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I was fortunate in getting both some banded Partagas Lusitanias Gran Reserva Cosecha 2007 released in 2013 ( that is : presented, it's not out in the stores yet for a long time ) and some more un-banded from the first production release at this year's XV Festival. I was also fortunate in smoking the cigar in Havana before its official presentation at the Gala dinner with my friend Frank - who has sent me a detailed review for my blog which has been posted. We both liked the cigar a lot. Here's a review I did last night with 2 good friends : Andreas, my pharmacist, and Hans met for another session of the Monday Classics ( only that it happened on a Sunday evening ) at the office and while I provided three sticks of the Lusitania Gran Reserva fresh from Havana, Andreas provided the tasting counterpart, three well cured samples of the regular Lusitania dating from 2003 and box coded TDV OCT 2003 - and then some amazing Bordeaux wines and a Cognac "bomb". We started with the 2013 Lusitania Gran Reserva. Here are the notes to that cigar : Quite dry, fragile wrapper ( might be the temperature shock ), very floral and sweet on the nose. Typical Partagas taste, strong, earthy, honest cigar. Perfect everything - construction, burn, draw. Amazing wrapper. A&H considers the cigar strong - I consider it light and balanced. A&H : Like a young boxer eager to hit. A : Nicotine goes straight to the palate. Hans agrees. N : Young, not yet harmonious but very close to it. A&H : Has character - defined & specific character. A : Cigar becomes more settled in second third, very balanced. We let the cigar go out after the second third and lighted up the Lusitania from 2003, factory code TDV, OCT 2003. These cigars have been stored since purchase at 55% RH. Markedly thinner due to aging. Smell is chocolate and leather. Old boxer, waits, has the experience to wait for the hit. To me a different animal - much stronger and in your face taste, pure tobacco in the first minutes, strong. GR more velvety. A&H like the '03 better now. A&H : GR will age great. N : '03 becomes much more accessible, much better after the first minutes. H : '03 is better "married", all aromas are one, reason why it comes over as more potent. And so, around midnight, after some 4 hours of two great cigars, great wines and a great Cognac we came to the unanimous conclusion that the GR was the better cigar. Not that it won by a knock-out, it was more a victory by points and elegant excellence. We always enjoy these classic Monday evenings - even on a Sunday ! Nino For more text and pictures see : http://flyingcigar.d...s-2003-cabinet/