Powstanie is the brand owned by Mike and Greg Szczepankewicz, who also own the retail store, Cigar Hustler, in Deltona, Florida. This cigar was released at the end of 2024 as a 500 bundle limited-edition. “We’re proud to introduce the Catastrophic Failure, a cigar that exemplifies everything Powstanie Cigars stands for,” said Mike Szczepankiewicz in a press release. “This cigar blends traditional expertise with modern innovation, making it a standout addition to our lineup.”
Under the Lid
- Origin: Nicaragua
- Factory: Fábrica de Tabacos Nica Sueño S.A.
- Wrapper: Ecuador Sumatra
- Binder: Mexican & Pennsylvania
- Filler: Dominican & Nicaraguan
- Size: 5 1/2 x 52
- MSRP: $12
- Production: Limited (500 Bundles)
Pre-Light
The Powstanie Catastrophic Failure is a box-pressed robusto extra and features a veiny and toothy wrapper that appears to be delicate and thin. The bands look a little cheap for my taste and aren’t secured all the way down, leaving an awkward flap of the edge of the band. The draw is loose, maybe a little too loose but we will see where that goes. The cold flavor I get is a warm bitterness to it that almost feels under fermented with a lough of fresh tanned leather.
First Third
As I light the cigar, I noticed that it gives off a hefty amount of smoke production with a blast of white pepper right off the foot giving it a strong rush in flavor After the first few puffs, I noticed a small tunnel already appearing in the middle of the cigar, and I noticed that the draw is off with a loss of clean suction which will certainly affect the way the cigar continues to burn.
The pepper quickly cools off and dissipates during the first third and the smoke stays relatively cool but the cigar continues to burn quickly, giving off plenty of smoke in the process. The tunneling in the middle that started in the beginning has, for the moment, slightly slowed down, but I’m not entirely sure yet if it has completely stopped. So far it’s a very dry and earthy flavor profile that leans more on the heavier and full bodied side. I’m getting burnt popcorn after it has cooled off and sat for a few hours, not stale popcorn, just really cool burnt popcorn, along with nutmeg and watered down Colombian coffee. Overall, it has a bitter flavor that some might enjoy, but so far it’s really not on my pallet.
Second Third
As I get deeper into the cigar, I do notice that I have a harder time keeping it lit, even though I am being pretty attentive to it and over the course of the cigar I have needed a couple of re-lights. There are now some more smaller pinhole tunnels in the middle of the bunch that continue to form, but overall the middle of the cigar bunch seems to be burning faster than the outer rim of binder and filler. The same bitter taste dominates the flavor with some background spice that almost gets missed if you’re also steadily drinking something with it. It is a milder jalapeño like spicy note but very muted. There is some dry walnut too that makes its way in and out but mostly this tastes like stale coffee that was watered down to begin with. Then, if you were to leave said cup of coffee on the kitchen counter, go to work and come home and sip it hours later…that would be the best way to describe what I am tasting.
Final Third
The construction on this cigar continued to burn worse the further I went. It kept burning more and more uneven, lopsided, rough, and the tunneling inside while small, continued. The cigar naturally began to burn increasingly hotter and hotter after the end of the first third but really took a turn when I got to the last third where it was almost complexly burned out. The flavor didn’t change much and made this cigar feel very one-dimensional. Between the burn issues and the flavor, there almost seemed like there was no saving this cigar from what it is ironically called, Catastrophic Failure.
Smokin Wrap
I smoked this cigar for review because I kept getting asked about it and other cigars from Powstanie lately and I wanted to go through most of them and put them to the test. So far, I was unimpressed with what I found. The only thing they got right about this cigar is the name. There are a few of their newer releases in the queue lined up, hopefully they perform better.
Smokin Facts
- Cigars were sent by Powstanie
- Powstanie does not advertise with Smokin Tabacco
- Cigars were from a limited edition release last year and have been resting for a while
- Smoking time: 1 hour 40 minutes
- Cigars Smoked for Review: Three
