Country: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Sungrown Rosado
Filler: Dominican
Size: Belicoso 6.0″ x 55 ring

Finally, I feel well enough to enjoy a good cigar. So I figure it’s time to catch up on some reviews. I was hoping to get a review done in December. I managed to sneak it in at the wire. I’m starting with a top shelf cigar from CigarsDirect.com…

Here is yet another hard to find Fuente cigar. One begins to wonder why so many of their smokes are “hard to find”? But I’ll leave it at that before I end up running off on a tangent. The King B is a handsome looking Belicoso. Hidden beneath a cedar sleeve with a black ribbon on the foot is a beautiful Sungrown Rosado wrapper. Reddish brown in color, the wrapper has a few veins running through it but is otherwise unblemished. There is a story that has been recounted in several places where Carlos Jr. tells the story of the King B and how it came to be as well as how it got it’s name. It is apparently named after an old tavern in Yarbor City that his father used to frequent. The Tavern is gone now but will be remembered for a long time now that this cigar bears its name. Carlos Jr. also said the reason for making this cigar in this shape was because he felt the Chateau Fuente line was in need of a pyramid. Maybe I’m mistaken, but I thought the Cuban Belicoso (only available in a sungrown wrapper), which has been around longer than the King B, was part of the Chateau Fuente line so I’m not sure why he thought they didn’t have one. Don’t suppose it matters so on to the smoke.

It’s been my experience that cigars wrapped in a cedar sleeve tend to have that cedar take a prominent place in the aroma and flavor of the cigar and it was no different with the King B. The aroma was predominately cedar with a solid tobacco undertone both pre-light and when it was burning. The tapered head clipped nicely and the foot took the flame perfectly. The burn was excellent. Fuente cigars always score big in the construction department. The have very well put together cigars. The ash was firm and well formed and the cigar produced clouds of thick white smoke. The King B starts off very cedary with a slightly sweet spice on the finish. The cedar was always present but as the smoke progressed the cedar mixed with earth and a bit of black pepper. I found this to be a medium bodied smoke. The flavors are pleasant and fairly smooth making it an accessible and enjoyable smoke for most cigar smokers. I really like the Belicoso shape and while this was a very good cigar, my personal tastes put my preference with the Fuente Cuban Belicoso. I find the Cuban Belicoso to be a slightly more robust cigar with more interesting flavors. Plus it is a little easier to find than the King B, but only a little easier. The King B is certainly worth a try and if your tastes tend to gravitate toward medium rather than full bodied or mild cigars than you may find this cigar to be a favorite.

Get yours at CigarsDirect.com: Arturo Fuente King B

Rating – B+