A few weeks ago we picked up a new cigar from the fine folks at JC Newman. The Perla del Mar, which literally means Pearl of the Sea, comes in four sizes and for today's review I will be sampling the P which is a 3 3/4  X  56 shorty.

Upon first inspection the Perla del Mar P is a tightly constructed, box-pressed cigar. Its square shape, though very tight, invites me to use a punch to pierce the cap in preparation of putting flame to stick.  The wrapper has a little toothiness, with a nice sized vein running from foot to cap.

I take my time toasting the foot, as to make sure it gets off to a good start. Being such a short cigar, any burn problem related to operator error would not have much time to sort itself out.

After lighting and taking my initial puffs the first thing I notice about the cigar is the tight draw. This has little effect as the cigar provides plenty of thick creamy smoke. There is a little earthiness that I attribute to the wrapper, but it's milder than what one gets from Connecticut wrapper grown here in the USA. I find the Ecuadorian "cloud-grown" tobacco to be a little nuttier and less grassy than its American cousin.

The Nicaraguan binder and filler give the cigar a nice underlying bite that I would rate at medium strength, definitely a step down from its Brickhouse brethren.  There is a mild spice to the cigar, which, in my opinion, hovers closer to the sweet side of the flavor wheel. There is a little pepper, but it is minimal.

Anticipating this to be a mild cigar, I decided to pour a little scotch to go with the Perla del Mar. I usually drink nothing but water when I do reviews, but I thought that once I hit the final third I would wash the final puffs down with a splash of 21 year old Balvenie Portwood. As I approached the halfway mark of the cigar I decided two things. First: though milder than I usually prefer, the cigar had enough kick to stand on its own. Second: I could no longer let that scotch sit on the table daring me to drink it. I obliged and prematurely picked up the glass and took a few sips.

It's amazing what a little scotch did to the experience. The subtle peatiness of the scotch intensified the pepper notes and pulled the cigar away from the sweet spectrum. I would almost be willing to bet that a glass of cognac or well-aged rum would make the cigar gravitate more towards the sweet side. I guess I will have to give that a shot after I pick up a few more of these little guys.

The cigar finished well and, although it burned a little uneven, it did correct itself. It took me 45 minutes to complete this little cigar, but I did take my time, probably the reason that the burn corrected itself. This cigar could be easily enjoyed in 30 minutes, so this could be the perfect smoke for that half hour lunch or that quick cup of coffee in the morning.

I haven't seen a lot of info on this cigar, as it is still fairly new, but I’m certain that most reviewers will rate this as a medium to full bodied cigar in strength, while I consider it a solid medium. No matter the strength, this is a great little smoke and one that everyone should have in there humidor and lunchbox. Even if the world isn't your oyster, at least you can still have a pearl.

Long Ashes,

Chris Gwaltney

ABC Fine Wine & Spirits regional manager in Jacksonville. Follow him on Twitter @chrisgnole