspective as well. I don't give a shit how inexpensive or exorbitant the smoke is. A premium cigar blend doesn't have to hit all of the high notes in order to make the cut and be up for a Klaro review. But it can't be a total belly-flop of a blend either, with a minimum of 4 stars out of 5 being the threshold that must be passed for the smoke to be review- and recommendation-worthy.
So when I got ahold of the Tres Delincuentes Maduro from the Honduran small-batch cigar maker, I viewed it with the same critical eye as every other blend that comes our way: with a healthy mixture of strict assessment and optimism. You never know when the next premium gem of a blend might cross your path, and I love finding a blend that punches well above its price point. Given that this smoke runs around $8 per stick and still contains 100% long-filler leaf inside, I found myself feeling all the more optimistic. Cavalier Cigars has been on a roll lately, and while construction and burn concerns do surface more than I would like, their blends all taste, look, and smell spectacular.
Translated directly to English, this cigar is the "Three Delinquents Matured," which I find amusing considering that this maduro version represents Cavalier's founder, Sébastien Decoppet. A man with a cheeky gleam in his eye at all times and a heart of pure gold. Seriously, the man has a Goldmember-grade obsession with putting edible gold on his cigars, with their Project Broadleaf Skywalker being one of several blends rocking that beautiful bling.
But the cigar we are discussing today doesn't have a speck of that signature Cavalier gold diamond, or the company's classy dual cigar band look either. Instead, it and its habano and Connecticut delinquent buddies feature a colorful, graffiti-tagged piece of thick stock art paper, and a rebelliously adorned cigar box to match. All three blends share the same internal genetic makeup as well, with an Ecuadorian habano binder and the holy trinity of Nicaraguan, Honduran, and Dominican long-fillers residing inside.
So, from a blending standpoint, the big difference here is that San Andrés maduro wrapper, which, as you are about to see, has the ability to transform this bargain buy into a bona fide budget banger.
$41.24
Unlit Impressions
When I first saw this cigar in person at the PCA trade show a few years back, I was shocked by how good-looking it was for the money, and this was prior to me learning about the cigar's bargain price point. Oilier than most maduro cigars, and fault-free in build quality, with a touch of tooth forming, the outside of this smoke serves as a harbinger of what is to come.
Snorts down the barrel are a 50/50 shot of fruit leather and real leather, followed by spiced Mexican hot chocolate and a small scoop of soil. This milk chocolate note can also be found in the foot, where a pleasant sweet and spicy blending of smells drifts around a dusty dried clay scent. Smells of roasted mole sauce are all over this unlit side of the cigar, and while it is heavily spiced and savory, the peppery fire burning beneath may cause your eyes to water and your nose to run.
Unlit draws prove that aromatic impressions were close to hitting their mark, if not 100% right on from the start. Dried soil and hot sand, spicy dried Serrano peppers, and a complex, enigmatic herbal taste touch the taste buds first. This is soon accompanied by a mellow chocolate note that leads into a medium-sweet finish and a nondescript farmhouse funkiness.
Meanwhile, the graffiti-covered band is colorful and eye-catching, but a touch strange to me still, as it has been severed in half, making the tagged name of the blend even tougher to decipher. However, since the Tres Delincuentes line is one of the only ones known for using graffiti, I don't think buyers will have any issue spotting this stick in a walk-in humidor.
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Initial Smoke
Flea isn't the only one jamming out with the "Red Hot Chili Peppers," because this little bargain buy likes to do its own rendition of "Fire" by Jimi Hendrix, and it's sure to be the first tune you will detect. But while those Serrano and peppercorn hits may cause your tongue to have "One Hot Minute" upon light, this soon fades to a mellow creaminess, and the show officially gets underway.
Milk and dark chocolate, oiled leather tack, controlled shovels of soil, and a medium sweetness that fades back into roasted chili retrohales and a smoldering, medium-length finish wrap it all together. Body is medium, as are strength and flavor, and thanks to a straight cut, smoke flow and ash build are already near-perfect.
1st Half
Sweet cinnamon and brown sugar blended with the taste of split hardwood and cedar may have the upper hand at first, but those darker, heavier, and fruitier core flavors refuse to back down. Dried dark berries, strong bittersweet chocolate, forest floor smells, and meaty umami center flow forth within each pull. Retrohales are earthy and still fairly spicy, and with the leathery side of the smoke subsiding, seem destined to take over at any minute.
With the oiliness of the smoke fading, things dry out for a moment in the second third, before going creamy and fatty once more with the help of some coconut milk. It may seem like a medium-full madcap mixture on paper, but this mélange manages to keep the cigar from turning into a jumbled mess by smoothing over the spiciness from earlier, and opening up the senses to a fresh set of stronger smells and tastes. However, the first few puffs of this transitional phase can be a bit confusing, and don't always come across as clean, despite the end result working in the cigar's favor.
2nd Half
With soil growing darker, heavier, and funkier on you, and cedar being emboldened by this fact, the second half of this bargain buy builds quickly. Bittersweet chocolate may have remained, but it's stronger in flavor than before, which, when joined by the savory scent of salted and roasted tree nuts, becomes damn near divine.
The whole smoke session may be on the edge of going full by now, but it is no longer spicy, nor too intense in character. Loamy soil, a touch of red and black licorice, some umami meatiness on the backend, and the return of leather up front push and pull the tongue to and fro. It doesn't take long for those nutty flavors to move upward into retrohales, where together with some rich baking spices they raise the mole sauce notes from the grave. Well, if this isn't a pleasant little surprise to find in the final third...
Parting Puffs
Toasty and tasty in one way, but also bitter and charred in others, the final few moments of this blend battle for control of the palate. While the leather and loam keep things grounded, and retrohales manage to follow suit with some savory smoothness, the bite formed by charred hardwood cannot be ignored. Proceed with caution.
Ash / Burn / Smoke / Draw
Although my sample smoke combusted without the need for much beyond a small correction later on, my review stick had a split personality. It may have formed a rather sizable ash in the first half, but the second third's ash was a touch messy due to some burn line issues in the center of the barrel, and this was followed by a tunnel in the final third. Torch corrections didn't seem to influence flavor, though, and due to that impressive ash in the first half that remained extremely white, I deducted only the bare minimum of points required for burn infractions.
Additional points were added for a top-notch draw, cool burn qualities, and the pleasurable texture to the smoke, which was a near-perfect, medium-full affair from start to finish.
Final Thoughts
Ladies and gents, we officially have a top contender for the next incarnation of the Klaro Budget Bangers Bundle. A meaty maduro with massive amounts of smoke, an impressive build quality, and a wrapper leaf that looks like it came off a cigar that costs twice as much.
Will it have the complexity of the downright delicious Black Series II from Cavalier Genève? Nope. Does it have all of the top-shelf banding and packaging lavishness of some of the Honduran cigar maker's other blends? Not even close. And that's perfectly fine. EDC smokes aren't supposed to be fancy, and to be quite honest, I'm kind of surprised they even bothered with putting a band on this blend.
I say this because the tobacco in this cigar speaks for itself, proving that you don't have to have fancy frills or ultra-rare leaf strains to have a solid smoke session. You also needn't drop more than $10, which in this case is precisely what this dark little delinquent of a stogie delivers. Snag up a 5-pack if you feel the need, but we get a feeling that you'll be back for a box of this banging premium cigar blend.
Stogie Specs
| Cigar | Cavalier Genève "Tres Delincuentes Maduro" |
| Wrapper | San Andrés Maduro (Mexico) |
| Binder | Habano (Ecuador) |
| Filler | Dominican Republic, Nicaragua & Honduras |
| Factory | Honduras |
| Size | 5″ x 50 (Robusto) |
| Strength | Medium-Full |
| Pairing Drink | Homemade Iced Mocha |
| Rating | 4.4/5 |
- Wrapper
- San Andrés Maduro (Mexico)
- Binder
- Habano (Ecuador)
- Filler
- Dominican Republic, Honduras, and Nicaragua
- Origin
- Honduras
The Cavalier Tres Delincuentes Maduro Robusto is a bold and flavorful Honduran-crafted cigar inspired by the friendship and creativity of Cavalier Genève founders Sébastien and Eylin Decoppet alongside sales director Brian Motola. This Robusto features a rich Mexican San Andrés Maduro wrapper draped over an Ecuadorian Habano binder and a carefully balanced blend of Dominican, Honduran, and Nicaraguan long-fillers. Handmade at Fábrica Centroamericana de Tabaco in Honduras, the cigar delivers exceptional construction, dense smoke production, and a satisfying medium-to-full-bodied profile.
From the first draw, the Tres Delincuentes Maduro offers layers of earth, espresso, dark cocoa, and black pepper, complemented by notes of roasted nuts, leather, and subtle sweetness. The Mexican San Andrés wrapper adds richness and complexity while maintaining a smooth, approachable character throughout the smoke. Balanced yet full of flavor, this Robusto is an excellent choice for smokers seeking a boutique Maduro with depth, character, and outstanding value.
