At The Pipe and Pint, we’re always looking for better ways to talk about the cigars we love—beyond just strength and flavor notes. For our new cigar review segment, we’re excited to introduce a familiar and trusted framework: the T8ke Bourbon Rating Scale. Originally developed for bourbon reviews but easily adaptable for cigars, this scale focuses on balance, complexity, construction, and overall enjoyment rather than chasing perfection. By adopting this approach, our goal is to give you more consistent, transparent, and meaningful cigar reviews—whether you’re deciding what to light up next or exploring something new.

First cigar in the hopper for review is the Aj Fernandez New World Decenio. Marking a decade of one of AJ Fernandez’s most celebrated cigar lines, the New World Decenio is a thoughtful blend that pays homage to ten years of bold, flavor-forward smokes from one of Nicaragua’s foremost blenders. Decenio is offered in multiple classic box-pressed sizes — including Robusto(5 1/2 x 54), Toro(6 1/2 x 54), and Gordo(6 x 58) — all showcasing a dark, oily Mexican San Andrés Maduro wrapper over a robust combination of Nicaraguan and Honduran long fillers with a Nicaraguan binder.

Right from the first light, the Decenio presents a medium-full strength and body that’s rich without being overwhelming. Initial draws give up dark chocolate, espresso, and big black pepper spice, with earthiness and hints of toasted oak — a profile familiar to AJ’s fans but elevated here with a creamy texture and elevated complexity.

At about 15 minutes, the cigar settles in, the pepper, spice, and espresso notes mellow gently, letting leather, mesquite, and sweet cocoa into the profile. The second third holds this balance and complexity well, and flavor and strength linger around medium-full. The black pepper note transitions more to the retrohale, and a nice caramel brown sugar note pops in and out. Construction is solid with a reliable draw and perfect smoke production, though it required a burn line touch-up — hardly a dealbreaker, but worth noting.

Into the final third, the Decenio stays true to its early profile, with flavor intensity ramping up slightly. Now sitting around full but still very well balanced. The overall experience is rich in flavor, bold and spicy, but complex enough to keep you coming back.  Zero construction issues to note outside of the single burn correction just before the halfway mark.

I smoked and took notes while smoking through 2 of these cigars on separate days (both robusto). I averaged a smoke time of about an hour and 15 minutes.  Final rating comes to an 8.1 on the T8ke scale. A cigar like the Decenio checks all the right boxes for me personally: strength without being overwhelming; complexity to keep me interested; and near-perfect construction.  AJ knocked it out of the park celebrating the 10th anniversary of the New World brand.

RATING 8.1