About a week ago I was on the phone with a friend telling him that I was going to order some M80′s while I was riding the elevator in my building. What happened was almost comical as an older woman overheard me, and began yelling at me about fireworks being illegal. I tried to explain to her it was the name of the cigar but the woman didn’t want to hear it. This new tenant made my life hell over the next couple of days as she called the new landlord to tell him I was selling fireworks. As I was driving to work I got a call from the offices of my landlord telling me that if I am selling fireworks I would be evicted and reported to the police. I told the office this was the name of a cigar, and the woman made something out of nothing because she only heard part of a personal phone call. Over and done with right? Wrong!. The next day one of the partners that own the building called me saying he never heard of the cigar and he was a cigar smoker. Well after convincing him to call Two Guys Smoke Shop to ask about the M80 he relented and I haven’t heard from him since.
The M80 is a limited edition cigar made for 2 Guys Smoke Shop in New Hampshire. Rumor has it the blend of the cigar is based to the T110 which is popular among Tatuaje collectors.
Cigar: Tatuaje M80
Size: 4 x 58
Wrapper: Ecuador Habano Maduro
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua
Strength: Full
Number Smoked: 3
Tatuaje M80
Appearance and Construction: Part of the Exclusive Series, the Tatuaje M80 sports the Rocky Balboa championship belt with M80 in the center. The Ecuadorian wrapper has a nice amount of oils with a nice firm roll that is flawless. The cigar is topped off with a long fuse like cap that runs under the band and for shits and giggles I’ve smoked part of the fuse until the band had to come off. The foot is well packed, and for a small cigar there is a nice weight to the stick.
Tatuaje M80 Foot
Flavors & Notes: Once I clipped the cap there were notes of red pepper, and a faint chocolate sweetness in the background on the cold draw and the foot. Once the cigar is lit you are greeted by some in your face notes of pepper that fade some after a 1/4 of an inch. As we work into the first third notes become a subtle chocolate and an abundance of leather. As we enter the second third of the smoke some notes of wood develop, with pepper notes overtaking the leather of the first third. The final third becomes a bit more complex as the notes of wood are joined by some licorice, leather and some chocolate
Tatuaje M80 First 3rd
Smoking Characteristics: Of the 3 samples I smoked to date they all had one thing in common, I had to touch it up a bit in the last third, right where the band was as they all had a piece of fuse stuck to the cigar where the “glue” is used to hold the band in place. Other than that, the cigar had a nice ash, although slightly flaky. The draw was excellent and the stick produced a nice volume of smoke.
Tatuaje M80 Second 3rd
Conclusion: An M80 is a quarter of a stick of dynamite, and is maybe a little smaller than this cigar. They create a big bang, and do not wow onlookers with an explosion of colors. The same can be said for this cigar, as it has a nice strength, and a bit of a nicotine kick. However it fails to impress when compared to so many other cigars that Tatuaje has on the market. If you like full strength smokes, this one should be right in your wheelhouse.
Tatuaje M80 Last 3rd
Rating: 87
Price: $7.99
