Cigar Review: Serino The Expat Passport Toro

Initial Thoughts:

Some cigars have a closed foot. Some cigars have a shaggy foot. And each option can change how a cigar starts.

However, today’s cigar, the Serino The Expat Passport Toro has an interesting foot. In the case of this Serino The Expat, the wrapper leaf starts about 3/4 of an inch from the bottom, and I suspect that the first 10 minutes of this cigar will taste wildly different from the rest.

Putting the foot to torch, the initial flavors were fairly bold and spicy. Even though I got a good cut, the Expat seemed to have a tight draw.

CigarScore:

Brand: Serino
Line: The Expat
Size: 5 7/8 x 50
Cut: V-Cut
Light: Torch
Price: $Unknown – CigarClub.com

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano 2000 Oscuro
Binder: Nicaraguan Criollo ’98 (Jalapa)
Filler: Nicaraguan Criollo ’98 (Jalapa), Nicaraguan Corojo ’98 (Jalapa), Nicaraguan Criollo ’98 (Esteli)
Smoke Time: n/a

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Through the middle of the Serino The Expat Passport Toro, the draw continued to be tight, and I didn’t love that. Additionally, the burn that was fairly uneven due to the missing wrapper at the foot continued to be uneven through the middle of the smoke. However, the flavors were pretty good and tasted very roasted.

Final Thoughts

Uneven burn. Impossibly tight draw. Flavors that a little sour, a little bitter, and somewhat burnt, and really aren’t all that good. That was my experience with the Serino The Expat Passport Toro.

For almost the entire cigar I struggled with the draw. The burn was uneven from the very beginning, despite torching the cigar to even it up. When I could get a decent enough draw to taste the cigar, I didn’t like the flavors I got.

After 45 minutes of struggle with this cigar, I threw in the towel and called it a day. I couldn’t finish this one.

And yes, while I can hope I got a lemon, I cannot review this cigar based on what I think it could or should have been. And because this experience was fairly bad in every single aspect, and because I couldn’t even finish it, the Serino The Expat Passport Toro earns a CigarScore 1.

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Author: Ellory Wells

Ellory is a serial entrepreneur and founder of CigarScore.com. After he started a successful coaching and consulting business in 2014 and a web design company in 2015, he now starts and builds businesses to help make the world a better place.

6 responses to “Cigar Review: Serino The Expat Passport Toro”

Greg Dowler

July 5, 2021

I received my Expat from Cigar Club as well in June and smoked it tonight. I was expecting the worse after reading your review—but, I had a totally different experience! The draw was very good and the burn even. The smoke was robust on a humid (unusual) Arizona evening after an evening Monsoon rain. I think you had a lemon. Flavor was there. Try it again!

CigarScore

July 5, 2021

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Hey Greg! Thank you for watching the review and leaving a comment. I’m sure I did get a lemon, but you know how that goes. I just got another box from Cigar Club; hopefully, you’ll watch the unboxing after I open it =)

Have a great week!

Steve F.

July 18, 2021

I’m smoking one that I received in March from cigar club.com and really enjoying it. I’m getting earth, baking spices, cocoa and brown sugar through the first two-thirds so it sounds like you got a real lemon.
My only criticism is that I can’t figure out how to buy more of them – I’m enjoying it that much.

Thanks for your review though. You really worked for it.

Eric

July 28, 2021

I received the expat a few weeks ago. I agree with the other two comments….I think you got a lemon. I was smoking it while looking at your review and had a totally different experience. The draw was tight at first but it got much better and the burn was even. I will definitely try another one.

CigarScore

August 1, 2021

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Hey Eric! Glad you had a different and better experience than me. I sure do seem to get a lot of “lemons.” Thanks for watching and commenting!