Ezra Zion Tantrum PA
In 2013, Ezra Zion released the Tantrum with very high accolades from a broad spectrum of people. I really enjoyed the Tantrum and I gave it high rankings in 2013. The only drawback to the Tantrum was it was too short for me as it left me wanting more! Following the original Tantrum comes the Tantrum PA. The Tantrum PA is similar to the original Tantrum, yet composed of completely different tobaccos. The PA stands for “Passive Aggressive”. Available in only one size and limited to only 700 boxes of 28.
 
Cigar Stats
Size: 6.5×44
Wrapper: Cuban Seed Corojo ’99
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaraguan
Factory: TABSA
Country: Nicaraguan
MSRP: $9.95/ea $278.60/box  Â
 
First Looks
This is a fairly good looking boz pressed cigar. The wrapper is smooth and there are not many veins, if so they are minimal and pressed into the leaf. The band, like all other Ezra Zions is a classy one. I like the contrast with the silver and matte gray colors of the band adorned by what I can tell is angels (although I am sure they are something other than angels, but my mind is failing me now.) The foot has a nice aroma of graham crackers, cinnamon and a hint of a nutmeg spice. The cold draw has a small bit of resistance and has a few of the flavors detected in the foot aroma. But the nutmeg spice is a bit stronger and the graham cracker note is lesser.
Construction
I like the looks and functionality of a box pressed cigar, but the box press plays havoc on the burn of the cigar. There were times the burn got off in the cigar, but a watchful eye kept it at bay. The draw stayed consistently good. There was a slight bit of resistance, but not enough to stray me away. I couldn’t get an ash to hold very much over 1/2 to 3/4″. The ashes had various gray tones to it with a few flakes here and there.
Flavor
The first portion of the cigar has a nice sweetness with some dark woody notes. A little ways in, I notice the sweetness has a nice bit of vanilla accompanying it as well as a new found spice in the mix as well. Heading out of the first third, I am really enjoying the smoke when a new flavor appears; a thick-like caramel. The caramel adds a bit more smoothness and sweetness to the smoke.
Coming into the middle portion of the cigar, I notice there is quite a bit of smoke coming from this cigar. Being such a smallish ring gauge, I figured there wouldn’t be as much smoke. The dark wood from before is now a bit stronger than before. The caramel is still hanging in the mix, but the sweetness has subsided a bit. Towards the middle, there is a cocoa flavor that appears, a slight hint of salt is added to the caramel, as well as a inclining body level. Heading out of the middle portion, I start to notice a bit of leather creeping up into the flavor profile.
Rounding third, and heading home with the Tantrum PA, the leather gets a bit stronger, the caramel, vanilla, cocoa and sweetness is lessening. The flavors are getting a bit more on the darker side than previously. The dark leather is now accompanied by a charred oak note that is trying to overpower the sweetness, cocoa and the salted caramel. Eventually, the charred oak & leather did overpower the sweetness, but not so much the cocoa and caramel. Right at the end, the vanilla tries to make a come back, but doesn’t fully succeed as the charred oak still is stronger. With all that being said, that is how the cigar ends.
Final Thoughts
As much as I liked the original Tantrum, I really liked the Tantrm PA. There were various similarities between the tow cigars as well as differences. The lower full strengthed flavors with a medium to full body was much appreciated. The sweet vanilla, dark wood, cocoa and cedary spice all mingled well and I really enjoyed it. The construction was spot on for being a box pressed cigar. The only drawback I have with this cigar is the short ashes. I dropped a few on my lap and eventually learned to tap it off shorter than usual. This is a really complex cigar with great flavors, pretty good construction and no major drawbacks. That’s why the Ezra Zion Tantrum PA gets high regards from me and ranked fairly high on my 2014 Cigars of the Year List. If you can come across one (or more) of these cigars, I highly suggest you try them.
*This cigar was provided to me, unsolicited, from the guys at Ezra Zion for this review.  Many thanks to those great people for the opportunity to review this cigar!
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