The JFR Lunatic Firecracker is the latest cigar from United Cigars for Independence Day. It joins an exceptionally long list of releases in this gimmick brand that has reached the point of over saturation. What started as a truly good idea for the holiday with the original coming from Don Pepin Garcia the brand quickly reached iconic levels.
However, over the last few years the cigar has seen multiple releases losing sight of the original idea behind the release. Releases like Irish Car Bomb, Black Bomb, United Firecracker CT and even releases for Black Friday, St. Patrick’s Day & Cinco de Mayo has seen this brand go the well far too many times.
There were some incredible release including RoMaCraft Cromagnon, LFD, Wiseman Maduro, Mi Querida and the Tatuaje M80 but many other releases just fell short of the mark and often felt like a cash grab for the David Garofalo owned United Cigars. As a result it feels like the lust for the release has dwindled in years past.
Is the Lunatic memorable or is it a dud?
Cigar Review: JFR Lunatic Firecracker
Size: 3.5 x 50
Wrapper: Nicaragua Shade Grown Corojo Maduro
Binder: Nicaragua
Fillers: Nicaragua
Factory: Aganorsa
Release Date: June 2024
Box Count: 20
The Look: The cigar with a fuse, The Lunatic Firecracker features a long thin fuse, or wick if you will at the end. The cigar features the primary Lunatic Nicaragua band with a smaller United Cigars secondary band. The shade grown corojo maduro has a thin network of veins and a nice amount of oil. In the hand the cigar is of an average weight though it feels better packed near the cap.
The Notes: The cold draw serves up notes of rye, mocha and a subtle graham cracker. Meanwhile the foot sees an abundance of mocha, subtle pepper and graham. Once the cigar is toasted and lit there is some subtle cedar.
As we work our way into the first half it doesn’t come off as strong as the Firecracker releases to date. There isn’t much going on in terms of flavor either. There is some pepper notes that fade while the focal point is a hearty cedar component.
The second half of the Lunatic Firecracker sees the development of some mocha notes with hints of coffee. As we approach the half-way point the strength appears to kick it up a notch bringing it on par to previous releases. As we finish the cigar there is a perceived nicotine kick. The cigar finished with notes of leather and black pepper with some underlying rye components.
Conclusion: I’ve smoked every version of the Firecracker made by someone other than Jose Dominiguez’ Magia Cubana factory who was sentenced for tax evasion in 2022. The Lunatic would be in the middle of the pack for me in terms of limited edition releases for Independence Day. It starts off slow, much like a Firecracker that sees the fuse lit and burn painfully slow before the pop. That said, it isn’t a horrible cigar but with so many releases falling under the brand it just doesn’t stand up to some of the best.
I’m not sure who had the idea to use the Lunatic Nicaragua but I would have rather seen an exclusive Supreme Leaf Firecracker or a Rare Leaf Maduro Firecracker. Even an Aganorsa Leaf Connecticut would have been intriguing as it was Two Guys Smoke Shop cigar of the year in 2018.
With a few mediocre releases in recent memory it might be time to put this brand on hiatus.
Score: 88
Price: $8.00 (Before any local or state taxes)
Site sponsor Small Batch Cigar still has the Wiseman Maduro Firecracker in stock. You can use the coupon code, BARRELBURNER to get 10% off. Plus the site doesn’t charge shipping! The Wiseman Maduro was one of the top 3 releases (Mi Querida, CroMagnon).
