The Tuesday Night Cigar Club reviewed the Knuckle Sandwich Habano back in 2022 and thoroughly enjoyed it. So when the news came out last year that a Connecticut version of the brand was hitting shelves, we made a point to seek it out…
THE CIGAR – KNUCKLE SANDWICH CONNECTICUT by ESPINOSA CIGARS
Size: 5 x 52 (robusto)
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Price: $12.50 (Knuckle Sandwich Connecticut boxes are currently on sale at Famous Smoke Shop and you can save $20 off your purchase of $100 or more by using promo code TNCC20)
The Knuckle Sandwich’s silky wrapper features an aroma that is equal parts cedar and tobacco sweetness, while sniffing the foot of the cigar directly reveals some hay and other “rodeo stuff” (aka manure). There’s very little give when the cigar is gently squeezed between two fingers.
After experiencing a cold draw that features yet more hay and a slight mint sensation, it’s time to set the Knuckle Sandwich Connecticut on fire. First impressions are of a crisp white pepper through the nose and lightly roasted coffee backed by a hint of cedar on the draw. Around the 1” mark, a lead/graphite note has developed underneath the white pepper which has quickly lost most of its aggressive zing already. Construction so far is very good with a smooth draw (I punched the cap as opposed to cutting it) and a straight burn line.
The cedar is now standing toe-to-toe with the coffee note via the draw. The Knuckle Sandwich’s strength and body so far are both on the mild side of medium. The pepper spice has now almost completely diminished, replaced by a growing warm vanilla cake flavor that, surprisingly, doesn’t clash with the lead/graphite note. The draw remains, if nothing else, consistent as coffee and cedar seem to be settling in as the “main course”. As a whole, the Knuckle Sandwich Connecticut is smoking very smoothly. I’d recommend pairing this cigar with a cup of coffee (any style would work).
That warm vanilla cake flavor has begun to downshift slightly as we begin the second half of the smoking experience just as a mineral note has begun to present itself via the retrohale. The stack-of-nickles ash has been super impressive as I thump it off around the fifty yard line. Once the cigar’s band is removed, the white pepper makes a sudden return and it decides to play nicely with the ever-growing mineral component and what little remains of the vanilla cake. I couldn’t find a Guy Fieri vanilla cake recipe but I did stumble across his take on a Golden Pound Cake that looks like something I’d be down for eating ASAP. Guy had me at almost 2 cups of butter and 3 cups of sugar… how could that possibly go wrong?
As we enter the final third of the Knuckle Sandwich Connecticut, I think it’s safe to say that the majority of the action here lies in the retrohale. So grow a pair of Buffalo Balls and blow some smoke out of your nose! The draw’s profile remains unchanged – light coffee and cedar. Construction remains stellar overall until the very end.
THE NUB
TNCC FINAL SCORE = 91
The Knuckle Dragger Connecticut is a well-balanced, quick* smoke that features a nice array of flavors via the retrohale and a consistent base profile of cedar and coffee on the draw. While it does have many similar characteristics to the Knuckle Dragger Habano, tonight’s cigar lacks some of the Habano’s complexity that made it such a standout cigar for us here in The Corner Of No Hope.
The Knuckle Sandwich Connecticut rises above the experience we had smoking the Knuckle Dragger Maduro, which the TNCC felt was a tad boring overall. There have been several special editions of the Knuckle Dragger released after the Connecticut and we look forward to smoking them in the future if the opportunity presents itself. Now if you’ll excuse us, we have to head in to the TNCC Test Kitchen to make some of those Buffalo Balls!
*Total Smoking Time = 59 minutes
