The name “Baez” was selected from a small town in Cuba from where Jose “Pepin” Garcia was born. This cigar, a cuban seed creation from the My Father farm, is considered a medium strength cigar.

Unusually light and less-peppery than other stoagies from Peppin, the taste of this cigar is quite smooth with a smokey wood quality and a quick sweetness around the tongue. A slight pepper does remain on the middle and back of the tongue afterwards. I think there’s a hint of a black licquorice taste as well. Retrohaling brings out a note of citrus sweetness, but evokes more of the light pepper too.

The aroma is great; mildly hot to the nose but not strong, it carries a sweet tobacco quality, maybe containing caramel and some sugar like scents. There’s a nice herbal layer as well as rich earthy tones. It’s a nice adventurous blend.

Overall the cigar smokes consistently form start to finish. It’s enjoyable, but not worth the $7.50 a piece price. If it was lower, I’d love a box for daily smoking as it is fairly mild to medium and easy to enjoy with a satisfying aftertaste.