Doc's Analysis - Veritas 412 Toro

The city of Pittsburgh in Pennsylvania has been a powerhouse for over a century. Much of America's boom was built with the steel that came from there and has been dubbed "Steel City". Aside from their magic with iron ore, the city has also produced a number of cultural treasures. The famous artist Andy Warhol is from there. Some of my favorite actors also came from there, such as Jeff Goldblum and Michael Keaton. What about cigar treasures from Pittsburgh? I'm glad you asked. Not long ago I ended up with a triple wrapper barber pole in my hand that I had never seen before. It was the Veritas Three Blends and I was taken by the appearance. The twist of connie, sun grown, and maduro along with the very cool band made for a snazzy smoke. A quite tasty one too. Skip forward a few months and I ended up with a Veritas 412. This cigar was hot and the Veritas Cigar Company is still a newer brand for my palate. So let's fire up this Pittsburgh area code 412 chocolate bar and experience a city treasure.

Ridin'

Absolutely perfect cap

The beefy wrapper is ready to party

That bunching looks niCe

I see you 412

The Deets

Cigar: Veritas 412 Toro

Origin: Estelí, Nicaragua

Factory: Nuevo Nica

Size: 6 x 54

Wrapper: USA Pennsylvania Broadleaf Maduro

Binder: Mexican San Andres

Filler: USA Pennsylvania Broadleaf, double ligero from Estelí & Condega, Nicaragua

Appearance 9.5/10

What a dope looking cigar. The band was on point with the edgy font style of the 412 with a subtle background depicting what I think is Fort Pitt Bridge. The triple cap was exactly how I like them with large coverage and perfect placement. The wrapper is also impressive. It's very thick & tough with an oil slick finish. Even after a few days of dry-boxing it was still shining in the light. Seems were tight. The profile was dense & straight. Love the look here.

Draw 8/10

Unfortunately in this case, the dense feel was an indication of the snug draw. I did some poking and pulling. I was able to open it up a tad, but eventually decided I was going to do more harm than good, so I left it. The draw remained on the tight side and long pulls were required. No headaches resulted and the smoke output was still high.

Burn/Construction 8.5/10

Not too shabby in this department. The grey ash was dense for the most part and had a pasty look with the lack of cracks n such. A couple small flakes here & there, but nothing to be annoyed with. The burn line was alright. I hit it with some fire a couple times, although I didn't feel like I was picking up the torch every five minutes. Being snug as it was, I did plenty of purging and it kept any tar buildup at bay.

Taste 9/10

1/3 - A bold beginning of dark soil and baking cocoa. Retro is that of black leather and black pepper. Moving on I pick up hints of dark chocolate. Black tea joins the mix. The retro maintains a slight zing. A bold and somewhat complex start with a good amount of strength. I don't usually bring strength into the review because that factor is so different for people. I can say here though that the 412 is absolutely on the high side of strength.

2/3 - A bag of toasty nuts gets spilled into the flavor profile. The ligero zing moves forward, but does so with a dash of honey. I'm also noticing veggie chips. The retro remains black pepper leather and the long finish is mouth watering. For being a strong cigar the puffs are surprisingly smooth. Closing out the 2nd third there is an introduction of hotcakes and it's delish.

3/3 - Zing tobacco notes become quite noticeable in the final third. Cayenne pepper, toasty nougat, black coffee, and traces of milk chocolate provide a pleasant send off. The flavor balance in the final third doesn't have the equilibrium of the previous, but enjoyable none the less.

Overall 8.8/10

I want to believe that with a few additional samples that the 412 would easily break the 90 mark. The draw held this one back. Looking at the overall experience, I was diggin' this smoke. The mix of strength and note complexity in the first two thirds was darn near perfect in my book. If you can handle the big guns, I strongly recommend seeking this one out.

**Number of cigars smoked for the review: 1