Initial Thoughts:
If you're looking for a Saint Patrick's Day cigar, you might look for something green to smoke. Well, that's just what I did earlier this year when I picked up the Drew Estate KFC Swamp Rat, a cigar with a green wrapper and a whole lotta attitude. Maybe.
The Drew Estate KFC Swamp Rat, at least initially, reminds me of the Drew Estate KFC Just a Friend we reviewed, which had a barbeque-esque smoky flavor to it. However, this Swamp Rat (and the entire “Swamp” series) has a candela wrapper over most of the body of the cigar.
After a close visual examination of the cigar, I noticed that the candela wrapper covers the entire cigar, not just the first two-thirds. Once I cut the end, the green leaf can be seen under the brown leaf covering the final third.
Once lit, the Drew Estate KFC Swamp Rat had a perfect draw right off the bat. However, despite the fire-cured tobaccos, the initial flavors were light and quite mild. After smoking the Swamp Rat for just a few minutes, I could tell things were going to get interesting.
CigarScore:
Brand: Drew Estate
Line: MUWAT / Kentucky Fire Cured / Swamp Rat
Size: 6 x 46
Cut: V-Cut
Light: Torch
Price: $6.00
Wrapper: Undisclosed Candela, Undisclosed
Binder: Undisclosed
Filler: United States (Kentucky & Virginia)
Smoke Time: 82 minutes
Through the middle of the cigar, the burn was fairly uneven and I had to re-torch the Swamp Rat multiple times. Also, through the middle of the smoke, the cigar grew in complexity and I tasted something like a Wasabi heat along with the sweetness from the Candela leaf. The first half of the cigar was pretty good, but going into the second half, I didn't like it as much.
Final Thoughts
The first half of the Drew Estate KFC Swamp Rat was pretty good. The Candela tobacco from undisclosed origins gave me distinctly clean flavors of the aftertaste of tequila.
While there were a few burn issues, the first one did remedy itself. I did, however, have to relight the cigar to even up the burn at least once. But, for a cigar that only cost $6.00 a few construction issues could be overlooked.
My problem with this Swamp Rat is similar to the problem I have with the Drew Estate Pappy Van Winkle and the regular old Drew Estate Kentucky Fire Cured. The first two-thirds of these cigars are wrapped with different tobaccos than the rest of the cigar. In the case of the Pappy, you're paying a premium for tobaccos aged in Pappy barrels. But when you change wrappers in the final third, you get a VERY different experience than you do in the first two-thirds. And, in the case of the Swamp Rat, the changes that come in the final third make the final 33% of the cigar unsmokable.
Despite carrying a decent price point, the Drew Estate KFC Swamp Rat misses the mark. Even though you don't have to pay a lot for it, this cigar can really only deliver a great experience for the first half of the smoke. Don't even waste your time with the second half, and make sure you toss it before you reach the end of the green Candela wrapper.
Because I could barely finish it, and the other reasons mentioned here, the Drew Estate KFC Swamp Rat earns a CigarScore 2.
