Arturo Fuente Don Carlos Eye of the Shark

📌 Brand: Arturo Fuente
📌 Line: Don Carlos
📌 Size: Eye of the Shark (5 3/4" × 52)
📌 Weight: 13.9 g
📌 Age: 3 years
📌 Origin: Dominican Republic

Tasting Notes

• Cedar – Light, classic Fuente woodiness

• Dry Cocoa – Bare hint beneath the harshness

• Earth – Muted due to combustion issues

• Char & Tar – Overpowering, appearing early

First Impressions

The Shark’s hybrid shape is iconic, but this sample showed warning signs: slightly spongy at the foot and a dense cap. Pre-light aromas give cedar, faint cocoa, and sweetness. Cold draw is strangely tight, hinting at airflow problems.

Smoking Experience

• First Third – Bitter cedar and char dominate. Draw tight. Burn immediately begins wavering. Tar develops at the cap early.

• Second Third – Harshness increases; cocoa almost disappears. Burn requires multiple corrections and smoke output is minimal. First of five relights happens here.

• Final Third – Tar buildup worsens, flavors collapse into hot bitterness. Continues to canoe and tunnel, requiring repeated relights to finish.

Pairings

• Alcohol – Laird’s Straight Apple Brandy Bottled-in-Bond - Bright baked-apple sweetness and gentle spice help counteract the cigar’s bitterness and heaviness.

• Tea – Korean Hwangcha - Smooth, lightly oxidized tea with honeyed depth — ideal for softening harsh, charred notes.

Music Pairing

“Iklwa Brothers – Abafana BePiano”
Energetic rhythm brings life and movement to an otherwise frustrating experience.

Final Thoughts

The Don Carlos Eye of the Shark can be world-class — but this sample failed completely. Tar buildup, wavering burn, tunneling, restricted draw, and five relights stripped away the finesse the blend is known for and replaced it with harsh, bitter, unpleasant smoke.

Final Score: 2/10
Why not a 10?
Severe construction problems, persistent harshness, tar, and repeated relights left nothing to enjoy.

Only cigars that deliver flawless draw, balance, flavour evolution, construction and satisfaction get a 10.