Factory: HATSA – Danlí, Honduras
Size: 6”x 52
Body & Strength: Mellow with mellow-plus strength
Wrapper: Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade
Binder: Mexican
Filler: U.S.A., Colombian, Dominican, Nicaraguan
Presentation: Box of 20
Shady Moose cigars, so named for their golden Ecuador Connecticut Shade wrappers. Connecticut Shade is a first for the line and makes Shady the fourth release in the Chillin’ Moose franchise. Offered in three affordably-priced sizes, Robusto, Toro, and Gigante, Shady Moose also marks the first time a Chillin’ Moose blend has been offered in a Toro size.
According to Chillin’ Moose brand manager John Hakim, “With Shady Moose we built a great, anytime, anywhere blend that takes the smooth-smoking properties of a Connecticut Shade cigar and amps it up with the right amount of complexity and spice. And we didn’t stop there. We added in the cool Moose imagery and locked in an unbelievable price point. Now we’re waiting for Shady Moose to take a run at the internet, just like Bull Moose did last year.”
The Shady Moose Toro is an attractive-looking cigar. Appointed with an oversized yellow band, it’s pretty hard to miss, and the Connecticut shade wrappers has a clean, blonde color throughout. Well-rolled and topped with a neatly made triple seam cap, the cigar was firm and felt balanced in my hand. After straight-cutting the cap the cold draw was just right offering a light woody flavor.
The cigar toasted and lit easily starting off mellow and creamy on the palate with a nutty flavor and a hint of light spice. Vast clouds of fragrant smoke shortly ensued followed by an even burn. The light grey ashes proved firm and took a while to surrender to gravity. Key flavors in this first stage were primarily sweet tobacco and nutmeg with a mellow body.
Body and strength remained mellow and creamy. The flavors at this stage were mostly nutty and woody issuing notes of cashew and cedar respectively, plus some natural tobacco sweetness. At this point the cigar also exhibited good balance as it settled into an easy and tasty smoke.
The cigar added some additional weight to its body in the final inches and the strength didn’t make it past mellow-plus. Earthier notes crept in here weakening the sweetness but they didn’t interrupt the creaminess or the nutty-woody flavors.
If you want a good value in a well-made Connecticut blend, you bet. Not only did I agree with John Hakim that Shady Moose was a great, anytime, anywhere blend, I would put it up there with other time-tested Connecticuts like Baccarat, CAO Gold, and similar brands, I didn’t find the cigar as complex or spicy as I did straightforward and relaxing, especially with coffee. The only con I found, if you can call it that, was I wish they had made the band shorter. Compared to the previous Chillin’ Moose releases, Shady Moose is one of the highlights of the franchise. Taking its body, flavor, performance, and price point into account, be it for golf, end of the day, every day, etc., you bet they’re worth a shot.
Executive Editor
Gary Korb has been writing and editing content for CigarAdvisor.com since its debut in 2008. An avid cigar smoker for over 30 years, he has worked on the marketing side of the premium cigar business as a Sr. Copywriter, blogger, and Executive Editor of Cigar Advisor. A graduate of the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, prior to his career in the cigar business, Gary worked in the music and video industry as a marketer and a publicist.
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