Fenrir, by Family x Loyalty Cigars

En hverr ásanna sá til annars ok þótti nú vera tvau vandræði, ok vildi engi sína hönd fram selja, fyrr en Týr lét fram hönd sína hægri ok leggr í munn úlfinum. En er úlfrinn spyrnir, þá harðnaði bandit, ok því harðara er hann brauzt um, því skarpara var bandit. Þá hlógu allir nema Týr. Hann lét hönd sína. Þá er æsirnir sá, at úlfrinn var bundinn at fullu, þá tóku þeir festina, er ór var fjötrinum, er Gelgja heitir, ok drógu hana gegnum hellu mikla, - sú heitir Gjöll, - ok festu helluna langt í jörð niðr. Þá tóku þeir mikinn stein ok skutu enn lengra í jörðina, - sá heitir Þviti, - ok höfðu þann stein fyrir festarhælinn. Úlfrinn gapði ákafliga ok fekksk um mjök ok vildi bíta þá. Þeir skutu í munn honum sverði nökkuru. Nema hjöltin við neðra gómi, en efra gómi blóðrefillinn. Þat er gómsparri hans. Hann grenjar illiliga, ok slefa renn ór munni hans. Þat er á sú, er Ván heitir. Þar liggr hann til ragnarökrs."

Þá mælti Gangleri: "Furðu illa barna eign gat Loki, en öll þessi systkin eru mikil fyrir sér. En fyrir hví drápu æsir eigi úlfinn, er þeim er ills ván af honum?"

Hárr svarar: "Svá mikils virðu goðin vé sín ok griðastaði, at eigi vildu þau saurga þá með blóði úlfsins, þótt svá segi spárnar, at hann myni verða at bana Óðni."

"When the Æsir saw that the Wolf was fully bound, they took the chain that was fast to the fetter, and which is called Gleipnir, and passed it through a great rock--it is called Gjöll--and fixed the rock deep down into the earth. Then they took a great stone and drove it yet deeper into the earth--it was called Thviti--and used the stone for a fastening-pin. The Wolf gaped terribly, and thrashed about and strove to bite them; they thrust into his mouth a certain sword: the guards caught in his lower jaw, and the point in the upper; that is his gag. He howls hideously, and slaver runs out of his mouth: that is the river called Ván; there he lies till the Twilight of the Gods." 

Then said Gangleri: 'Marvellous ill children did Loki beget, but all these brethren are of great might. Yet why did not the Æsir kill the Wolf, seeing they had expectation of evil from him?" 

Hárr answered: "So greatly did the gods esteem their holy place and sanctuary, that they would not stain it with the Wolf's blood; though (so say the prophecies) he shall be the slayer of Odin."

Finally getting to my review of the last (for now) remaining blend by Family x Loyalty, Fenrir. The wolf Fenrir is the son of Loki with the giantess Angrboda, and who is fated to kill Odin at Ragnarok. The Gods, hoping to stave off Ragnarok as long as possible, devised a plan to bind Fenrir, who was growing larger, stronger, and more ravenous by the day. Twice, he broke free from the fetters they placed upon him. Finally, with the aid of the Dwarves, the Gods set out to bind the wolf with the fetter called Gleipnir, made from six impossible things: The sound of a cat’s footfall, the beard of a woman, the roots of a mountain, the sinews of a bear, the breath of a fish, and the spittle of a bird.

Fenrir was immediately wary of Gleipnir, suspecting deceit from the Gods, for the binding itself was impossibly light and thin. He assented to letting them test him once more, only if Tyr, the God who had raised him, would put his hand into the wolf’s jaws as collateral against trickery. Tyr fearlessly placed his right hand in the wolf’s mouth, and when he could not break free, Fenrir claimed that hand as promised.

And so Fenrir was bound, but he will break his fetters at Ragnarok, and in that final battle, he will kill Odin, before being killed in turn by Odin’s son, Viðarr.

But enough storytelling, let’s smoke this thing already!

Cigar: Fenrir by Family x Loyalty Cigars 

Vitola: Robusto (5” x 50)

Price: $12.99

Origin: Nicaragua

Wrapper: Nicaraguan Sumatra
Binder: Dominican Criollo 98
Filler: Nicaragua (Cubano 98 and Corojo 2006)
Body: Medium-Full

Rating (out of 10): 10

Appearance:
Fenrir stands apart from the other FxL blends with its soft box-press, shaggy-closed foot, and pigtail cap. The blue-on-silver foot band ties it to the brand overall, and the band is a bold red, with black text and knotwork.

The wrapper is smooth and oily, with nearly invisible seams, and light brown in color, with a very faint reddish tint.

I like the shaggy-closed foot on this one. It gives Fenrir the most aggressive look, appearance-wise, among all of FxL’s wolves. It’s very fitting for the wolf who is destined to kill Odin at Ragnarok.

Construction:
Perfect construction, nice amount of give between the fingers, and yet still firm. Perfectly capped, cuts easily.

Aroma:
Some nice cedar and peanut aromas along the barrel, and despite the closed foot, I still get some hits of cocoa from the end.

First Third:
Even with a closed foot, there’s enough pre-light draw to pick up hints of peanut and pepper.

A bit more pepper upon lighting, and some cedar coming in, as well.

There’s something sweet and buttery here, too. Almost like buttered popcorn.

The burn is a little rough and wavy, but even. Pristine white ash stack in its wake.

The interesting thing about the flavors I’m getting from this (peanut, butter, popcorn), is that I would expect them from a much milder smoke, but this one is dense and rich, a clear medium to full in body.

Fenrir may yet be a wolf-pup, but he’s already showing his strength.

Second Third:
Perfect burn rate. Not too fast, but it’s not taking its sweet time, either.

The pup is definitely growing in the second third, showing a little more of a peppery bite on the finish.

Cedar notes hanging out on the undertone here.

The burn remains even, though still somewhat wavy.

Final Third:
The last third is consistent in flavor, but really picks up in terms of body here. The smoke is positively chewy, and packed with flavor.

Still no touchups to the burn, no points docked for… anything, actually. Fenrir is determined to break his bonds and exact his revenge upon Odin!

Spectacular fireworks display at the end, a lot of peppery spice as Fenrir finally slips his bonds and rushes to meet Odin in the final battle!

Closing Thoughts:
Honestly, I had some trouble deciding whether to do this review on a Tuesday (related to Tyr), or a Wednesday (related to Odin). I settled on Tuesday, because, as a Lokean Heathen, Tyr’s care for Loki’s son is important.

I also just didn’t want to wait any longer.I absolutely need to find a box of these. By far my favorite of the FxL blends, and if you’ve read my other reviews, you’ll know that’s saying a lot. 

And with that, I’ve reviewed all five of the Family x Loyalty blends released thus far. Can’t wait to see what else lies in store from these guys!