Digging deep into the crates, to bring you a review of a cigar that you likely have never heard of before, comes Meteor Hammer from Foyle Cigars. A unique-looking stick with a name that sounds metal as hell, but is not nearly as heavy as it may appear.

From what we've been able to gather, Foyle Cigars began life as a collaborative project between Alec Bradley and the east coast distributor, Alliance Cigar, well over a decade back. The cigars have become a quirky little cornerstone within the structure of the company, complete with its own product page, and the following facts pertaining to these small batch stogies. 

All of the cigars are manufactured in the Raices Cubanas Cigar Factory in Danli, Honduras, and are rated as having a medium-body. They also are all, "Cuban pressed with extensive cedar aging." Furthermore, a Criollo seed Colorado wrapper, and tobaccos from Nicaragua, Honduras, and Costa Rica are utilized to make the blend a reality.

Even though this blend's criollo wrapper comes from an undisclosed location., the fact that it's a collaborative project with Alec Bradley means that there's a good chance that it is Honduran-grown. The binder is also an unknown, with some claiming that it is a Honduran corojo varietal, which makes sense considering that corojo leaf and criollo seed tend to complement one another nicely in a blend. And then there's the filler blend, which is merely disclosed as being a Nicaraguan and Costa Rican concoction, with no mention of which tobacco strains are used. 

So what we are left with is a fetching, somewhat rare criollo-wrapped cigar with a badass name, and a box-pressed perfecto form, which is an exceedingly rare vitola. This leads us to unlit impressions, and some seriously solid construction scores. 

[Buy 5-Pack]

Unlit Impressions 

Outside of having a completely different shade of wrapper leaf covering the tapered end of its foot, this perfecto looks and feels... perfect. 

Satin smooth to the fingertip, and virtually seam-free from the front, everything about this cigar appears spot-on. The taper to the torpedo end's tip, the glorious "Colorado" color of the wrapper, the spring felt within the binder, that slightly oily sensation that sticks to your fingers after you set the cigar down, it's all very good.

Smells are of that signature, soil-centric criollo concoction of sweet tobacco leaf, leather, and light spice. Since criollo leaf tends to flourish in the shade (as well as in some sun), it's safe to assume that this lighter-colored leaf is a shade-grown varietal, or one that sees both shade and sun in its lifetime. From what I can detect from its limited surface area, the perfecto's foot provides more spice and cedar smells than the wrapper, with a lingering, sweet sarsaparilla finish rounding it out.

Cold draws are rich root beer, vanilla, cedar and raw tree nuts. More dry than sweet, but not to where you are forced to reach for your beverage, cold draws offer a clear picture of what is to come.

Initial Smoke 

Spicy and nutty, but not salty whatsoever, the light-up of this stick is surely its most intense moment. Although it may not be overboard in its boldness, the dry, meaty, hot pepper, and peppercorn-filled first few pulls are something to be absorbed in controlled amounts. Think Szechuan spice-dusted mixed nuts that are neither sweetened nor salted and served in a leather satchel. 

1st Half   

Mixed nuts, led by more Brazil and walnut than cashew, peanut, or almond overcome any Szechuan spice, and the smoke starts to form a medium-grade level of sweetness. The flavors of vanilla cola and black licorice can be detected after a while, and thankfully do not assume too strong of a "medicinal" taste.

Honduran soil flavors are a constant, and so too are those sun-grown tobacco strain tastes that make rich leather and tannin a reality. Dry and crisp upon the tongue, with just the faintest bit of sweet to the aftertaste, retrohales and deep pulls are downright delish.

2nd Half    

A flip-flop between those primary flavors of sarsaparilla and dried nut occurs not once, but twice in the second half. While these tastes are very well done, and transition cleanly from one to the other, before looping back in again to the prior, there is little here that is new. 

The final third pulls the same move but leans heavier into the soil and sun-grown leaf side of the blend to achieve its results. This is formed around a fair deal of milky Brazil nut notes, which have been lingering in the background, but up front form an outstanding retrohale. Since everything has hit "medium" by this point, there is plenty of room to play, and I found myself retrohaling the vast majority of the smoke during this section due to its cleanliness, intoxicating aromatics, and easygoing approach to spice and strength.

Parting Puffs    

There's a good bit of leathery, soil-filled richness to the end of the stick that is pleasing to a point, before turning a bit acrid. In the review cigar, I detected a sharp astringency that left me thinking of permanent markers and dusty cardboard boxes, neither of which I find appetizing. Still, the smoke did bounce back with some hearty meaty tones thereafter and finished on a charred umami note that wasn't half bad.

Ash / Burn / Smoke / Draw

Like half of the perfecto cigars I have smoked over the years, my review stick started off with a wonky burn, with one side of the tapered foot combusting far faster than the other. But by the time the burn line hit the creased barrel, the entire ash straightened out, and the cigar combusted cleanly from that moment onward. 

The only problems that arose were sudden ash drops, and the need for a tiny touch-up near the start to parting puffs to keep flavors consistent. Outside of these two small performance problems, both cigars I smoked performed commendably, and their ability to provide a clean draw and a cool, crisp burn line, with a wonderful white ash scored serious points for this blend. 

Final Thoughts  

I sure do love it when a criollo-wrapped cigar crosses my path. Especially when it leans toward the medium end of the strength spectrum, and doesn't rely too heavily upon pepper spice, earth, and leather to get its point across.

The Foyle Meteor Hammer happens to be one of those cigars. It strikes you with a sprinkle of spice, earth, and leather when required, but backs it with enough sweetness and chewy smoke to make it feel well-rounded and not sharp in any way. 

So if you want a clean, small batch medium cigar that stacks up the points in all the right categories, then here's a stick for you. Plus, it makes you look like a total  badass when you announce that you are stepping outside to fire up a "Meteor Hammer" for an hour or so. This may sound like a hardcore metal sort of announcement, but in reality, it's more like an indie rock fest with craft beer and a bag of roasted nuts for snacking on while you relax and enjoy the good things in life. 

Flavor, Aroma & Transitions

Depth & Complexity

Construction, Burn & Physical Appeal

Backstory & Branding

Overall Balance & Repeatability

Stogie Specs

Cigar	Foyle "Meteor Hammer"
Wrapper	Criollo
Binder	Honduras
Filler	Nicaragua & Costa Rica
Factory	Raices Cubanas Cigar Factory (Honduras)
Size	6½" x 52 "Perfecto"
Strength	Medium
Pairing Drink	Homemade Ginger Lemon Soda
Rating	4.2/5