Brand overview
With a penchant for music-theme cigars, Crowned Heads once again lays down a rhythmic backbeat with the Headley Grange Black Dog.
The first line of the Headley Grange brand was an audacious attempt by Jon Huber and his talented team to create a cigar that channeled the echoey, thunderous groove produced by drummer John Bonham at the beginning of Led Zeppelin’s “When The Levee Breaks”. The song was also recorded at the supposedly haunted former Victorian workhouse of the same name (Headley Grange), which went on to become an iconic recording studio.
The Black Dog part of this exclusive line extension comes from another track on Zeppelin’s monolithic fourth album. Inspired by a nameless black Labrador retriever that wandered around Headley Grange during the recording of the album, I was expecting a smoke with real pedigree.
Huber turned to stogie guru (and former drummer) Ernesto Perez-Carrillo to snare the unique blend inside the jet black Connecticut Habano wrapper. This is a pleasant change-up from the Ecuadorian Sumatra used on the original, with its dark, oily appearance correlating nicely with the raucous canine rocker that gives it its name.
Underneath, the Nicaraguan binder and filler remain the same.
Cigar Specs
- Country of Origin: Dominican Republic
- Strength: Medium
- Wrapper: Connecticut Habano
- Binder: Nicaraguan
- Filler: Nicaraguan
- Smoke Time: 105 minutes
- Sizes Available:
- Dobles (6.12 x 50)
- Estupendos (5.5 x 52)
- Laguito No. 6 (6.5 x 56)
- 6-Cigar Assortment
Cold draw
The cold draw was slightly tight but still perfectly smokeable. I picked up some sweet hay and barnyard as I took in the cigar.
There were also some sweet aromas of chocolate and cherry coming off the foot at this point, but sadly they didn’t pull through when I put the stick to my lips.
Flavor profile: first third
The call and response dynamic that anchors the song is also prevalent in the opening stages of the smoke. There was a mouthwatering intro of dark, bitter chocolate, ably backed up by a flurry of creamy notes.
Every time these sweeter flavor components increased in character, they sparked a mix of subtle spices into life. That being said, there was a bold blast of pepper on the nose thrown in for good measure.
Flavor profile: second third
Things started to turn musty and earthy in the second third, as a hint of hazelnut cut through the sweetness with its nutty and toasted nuances. The pepper in the retrohale had also toned itself down, making for a much more balanced and intricate profile.
Notable flavors in the second third include leather and hay, but I was simply astounded at how this cigar had upped its complexity to crash all areas of my palate.
Flavor profile: final third
Earthiness remained the leader of the pack as the body continued to get fuller. The dark chocolate began to rock ‘n’ roll again, punctuated by espresso bean and that trusty pepper.
It never once felt particularly acidic or bitter, but the natural tobacco sweetness that unveiled itself on the backend was the perfect encore.
Conclusion
Living up to its name, there’s plenty of bite to the Black Dog’s flavors. It provides delicious notes of chocolate and hay, which then evolved into more robust fills including leather, cracked pepper, and some deep spice.
The complex progression throughout the smoke was reminiscent of the chaotic blend of riffs and time signatures that bookmark the song as a classic in Zep’s back catalog.
Like walking your pup in the park, Black Dog is a thoroughly enjoyable full-bodied cigar that develops beautifully as the smoke progresses. Available now in packs of five or boxes of 20 from Cigars.com.