In 2014, the La Colmena was introduced so it’s no surprise that Warped Cigars has released the La Colmena 10th Anniversary given the industry’s penchant for celebrating milestones. Like the original, the cigar is Miami made at the boutique El Titan de Bronze in the Calle Ocho section of the magic city.
According to Kyle Gelis of Warped cigars the blend is the same but the leaves come from a higher priming showcasing some more strength in comparison to the original. It’s part of a trilogy of releases celebrating the 10th Anniversary. The other brands are El Oso and Don Reynaldo.
Cigar Review: Warped La Colmena 10th Anniversary
Size: 5 7/8 x 50 (Amado No. 50 / Robusto Extra)
Wrapper: Ecuador Deflorada
Binder: Ecuador
Fillers: Dominican Republic, Nicaragua
Factory: El Titan de Bronze
Release Date: September 2024
Box Count: 10
The Look: Limited to just 750 boxes the wrapper grown in Ecuador has a pig tail cap and a fully closed foot. There are two bands the first the traditional La Colmena band and a secondary elaborate 10th Anniversary band. The brand name translates to The Hive. The gold wrapper has some notable veins that detract from the beauty and in the hand the cigar is firm with a slightly lower than average weight.
The Taste: The cold draw on the La Colmena 10th Anniversary shows off note powdered sugar, berries and bubble gum despite the closed foot. Once the cigar is lit the initial light has a buttery richness to it that is reminiscent of split top bread.
Smoking the first third sees the buttery richness remain. The cigar sees additional notes of cedar and earth with a subtle spice and nuttiness. The retrohale sees additional spice and a subtle hint of butterscotch lingering on the finish. \
Moving into the second third the cigar has a nice bready component with continued butterscotch on the finish. Around the halfway point almonds begin to develop with an incredible aroma of baking bread. The retrohale increases the the bread notes with a subtle amount of nutmeg and black pepper.
The last third of the Warped La Colmena 10th Anniversary transition to being primarily earthy with a subtle floral and vanilla component that occasionally rise to the top. As we remove the primary band the cigar remains enjoyable with notes of almonds, earth and a subtle vanila. The aroma sees some of that vanilla fill the air and the retrohale is loaded with cedar.
Conclusion: If you have OCD this cigar is not for you. Site sponsor Small Batch Cigar was nice enough to send me a couple of these and both had wonky burns. I smoked through them opting not to touch them up as I refuse to be a slave to my lighter. On both cigars the burn corrected to near perfect just before the halfway point although the carbon line remained thick. I know some sites ding some points over burns, and we will if the cigar doesn’t stay lit but an uneven burn as long as it selfs correct doesn’t reduce the score.
The La Colmena 10th Anniversary is a flavorful cigar that has a nice amount of flavor changes and complexity and definitely is box worthy.
Score: 92
Price: $26.00 (Before any local or state taxes)
Site sponsor Small Batch Cigar has the Warped La Colmena in stock at the time of this review. Use the coupon code BARRELBURNER to save 10%.
