Stoic Equanimity Moderation | halfwheel

From a visual perspective, all three of the Stoic Equanimity Moderation cigars are fairly consistent: similar medium brown wrappers with plenty of oil, an abundance of mottling and, when I run my fingers down their lengths, some very obvious tooth. However, there are differences as well: the first cigar is extremely spongy while the other two are firm, the second cigar has more protruding veins, and the third cigar has a foot that is more of a square shape compared to the round feet of the other two cigars. Having said that, the aromas coming from all three cigars are led by a strong, sweet cedar note, followed by leather tack, creamy earth, woodiness, peanuts and sweet barnyard. Fresh sawdust is the main note emanating from the feet of the cigars, along with creamy cedar, dank earth,  toasted bread, dark chocolate, cinnamon and generic nuttiness. Cold draws are all over the place, with the first cigar dominated by a massive cocoa nibs note, the second cigar features more of a toasted cedar flavor and the final cigar full of gritty earth; regardless, all three cigars also feature additional flavors of nutmeg, coffee beans, sweet barnyard, dry hay, rich raisins and a light vegetal note.

The first third of the Stoic Equanimity Moderation starts out with a decent amount of spice on my tongue, some black pepper and an anise flavor that quickly transitions to a main combination of cloves and powdery cocoa nibs. Secondary flavors include baker’s spices, sourdough bread, creamy almonds, cedar, mulch and a light but distinct vegetal note that reminds me of raw cucumbers, and while there is plenty of spice on my tongue, it is not to the point where it would be considered overwhelming. All three cigars feature a similar but generic mineralality on the finish, but the amount of black pepper present on the retrohale varies noticeably, with the second cigar having the most and the last cigar having the least. Each of the cigars also has some sweetness as part of its retrohales, ranging from a caramel sauce note on the first and last cigars to more of a sweet cornbread note on the second cigar. Flavor ends the first third at full, while both the body and strength hit a point just under the medium mark. My first cigar needs a quick correction with my lighter to stay on track, but that is the only construction issue of note.

During the second third, the cloves note remains one of the main flavors in the profile, but the powdery cocoa nibs note is replaced by a creamy cedar note that moves up from the secondary. Additional flavors of dark chocolate, dry earth, pita bread, cinnamon, peanut butter, coffee beans and light pencil lead show up at various points, while a combination of black pepper and semisweet chocolate chip sweetness has taken over the retrohale of all three cigars. There is still plenty of spice on my tongue for the first two cigars, but that note is almost entirely missing from my last cigar. On the finish of the first cigar, a mint note becomes obvious, while the other two cigars continue to feature the same generic mineralality from the first third. Flavor remains at full and the body remains a point under medium, but the strength increases enough to land at a solid medium. Construction-wise, the burn lines are more than a little wonky for all three cigars, but none of them rise to the level of needing intervention, and there continue to be no issues with either the draws or smoke production.

During the final third, the main flavors in the profile shift again, this time to a combination of peanut butter and rich coffee beans. Secondary flavors of dry tea leaves, gritty earth, cinnamon, charred meat, cloves, cedar and toasted bread flit in and out, and all three cigars now feature a noticeable amount of spice on my tongue, with the first cigar being the strongest. The second and third cigars continue to have a mint leaf note on the finish, but the first cigar has switched to a light but generic vegetal note. On the retrohale, the amount of black pepper remains consistent with what I noted in the second third, but the semisweet chocolate chip sweetness has morphed into a lighter brown sugar sweetness on all three cigars. Flavor ends at full, the body increases to land at a solid medium and the strength for the three cigars ranges from a solid medium to medium-plus. The burn line becomes problematic enough for the first and second cigars to each need two minor touch-ups, but the last cigar is fine in that regard.

Final Notes

• When I removed the main band on each of my three cigars, I noticed that there was a plain, white band underneath with a QR code and a unique six-digit code. It turns out that every Stoic cigar has a unique ID that is tied to that specific cigar. Consumers can enter that ID code on the company website to get credit for having smoked it and earn reward points for purchasing items in the company’s only shop.
• The Stoic Cigars booth at the 2025 PCA Convention & Trade Show doubled down on the company’s Greek theme and was made up of simulated marble columns, with banners hanging in various openings printed with the information of each cigar the company has released so far.

• Beyond the construction issues I ran into during my first cigar, it also an odd-shaped ash.
• The cigars for this review were purchased by halfwheel.

• These cigars are listed as being 5 1/2 x 46 vitolas. Above are the measurements we took when we measured them.
• The final smoking time averaged out to one hour and 31 minutes for all three cigars.

Brooks Whittington

I have worn many hats in my life up to this point: I started out as a photojournalist for the Dallas Morning News and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, then transitioned to photographing weddings—both internationally and in the U.S.—for more than a decade. After realizing that there was a need for a cigar website containing better photographs and more in-depth information about each release, I founded my first cigar blog, SmokingStogie, in 2008. SmokingStogie quickly became one of the more influential cigar blogs on the internet, known for reviewing preproduction, prerelease, rare, extremely hard-to-find and expensive cigars, and it was one of the predecessors to halfwheel, which I co-founded.