Rook by Blackbird Cigar Co.

I've been away from this for far too long... again. Transfers, sudden travel for a family funeral, and now the obvious global pandemic... one of the benefits of which is, I have more time to get back to writing reviews. Decided to get back to it by continuing my reviews of my cigars from Blackbird Cigar Co. as was the previous plan.

Cigar: Rook, by Blackbird Cigar Co.

Vitola: Robusto (5” x 50)

Price: ~$7.50

Origin: Dominican Republic

Wrapper: Sumatra
Binder: Habano
Filler: Nicaraguan and Dominican
Body: Mold to Medium

Rating (out of 10): 9.7

Appearance: Very nice milk-chocolate color to this one. Mild veins along the barrel, and the distinctive Blackbird Cigar Co. peel-tab band in Black-on-blue.

Construction: There's just a very small wrinkle in an otherwise neat rounded cap, but otherwise a flawless stick. Cuts nice and cleanly though. I've been doing something different with my cuts lately; I've set aside my trusty Xikar XO in favor of using a V-cut whenever I can. I've found a V-cut better concentrates the flavors, and gives me a much more enjoyable smoke. Obviously, I can't V-cut pointed caps or flatheads, though, so those still get straight cut or punched, respectively.

Aroma: The barrel smells of soft cedar with floral notes, and the foot exudes an aroma that is both fruity and musky at the same time. I admit, I spent a little extra time just smelling it!

First Third: The cold draw is nice and open, and tastes of cedar and a bit of sweet leather. There's a bit of a salty zing on the lips, as well.

On lighting, the smoke is still primarily cedary, with a soft fruitiness on the retrohale.

The burn is off to a mostly even start, leaving a solid gray ash. Maybe about half an inch in, I start to notice a subtle citrusy note. There's also something resembling tea on the retrohale, now.

About 3/4” down, the burn has become uneven and requires a quick touchup. It's an easy fix, and the burn line is even now.

The smoke is light, and creamy, but with a steady output that's quite nice.

The flavor has become pretty sweet, followed by a slight tingle of salty sharpness against the tip of the tongue on the finish.

The ash is still mostly solid, apart from a bit of flaking where I had to touch up the burn, which remains even.

Cedar starting to creep into the retrohale, along with some distinctive undertones of tea in the background.

Second Third:
Rolling into the second third, the ash continues to hold firm, still burning evenly.

Getting just a touch of spice near the middle.

And there goes the ash, dropping all over me and making a mess. Clumsy me. But, the burn stays nice and even after the dropoff.

Primary flavor here is still cedar, with undertones of tea and a slight citrusy zest rounding it out.

A bit of sweet nuttiness like cashew starting to creep in just after the halfway point.

Final Third:
Final third features that cashew even more prominently in the main flavor profile, with intermittent pops of crisp cedar.

The burn is still nice and even, and the close I get to the end, the more it slows, allowing me to enjoy this smoke just a little bit longer.

Some more salty notes near the end, and the nutty aftertaste has been replaced by one of tea.

At the very end, some more cedar coming in to close this one out.

Closing Thoughts:
Blackbird may be a smaller (but rapidly growing) company, but it's for sure one of my favorites. If I were stuck only being able to smoke one company's sticks the rest of my life, it would be a very tough call, but Blackbird would easily be near the top of my list. I'm looking forward to continuing to review their other blends as soon as possible!