Match M11 carried direct advancement consequences in Group B. Warped Corto entered at 1-1 after recovering from its opening loss to Oliva Serie V Melanio Figurado with a half-point victory over Rocky Patel Sixty. Blackened S84 Shade to Black stood at 0-1 after its tournament debut against Oliva.
Warped could secure second place and a Top 16 berth with a win. Blackened needed a victory to keep its own path alive. The matchup paired Corto's compact, full-strength Corojo expression with S84's medium-bodied shade-over-Maduro design, two boutique cigars produced in Esteli but built around very different ideas of intensity.
Four categories ended level, and Blackened never scored below 4.5. Warped created the entire one-point margin through two perfect marks: a 5.0 draw and 5.0 flavor complexity. Those advantages turned an otherwise even contest into the victory that completed Corto's group-stage recovery.
Matchup at a Glance
| Category | Warped Corto | Blackened S84 Shade to Black |
|---|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Warped Cigars | Drew Estate |
| Origin | Nicaragua | Nicaragua |
| Wrapper | Nicaraguan shade-grown Jalapa Corojo '99 | Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade |
| Binder | Nicaraguan | Connecticut River Valley Broadleaf Maduro |
| Filler | Nicaraguan Corojo '99 and Criollo '98 | Nicaraguan Maduro and Pennsylvania Broadleaf Maduro |
| Factory | TABSA, Esteli, Nicaragua | La Gran Fabrica Drew Estate, Esteli, Nicaragua |
| Vitola | X46, 4.5 x 46, box-pressed | Robusto, 5 x 50 |
| Strength | Full | Medium |
| Ashology score | 28.0/30 - Excellent | 27.0/30 - Premium |
| M11 result | Winner | Loss |
Warped began with cedar, hay, citrus peel and sweet tobacco. Bright cedar and white pepper moved into cream, toasted bread and subtle citrus. Almond, earth, light coffee and honey-like sweetness broadened the middle before stronger pepper, roasted nuts and espresso drove a clean, lively close.
Blackened opened with sweet hay, cedar, pepper and mild cocoa. Creamy cedar, light pepper and toasted grain established a softer first third. Coffee, earth and roasted nuts added weight in the center, then pepper and charred wood intensified as the finish became spicier and drier.
S84's Ecuadorian Connecticut Shade wrapper softened a dark core of Connecticut River Valley Broadleaf Maduro binder and Maduro fillers. Corto took the opposite route: a shade-grown Jalapa Corojo '99 wrapper and compact X46 format that made its citrus, sweetness, coffee and spice feel brighter and more immediate.
Where the Matchup Was Decided
Construction, burn, balance and finish all ended 4.5 to 4.5. Blackened's consistency kept the contest close, while Warped's matching scores prevented S84 from gaining ground in technical performance, harmony or the final impression.
Warped won two categories; four categories tied.
Corto earned a perfect 5.0 draw against Blackened's 4.5. The controlled resistance and steady smoke delivery suited the smaller box-pressed format and created the first half-point advantage.
Warped added another 5.0 in flavor complexity while S84 again scored 4.5. Its progression from bright cedar, citrus and cream to honeyed nuts, coffee, pepper and espresso gave the scorecard its only other point of separation.
With four ties and no Blackened category win, the calculation was direct: Warped gained half a point on draw and half a point on complexity. The two perfect scores produced the complete one-point margin, 28.0 to 27.0.
Official Result: Warped Corto Wins Match M11
Warped Corto defeated Blackened S84 Shade to Black and finished Group B at 2-1. The victory secured second place in Boutique Power and sent Corto into the Top 16 behind undefeated group winner Oliva Serie V Melanio Figurado.
Warped's tournament ended in M49 against eventual champion Padrón 60th Anniversary Perfecto. Its 2-2 overall record and Top 16 finish completed a strong recovery after the opening loss to Oliva.
Blackened fell to 0-2 and was eliminated from advancement contention. S84 later lost to Rocky Patel Sixty in M12 and finished 0-3, but its balanced 27-point evaluation showed that the final record came from narrow disadvantages in a demanding group rather than a weak tournament-grade cigar.
Final Ashology Verdict
Blackened S84 delivered one of the field's most inventive wrapper-to-core contrasts. Cream, cedar and toasted grain gave way to coffee, earth, Maduro depth, pepper and charred wood. Six scores of 4.5 reflected a dependable, well-rounded performance with no poor category.
Warped Corto matched that dependability, then went one step further where the profile could separate itself. The perfect draw let the compact cigar smoke with control, and the perfect complexity score rewarded a more animated progression.
M11 was decided by excellence above an already high baseline. Blackened supplied consistency across the full scorecard; Warped supplied two exceptional qualities. Those two half-point gains clinched the match, second place in Group B and Corto's place among the final sixteen.
Tasting notes reflect the cigars and vitolas evaluated during the 2026 competition. Flavor, strength and burn performance may vary based on storage, age, vitola and individual palate. Tobacco products are intended only for adults of legal smoking age.