Arturo Fuente Hemingway Cigar Review: A Flavoursome Perfecto Figurado

Arturo Fuente Look & Feel

• Wrapper Hue: Mild Coffee Bean
• Rolling Consistency: Even
• Spring: Firm Spring
• Aromas: Straw, Labdanum

With its Cameroon wrapper, the Hemingway has an interesting appearance. The somewhat rough and veined leaf juxtapositions nicely against the elegant vitola.

Charles-Philippe and I are quite fond of Perfecto cigars as they’re something of a curiosity. It’s impressive that a figurado shape combined with a perfecto foot can be rolled by hand, even with the use of molds.

Despite its rugged appearance, the Hemingway consists of an evenly rolled construction with a slightly firm spring when pinched. In terms of aromas, it’s mostly straw with a sweet tobacco note reminiscent of musky labdanum.

Arturo Fuente Hemingway Review

Like all of our reviews, we base our evaluations on several cigars rather than a standalone experience. In this case, we smoked a sample of five cigars for the purposes of this review.

Pre-Lighting Experience

• Draw: Some Resistance
• Aromas: Maple Syrup, Vanilla

After a quick cut, I noticed there was just a little resistance due to the closed foot. However, this wasn’t particularly disconcerting. In terms of aromas, it was remarkably sweet with a slight maple syrup note and vanilla finish.

1st Third Smoking Experience

• Notes: Yeast, Caramel, Cedar

While remaining sweet overall, the Fuente Hemingway consists mostly of a caramel note akin to Golden Syrup. Meanwhile, there is a little brown bread-like yeast, and the maple note in the pre-light is more reminiscent of cedar.

2nd Third Smoking Experience

• Notes: Caramel, Toast, Cedar

Although the second third wasn’t far removed from the first, the notes did show something of an evolution. The caramel persisted but became faint in presence. Nevertheless, the yeast had a chargrilled essence as if it had been toasted.

Finally, the cedar note had become much more intense without preventing the cigar from being mild overall.

Final Third Smoking Experience

• Notes: Charred Oak, Toast, Pepper

Once well into the final third, the same notes resonated from the smoke yet had matured in their own way. The toast was indeed much the same. However, the sweetness had more-or-less faded in favor of a slight peppery mouthfeel.

As for the cedar note, it had become charred and lost its fragrance in favor of a bolder oak aroma.

Overall Burn

• Ash Backbone: Resilient
• Burn Angle: Varied [See Below]
• Temperature: Cool – Warm [See Below]
• Draw: Mild Resistance
• Final Smoking Time: 45 Minutes

With its unusual shape, it was interesting to see how the burn fluctuated throughout the smoke. At first, I experienced some burn issues with the perfecto tapper foot. There was a runner down the side and the odd mousehole burn.

At first, this was quite disconcerting. However, this soon corrected itself as the cigar arrived at its thicker section in the first third.

Similarly, the draw that was initially tight opened up nicely once I had passed the tapper foot. In terms of temperature, it went from an initially cool smoke to something quite warm towards the end.

Being the smaller, Short Story vitola, the overall smoking time was around 45 minutes.

Ideal Pairings With An Arturo Fuente Hemingway

As an overall mild cigar, the Hemingway is not something to pair with bold flavors. After all, you want to try and enjoy the aromas of both the cigar and the accompaniment for a harmonious accord.

Personally, I quite enjoyed pairing the sweet flavor profile with a craft cider. However, another option would be a mild espresso coffee or even possibly a latte.

In terms of wine and spirits, you could happily pair the Hemingway with an aged yet mild Dominican rum. Alternatively, a bourbon or aromatic Highland Scotch would bring out the caramel and woodsy notes in both.

Overall Experience

Generally, we try to pick up an entire box of cigars so as to be able to comment on the entire appearance in our insights. However, in this case, we only purchased five individual cigars for the review, so we’ll omit any comments on the box’s design.

Yet, the cigar’s band is an attractive and ornate design that’s well-known among cigar enthusiasts. On the Short Story, it appeared quite large and bold with its rows of golden medallions.

Finally, the value for money of the Hemingway varies on the vitola. While the larger formats can cost as much as $14, I found that the stout Short Story was an attractive acquisition at only $6.

When Should You Smoke A Hemingway?

Being a renowned and prestigious brand, Arturo Fuente cigars are quite versatile and can be smoked for most occasions. Whether you’re at a prestigious cigar lounge, a wedding or even chilling with some friends, the Hemingway is rarely out of place.

Alternatively, you could always enjoy it while reading a good book. After all, Ernest Hemingway himself was known to say that “there is no friend as loyal as a book.”

Closing Thoughts

While an overall enjoyable smoke, the Hemingway isn’t overly complex and the aromatic experience could be described as somewhat linear. Nevertheless, its consistent notes were indeed flavoursome and very pleasant indeed.

Furthermore, I did experience a few minor burn issues with the Hemingway. However, as I was only able to sample five of their cigars, it may have been an isolated incident.

If you’re looking to enjoy a unique cigar vitola, Arturo Fuente’s Hemingway is certainly a good choice. Similarly, it’s from a renowned and celebrated brand so it’s worth at least trying out just for the experience.

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