Although it may have started with one torcedor rolling cigars outside of its restaurant in the Bahamas in 1997, the boutique cigar brand side of the Graycliff name has seen an ever-expanding amount of success since its inception. 

But whereas the cigar production side of the business has only been around since the 1990s, Graycliff has been operating multiple businesses for well over three centuries by this point. 

That is why in 2012, to commemorate the 300th Anniversary of the company's creation, the premium cigar blend that is the Graycliff "Silver Series" was formulated by one of the Cuban Cohiba brand's former top master blenders.

Now as for where Klaro comes in, we have stocked these cigars ever since our founder, Michael, toured the Graycliff factory during Christmas of 2022.

And while he got to experience the production portion of the factory firsthand, and smoke and review the "Silver Series," I have just now gotten the chance to sink my fangs into this unique premium cigar blend. The only question now is, will my review mirror Michael's first take on this cigar from nearly a year ago, or will it be something completely different?

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Unlit Impressions 

I found both sticks that were sent to me for sampling to be extremely mottled in color, and roughly formed. While undeniably well-filled, the outer portions of the two pyramid figurado cigars that I smoked were not appealing to me whatsoever. One had a very unevenly formed head and cap, while the other had wavy shoulder lines, seams galore, and an unsightly hole in the wrapper near the foot.

Fortunately, things improved from there, with the aromas of freshly harvested tea leaves, exotic spices, dried hay, and sweet sun-grown tobacco coming to the rescue. Cold pulls are far more pepper-focused, with an impressive leading flavor of roasted black and green tea, with a honey-like syrupy finish and a touch of tea tree oil to finish it out.  

Initial Smoke    

Brash is the best way to describe the first 5-10 minutes of this blend. While light-up gives you loads of leather, black pepper heat, and chalky soil, it is soon backed by faint tastes of mixed tropical fruits and herbal foliage.

1st Half   

As the flavor profile within this premium cigar blend begins to open up, all of the mixed tea notes and herbal tastes from earlier slide on in to party with your palate. Dried candied almonds, honey, green apple peel, and sweet cedar shine bright behind it all, making for a very delicious first 40+ minutes of smoking pleasure. 

Body, flavor, and strength are a medium mixture, with an outstanding draw, a solid ash, and large quantities of smoke making for an even more impressive start.

2nd Half   

Knock off that massive ash (which on both cigars was nearly the entire first half of the barrel), and things suddenly go in a very different direction. Flavors go malty and dark, pepper strength picks up, and a familiar, earth Habano wrapper taste takes over.

Instant cocoa powder mix appears for a moment, but dips out just as quickly, followed by the drying sensation of hay, and smoked hardwoods like post oak and walnut. A faint flavor of toasted coconut materializes as well here, which is a nice complement to the milk cocoa. 

Construction on both sticks wavered in the second half though. Almost as if the first half's ash was keeping things in check, and now that it's gone the rest of the stick can do whatever the hell it wants. 

Parting Puffs       

After multiple attempts at relighting the sample cigar in my review video, I gave up and relied upon my notes from the first stick I smoked. 

It's a mixed bag of a finish for this one, with lots of malty sweetness, coconut shavings, and bittersweet cocoa being bullied around by a tar-like taste and entirely too much pepper. This is one of those blends you might want to consider putting down a puff or two early just to play it safe. 

Ash / Burn / Smoke / Draw     

I must commend the first hour of this blend, for it was brilliant from a performance aspect, and bordered on being a 5-star experience in my cigar book. 

And while the second half of the cigar held an immense ash as well, it required two hefty touch-ups, with both cigars extinguishing themselves unexpectedly in the final third. Furthermore, the draw became tighter on both cigars as they burned, making for a frustrating finish performance-wise.

Final Thoughts   

For me, there was a lot to like and dislike in the Graycliff "Silver Series." It soars at first, but then stumbles in the second half, before attempting to gather itself and soldier on.

I did find myself liking much of what this blend presented, especially in the first half's flavor profiles, as well as its impressive construction and performance perks. Herbal and tea-oriented, with a faint fruitiness and that honeyed almond kick toward the end made for an extremely pleasant start. 

But this cigar was also not very refined looking, or reliable in flavor consistency and performance from the 50-yard-line onward. Some of these flavors I did enjoy, like the toasted coconut and milk cocoa taste mixed with smoked hardwood. But these flavors proved to be as inconsistent as the construction of both cigars themselves. 

If Graycliff can get this blend to burn properly from start to finish and retain the tastes from the core of the first third throughout, then this stick would easily score 4.5/5 stars or higher. I would just need to put on my shades first to prevent that chrome cigar band from burning my eyes.

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