The Petit Poemas is proof that Byron’s greatness doesn’t require a long afternoon to reveal itself. At just 4×50, this is the most compact expression of the Serie Siglo XIX — Byron’s 19th Century line, the one that reaches deepest into the brand’s Cuban roots and the boldest of the three Century blends. Rolled at Tabacos de Costa Rica and aged a full year in those legendary cedar-lined humidors of Cuban, Spanish, Mexican, Brazilian, and Lebanese wood, it packs every bit of the 19th Century character into a format that clocks right around an hour. The dark, chocolate-brown Ecuadorian Habano wrapper is smooth and oily with barely visible seams, construction that would pass muster at any elite factory in the world. From first light it delivers an intense, complex profile of leather, cedar, honey wheat bread, molasses, cocoa powder, pepper, and a lingering sweetness on the finish that cycles through the smoke from start to nub. This is the cigar that earned Byron a 96-point rating — a number that makes even more sense once you understand what Nelson Alfonso built into a 4-inch frame.
