Saunter - By Gellis Family Cigars

The Leaf

Country of Origin: Dominican Republic

Factory: Tabacalera La iSla

Wrapper: Ecuador (Connecticut-seed)

Binder: Ecuador

Filler: Dominican Republic & Nicaragua

Size: 5 1/4 x 48

Body: Medium

Strength: Mild-Medium

Purchased At: Privided by Creekside Cigar Co.

Personal Rating: 8.25 / 10 — A Solid Companion

If you like this, you might also like: HVC Hot Cakes, Tatuaje Havana VI (Red Label), Illusione Epernay

What We Do Here

The beauty of cigars isn’t just in the smoke... it’s in the ritual, the memory, the lore. Each review starts with the basics: how it smokes, how it tastes, whether it’s worth lighting up again or buying a box. Then, for those chasing the full story, we peel back the layers, deeper notes, subtleties, and the craft behind the leaf. At the end, we leave you with a little folklore to match the mood. Because around here, the smoke always carries a story.

Casual Take

Saunter is an easy going smoke that offers a little more than first meets the eye. It starts with flavors of toasted bread and cinnamon, balanced by a soft pepper on the retrohale. The burn is razor sharp and the ash clings on, holding strong for nearly half the cigar before dropping. As it develops, notes of damp wood and espresso bitterness come through, with a touch more pepper near the end. This one is smooth, steady, and reliable, a cigar that feels at home in any humidor.

Deep Burn

The Saunter opens with flavors that are warm and familiar. Toasted white bread leads the way, sometimes tipping into sourdough, paired with a gentle layer of black pepper. There is a background creaminess that ebbs in and out, giving the profile a soft texture against the toast and spice.

Moving into the second third, pepper begins to play a larger role, especially noticeable on the retrohale and through the ambient smoke. Damp wood and earthiness add depth, joined by espresso bitterness that sharpens the edges of the profile. The body builds here, leaning more toward medium, while still keeping strength on the mild side.

The final third gets heartier, with roasted coffee and charred wood taking hold. The sourdough note resurfaces in flashes, adding an interesting twist before giving way again to espresso and black pepper. Construction remains excellent, with an even burn and impressive ash retention. The finish is grounded, earthy, and lightly bitter, leaving a lasting impression without overwhelming the palate.

The Heart of the Leaf

Saunter feels like a fitting name. This cigar does not rush or demand, it walks with you. It offers moments of sweetness, bitterness, spice, and creaminess, never straying too far from balance. While it may not chase fireworks, its consistency, construction, and approachable flavor make it a worthy addition to any rotation. At 8.25, this is a Solid Companion, the kind of cigar you can lean on when you want something steady, flavorful, and reliable.

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The Lore

The word saunter carries more weight than it seems at first. It traces back to old stories about wanderers and pilgrims, people who walked not to cover ground but to take in the path under their feet. Some say it came from medieval pilgrims “à la sainte terre,” those bound for the Holy Land, even if most never got farther than the next town. They weren’t rushing. They were just searching for meaning in the spaces between each step.

Later, writers like Thoreau picked up the word, praising the art of walking slowly and letting the world reveal itself piece by piece. A bird darting across the road. The smell of pine warming in the sun. Gravel crunching underfoot. To saunter is to resist urgency and enjoy the pace of discovery.

This cigar feels the same way. It doesn’t jump out with wild flavors or sharp twists. Instead, it hangs with you. Bread, wood, coffee, a little pepper, a little espresso. Nothing forced, just steady. Like walking with a good friend who knows how to enjoy the silence, Saunter reminds you that not every journey needs a destination. Sometimes the whole point is the walk itself, slow and deliberate, one step at a time.

Lighting this cigar feels like joining that tradition. You’re not racing toward the end. You’re just moving, one draw at a time, letting it show you what it has along the way.

The cigar in this review was a gift to me.

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