Nat Sherman Epoca Admiral
📌 Brand: Nat Sherman
📌 Line: Epoca
📌 Size: Admiral (5" × 50) Robusto
📌 Weight: 13.6 g
📌 Age: 7 years
📌 Origin: Dominican Republic
Tasting Notes
Cream – Soft, elegant foundation
Toasted Bread – Classic vintage-style warmth
Cedar – Clean, restrained woodiness
White Pepper – Gentle, refined retrohale
First Impressions
The Epoca Admiral carries an old-world charm: smooth, lightly tanned Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, perfect seams, and a soft sheen. Pre-light aromas show cream, hay, and faint toast. Cold draw is near-ideal, offering soft sweetness with a touch of pepper.
Smoking Experience
First Third – Cream and toasted bread shine immediately. Cedar enters gently, pepper stays subtle. Burn line is crisp and composed.
Second Third – Strength lifts slightly, creaminess deepens, and retrohale brings brighter white pepper. Construction remains excellent.
Final Third – Cedar becomes drier, pepper livens up, and the cigar requires one relight to continue. Flavors remain refined, never harsh.
Pairings
Alcohol – Bunnahabhain 12 Year (Scotland, Islay — unpeated) - Smooth sherry sweetness, fruit, and light nuttiness perfectly echo the cigar’s creamy, vintage profile without overpowering it.
Tea – Sri Lankan Uva Highland Black Tea - Bright and aromatic, with brisk character that freshens the palate and heightens the toasted-bread notes.
Music Pairing
“Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” – Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell
Uplifting, perfectly balanced — matches the cigar’s smooth elegance.
Final Thoughts
The Nat Sherman Epoca Admiral is smooth, creamy, and charmingly old-school — a refined Dominican profile with great balance. A single relight in the last third briefly interrupted an otherwise harmonious experience, but the cigar remained classy throughout.
Final Score: 9/10
Why not a 10?
A relight in the final stretch broke the flow and slightly muted the smooth, consistent evolution.
Only cigars that deliver flawless draw, balance, flavour evolution, construction and satisfaction get a 10.