Back when Tatuaje founder, Pete Johnson, was still getting his operations up and running, he realized that he needed to have a milder cigar line stuffed somewhere within his portfolio.

What emerged was the Tatuaje Cabaiguan (kah-bei-gWAHN) natural. An Ecuador Connecticut-wrapped smoke, with a nice little Nicaraguan pop from none other than Don "Pepin" Garcia of My Father Cigars fame.

It's been damn near two decades since this smoke was released, and in that time I had yet to smoke this particular premium cigar blend. So what better time than now, right?

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Unlit Impressions

Firmly packed, with zero sign of soft spots or plug to be detected, the construction of this 5.6-inch long "corona extra" is pretty much perfect. The aroma was all chewy peanut brittle and layered vanilla notes. A mouth-watering mixture to say the least.

Now as for the Ecuador Connecticut wrapper on this particular stick, I found it to be a bit uneven in color from seam-to-seam, and a tad on the veiny end. 

In today's world of aggrandized cigar bands, the tiny-ass, utterly nondescript matte canary yellow cigar band seemed laughable. The paper also appeared to be so firmly affixed that it was impossible to discern where the band line might be. An issue that would come back to haunt me later down the line...

Initial Smoke

Although it may have been a bit on the peppery side upon start-up, the Cabaiguan came to life with a very nice creamy taste. 

Aromas of toasted nutmeg and milder baking spices quickly gave way to a milky mouthfeel that would continue down the duration of the barrel.

1st Half

Flavors of peanuts, chewy cherry wood, and mild peppery notes mixed with sweet cream during the first third of this cigar. A fun start that developed more of a doughy pie crust taste as time went on. 

2nd Half

The center of this cigar is all vanilla, peanut brittle, cherry wood tannins, and milkiness. It's a delightful blend that keeps your taste buds searching for more.

There's also a really wonderful mouthfeel to this cigar that only gets better as the smoke evolves. Chewy but not overpowering, this and the nutty aroma of the smoke emitted from the Cabaiguan make for strong selling points.

Parting Puffs 

At the end of the stick comes a tart taste, and some ground pepper notes to go with the increase in nicotine detected. 

There's also a return to that peanut brittle flavor from earlier, but now with a more caramelized toffee aspect. It's good, but definitely leaning more toward medium in flavor at this point, even if strength is still very much on the milder side.

Ash / Burn / Smoke / Draw

Discolored Ecuador Connecticut cigar wrapper be damned. The corona extra version of the Cabaiguan burned beautifully from start to finish. Zero touch-ups required. Plenty of smoke. And a draw that was almost ideal. Not a bad ash either, with very little flaking to be found.

Oh, and let's not forget that milky smoke, which was definitely one of the greatest attributes of this cigar. 

Final Thoughts

For fans of milder cigars, Cabaiguan by Tatuaje is a great milder Connecticut-wrapped cigar option. It strays just far enough out of the light cigar norm that it can be labeled as "uniquely nutty," without being too bizarre or intense.

I would have liked to have found some toasted milk cocoa notes somewhere within the stick, as it would have added a nice layer to the entire experience. But outside of that, I didn't find myself wanting. 

 Now as for the tiny-ass cigar band that caused the wrapper to crack upon removal, let's just say that this smoke did lose points for that fiasco. A cigar band should never cause a cigar wrapper to crack. Yet the diminutive size and sheer amount of glue on that firmly attached piece of paper did indeed cause the wrapper to rip to shreds. Just something to watch out for when you fire up your first Cabaiguan...

Cigar Stats