Kiskeya Torpedo
📌 Brand: Kiskeya
📌 Line: Torpedo
📌 Size: Torpedo (6" × 54)
📌 Weight: 17.7 g
📌 Age: 2 years
📌 Origin: Dominican Republic
Tasting Notes
Bitter Earth – Dominates almost immediately
Harsh Pepper – Sharp and unpleasant throughout
Burnt Wood – Develops after repeated corrections
Acrid Char – Lingers on the finish
First Impressions
The Kiskeya Torpedo has a respectable appearance with a medium-brown wrapper and traditional torpedo shape. It feels slightly uneven in hand, though nothing immediately suggests the problems to come. Pre-light aroma reveals cedar, earth, and light spice. The cold draw is inconsistent from the outset.
Smoking Experience
First Third – The cigar struggles almost immediately. Combustion is uneven, the draw is inconsistent, and the flavors are harsh and poorly defined. The first correction comes early, setting the tone for the rest of the smoke.
Second Third – Everything continues to deteriorate. The burn tunnels badly, requiring constant touch-ups and multiple relights. Construction falls apart while bitterness steadily increases, completely masking any potential flavor.
Final Third – By this point the experience becomes a battle rather than a pleasure. The cigar refuses to burn properly, producing acrid smoke, burnt wood, and overwhelming harshness. Every aspect of the smoking experience is compromised.
Pairings
Alcohol – Braulio Amaro (Italy) - Its alpine herbs and gentle sweetness help cleanse the palate after the cigar's relentless bitterness.
Tea – Roasted Hojicha (Japan) - Toasted, smooth, and comforting, providing a welcome contrast to the cigar's harsh finish.
Music Pairing
“Du Hast” – Rammstein
Aggressive and unforgiving, reflecting the cigar's constant struggle.
Final Thoughts
Kiskeya Torpedo is one of those rare cigars where virtually everything that could go wrong does go wrong. Construction, combustion, draw, and flavor all work against the smoker, leaving almost nothing to enjoy. It becomes an exercise in persistence rather than a pleasurable smoke.
Final Score: 1/10
Why not a 10?
Severe construction failures, inconsistent draw, constant burn problems, repeated relights, and an overwhelmingly harsh, bitter profile combined to create one of the poorest smoking experiences imaginable.