Sweet Woods Leaf

The cigar market is incredibly ripe for lovers of the leaf. Cigar connoisseurs, as well as newbies, are spoilt for choice. Age old brands are keeping the aficionados content with rich, full-bodied cigars that would take a newbie’s head right off. On the other hand, newer brands are churning mild, flavor-filled, mass market cigars to appeal to the newbies and occasional smokers.

The demand for cigars is at an all-time high. Cigar companies are enjoying heights of 20 percent increase in sales yearly while those that cannot keep up are drowning in back orders. With this growth influx, new companies with a great product find it easy to break into the market. Good Times is one such company.

Good Times is a relatively new company in the cigar market. They are the makers of Sweet Woods, #HD, Good Times, Little and Wild, 4Ks, Remington, and City Life cigar brands. Good Times cigars are slowly emerging as a formidable competitor in the discount cigar market with their natural leaf wrappers and authentic Dominican natural tobacco fillers. Top among Good Times best-selling brands is Sweet Woods.

About Sweet Woods

Sweet Woods consists of a variety of delectable flavor-infused cigars which enthusiasts are increasingly finding irresistible. These cigars feature exotic Dominican short fillers wrapped in a Connecticut broadleaf wrapper. For the most part, Sweet Woods cigars look sloppy and unfinished, but that is part of their rustic charm. They measure 4.25 x 30.25 ring gauge which technically makes them cigarillos.

The Sweet Woods brand includes flavors like Honey Berry, Russian Cream, Rum River, Golden Honey, Sweet Aromatic, Platinum Unsweet, and Cognac. My experience with these cigars has been divine. Sure, they are mass market and machine rolled, but they are also incredibly satisfying smokes with a clean, smooth tobacco finish. Among my favorite picks in the Sweet Woods category is the Russian Cream, and this is why I chose it for my review.

Prelight

My Russian Cream is slightly spongy, dark brown, and veiny with visible seams. As earlier stated, Sweet Woods cigars are rough around the edges. My stogie has bits of tobacco sticking out of the head and an erratic finish which resembles a hand-rolled cigar.

The wrapper is not evenly colored. It has darker patches, but this is normal with natural leaf wrappers. It gives off notes of chocolatey cream with hints of liquor and sweet tobacco. My cold draw reveals infused sweetness on the wrapper, dry hay, and cedar on the palate. The draw is snug though not labored.

The wrapper is not at all oily though it feels buttery and dry velvety.

First Half

Since this is a little cigar, I will not be reviewing it in thirds as I usually do.

My first draw is slightly airy with just the right amount of resistance. For a cigar that appears to be loosely packed, this draw is quite impressive. I am accosted by a tornado of cream-filled caramel notes on a bed of rich espresso.

The smoke is smooth, and the kick is mild. Smoke output is satisfactory though not over the top. The burn line struggles to hold up. Word of advice, before you light up one of these stogies cut off the sloppy tobacco fillers that are sticking out of the top. This will help your burn line stay decent especially at the beginning. Those erratic fillers tend to run haywire and make your burn line shaky.

A few draws in and my Russian Cream settles into a creamy comingling of dry grass, liquor, sweet caramel, and basic tobacco flavors. The front of the palate is awash with nuances of toasted almonds and mocha backed by the sweet disposition from the infused wrapper while fleeting brown sugar, vodka, earth, and aromatic tobacco flavors hold down the fort.

Final Half

There are no flavor transitions as my Russian Cream trudges on but then again, this is a mass market cigar, and that means it does not try much to be something it isn’t, like a premium smoke.

The burn is quite decent. I am approximately 15 minutes in and the ash is clean, silver grey, and holds up to about an inch. Dominant flavors include cream, roasted coffee, caramel, liquor, and dry wood.

I would like to say that this cigar is slow burning, but that simply isn’t true. Towards the nub, the burn increases and the cigar ran hot. I attribute this to the airy build. However, there was never any harshness or bitterness throughout the smoke.

My Russian Cream held on to its creaminess all throughout. It was a pleasant experience lasting a little over half an hour.

A Little Insight into The Sweet Woods Brand

As earlier mentioned, the Sweet Woods brand is a Good Times creation. Good Times was founded in 2008 which makes it a very new company in the cigar business.

Sweet Woods and other Good Times cigar brands were created to compete with other mass market cigars. Formidable brands like Swisher Sweets, Backwoods, Game Leaf, Garcia y Vega’s 1882, and Dutch Masters are already feeling the impact of Sweet Woods.

Good Times capitalizes on the fact that mass market cigar smokers are convenience smokers who are likely to buy what they find in the nearest store. This is why Sweet Woods are in corner stores, gas stations, cigar bars, and online shops all over.

How Does Sweet Woods Russian Cream Compare to Backwoods Russian Cream?

In my experience, both Russian Cream brands are delicious. Perhaps the only difference is the Backwoods Russian Cream is moister than the Sweet Woods Russian Cream.

Many smokers prefer Sweet Woods Russian Cream because it serves their cause well and comes at the very affordable price of 2 for 99 cents. Backwoods sells a single cigar for a buck fifty which is pricey.

Sweet Woods, in my opinion, are a great everyday smoke and definitely worth a try.