Weekend Cigar Review Competition!

[El Presidente]

We haven't done this in a while!

From now until Monday 5pm local time, complete a review of any cigar (with pics) and go into the draw for a 5 pack of aged sticks

1. Please post your review on this thread.
2. Pick any cigar you wish
3. Pictures don't need to be anything special. A phone grab will be fine just keep them to under 600kb

[paulF]

Couldn't have timed it better; was writing my first review in a while and saw Rob's post. Best of luck everyone

Juan Lopez coronas

Set up: Friday afternoon after a run. Cloudy and gloomy weather but no wind for a change in Melbourne.

Construction:

Light brown wrapper with some veins and some dark green patches.Not the best looking cigar but not too bad either.

Some box press is present but no soft spots.

Cold Draw:

Smells floral at cold and has this distinctive fresh grassy smell to it. Draw is very good, a bit firm. Some bitterness with plenty of roast tobacco flavours sort of got me a bit worried thinking this will be too young or too grassy at first.

First Third: First draw was a bit peppery but earthy and leathery on the lips and took me by surprise. Starting with OK smoke production. Nice flavour profile,seems like a mild Partagas.Peppery flavours kept on emmerging on and off thoughtout this third.It was one of those sticks that gets me drooling for some reason. A bit of grassiness was popping from time to time but nothing unpleasant and that combination of faint roast tobacco and leather was dominant throughout this third . Some Earthiness was also present and then that beautiful mushroomness that i love. Awesome stuff,first Juan Lopez and already impressed. Mild profile and has nice round flavours. Beautiful layered grey ash Ash over an inch long was holding on quiet well over an inch.

Second Third: Started Leathery and earthy and then got more leathery with added roast coffee and mushroumness. Such an easy relaxing smoke.Very pleasant profile getting more mushroomy. In the middle of the second third, some dryness and bitterness started showing up but nothing unpleasant though.Ash was getting to longer than an inch long again.

Last Third: Started with mushroumness but with some bitterness on the side. Seems like its starting to show its age and needs to sleep a bit more.Got a few surprising puffs of combined leather and grass as i went thought this third. At this stage, the cigar was turning into a smoke factory with very thick grassy smoke. Getting really complex with mushroom spiced leather puffs. This Cigar's grassiness is so different from the bolivar royal corona's grassiness.The last third finished with grassy, leathery spicy notes.

Brilliant complexity and add to that a slight nicotine buzz. Win win scenario!

Final notes: A very pleasant profile. Its like a tuned down Partagas. An 1h 25 mn smoking time with lovely flavours that kept me engaged throughout the whole session. Definitely a winner.

[CaptainQuintero]

Thanks for the comp Rob!

Troya Universales

5 1/3 x 38

circa 1998

Quite liking the modern ICT made Troya Coronas Club I jumped for this which had been sitting in my singles draw for a while.

Draw at cold is pretty muted, some slight dusty fruit but nothing really to shout home about.

Lighting up, the first thing which strikes me is how similar the blend seems to be to the Coronas Club. Obviously there is not going to be too much difference between machine mades short-fillers of the same brand but this really did seem exact.

Hints of chocolate but mostly well-stewed fruit crumble filling; Rhubarb, blackcurrent, blackberry etc

This is normally the standard profile for the modern Coronas Club but sadly, either through age or other circumstances the above profile (Very similar to Ramon Allones, I've always felt like the Troya Coronas Club is basically a machine-made RA anyway) faded pretty sharpish after the first third and never came back. The final third only leaving a very muted apple-like nature, while interesting, wasn't exactly pleasurable.

Not a huge review as, well there wasn't a huge amount of flavours!

84/100

Nice exercise in comparison to the modern offering from Troya but somehow the ICT version still shoots this stick down in flames.

[Jeremy Festa]

520 and some Fizz!

​The wife is heading out, helping plan a friend's wedding as one of the bridesmaids. So I took full advantage of my situation.

Bathed the kids and put them to bed at 7pm, and took 'the wife' up a glass of Billecart while she was straightening her hair. Complemented her on how well she looked. She left at 7:27pm.

I now have nearly a whole bottle of champagne and a Partagas de Partagas No.1 in the dry box. For some reason I felt like the 520's needed a revisit, so I grabbed one of those instead.

It looks glorious. I grabbed 3 boxes of these when Rob told me to do so. I would say he hand picked them because there are a whole bunch of oily crystals on the wrapper. It is a glorious, glossy, dark cigar.

And well packed, head-to-toe.

I clip it, draw is slightly looser than perfect, so perfect for me, and I am getting pretty excited. I have a few sips of fizz and retreat to the back balcony.

Upon lighting the cigar it tastes like the ultimate dessert! I love chocolate and coffee, but mostly cigars, and this is all 3 rolled into 1.

About an inch and a half in (or 3cm) I try and anticipate the ash falling off and give it a gentle tap or two into the kaffir lime pot plant. But, the ash holds on. Construction is crazy good.

For the record, I am a huge whisky and beer buff, but above all, I love champagne. I was hesitant in pairing the 520 and the fizz, as I don't blaze a great deal of Monte's, and I know they are predominantly coffee, chocolate and sweet, yet earthy. For the next hour and a half, I jump between sweet and sour. And, more and more recently I find champagne to be the perfect palate refresher. As such, I have been rewarded. The 520 performed well above my expectations this evening. It is the 3rd I have had, and I am fairly stoked I have many more.

I am typing this mostly from memory, which is now a little fuzzy from the fizz. But, all in all, I can remember having a really enjoyable experience. And I am going to rate it 93.75/100. And, I now have my 'pairing vindication' with the approval of Smithy, via Instagram.

For those of you on the 'gram, (yes, I liked my own post) follow @smithyai 'cause he needs the support, with a measly 25 followers. His posts are mostly golf, drinking, reading, flying and cigars, so all the good stuff.

In closing, cheers Rob for the inspiration to write my 2nd review. I wish everyone else good luck in this weekend's review competition. If I get the chance to toast another cigar this weekend, I might do another review to double my chances of winning.

'ave a great weekend everybody!

Frothing on the 520's.

Jeremy

[Skyfall]

Rafael Gonzalez
German 2013 RE Petit Piramides

AHHHHHH YEAAHHHHH!
Wow, this cigar really took me on a journey.

Beautiful day to smoke today, just gorgeous!


DRAW AT COLD: Perfect draw, couldn't ask for better. Smell is leathery tobacco. Taste is Buttery Bran Muffin. This gets me excited.

First Third: This cigar is producing an absolutely immaculately smelling smoke, just enough to sting the nostrils a tad, but viscous, thick and creamy. The smoke coats the mouth with a velvet wave of Cuban perfection. The taste was defined, yet unique at the same time. But once I chewed on it a while I had it pegged. If you took a graham cracker and dipped it in a nice cup of very good creamy coffee, you have what this cigar tastes like in the first third. It's so enjoyable, I love it. It comes it to me right at medium, maybe just a tad under. Very clean and balanced flavors of coffee dipped graham cracker.

SECOND THIRD: The smoke is maintaining it's thick luxurious mouth feel. The transition on this is really showing it's refined complexity. The ash is gorgeous. As the second third progresses, the coffee flavor is still there, but takes a back seat to a very sweet grassiness and buttery toast flavor. Not overwhelming or off putting at all, just a very clean and tasty coffee mixed with leather , buttered toast and sweet grass. I am now reminiscing about flavors similar and cigars that tell a progressing story like this one that made me fall in love passionately with Cuban Cigars.

FINAL THIRD: The complex and balanced progression and transition continues to tell its story. Ash is epic. Now the coffee and sweet grass has resided. The buttered toast has evolved to a sweeter short bread cookie flavor. (Which I love). Hints of milk chocolate creep in like a fog at a majestic dawn morning- not oppressive but you know it's there. During the final third, the story this cigar tells becomes scholarly. The chocolate dipped shortbread cookie falls off to a even more pleasant chocolate covered raisin and peanut butter taffy. This brings me back to my childhood. This flavor reminds me of the generic Halloween candy here in the States, that I used to love, that everybody recognizes by the orange and black wrappers, of the peanut butter taffy. This hit that nail on the head. A very enjoyable smoke, and very rememberable taste profile with a progression that is heralded up there with some of the classiest, refined and most balanced cigars I've had. As you can see the ash is superb.

RATING: 94-95

Now on to prepping dinner. A fresh rosemary, sage, garlic and olive oil marinated heritage, home grown, thick cut pork chop with a sweet potato, leek, portabella mushroom and fig hash, along side a butter and herb rice, served with a very nice Chardonnay. (Pics to follow)

[thecapo]

How do I upload pics?

[Fosgate]

Dunno, Just kicked me off from being able to link pics to my Picasa (Google+) account.

[Skyfall]

Rafael Gonzalez

German 2013 RE Petit Piramides

AHHHHHH YEAAHHHHH!

Wow, this cigar really took me on a journey.

Beautiful day to smoke today, just gorgeous!

COCKTAIL: Vizacaya Silver 12 year Rum with Mexican Coke

DRAW AT COLD: Perfect draw, couldn't ask for better. Smell is leathery tobacco. Taste is Buttery Bran Muffin. This gets me excited.

First Third: This cigar is producing an absolutely immaculately smelling smoke, just enough to sting the nostrils a tad, but viscous, thick and creamy. The smoke coats the mouth with a velvet wave of Cuban perfection. The taste was defined, yet unique at the same time. But once I chewed on it a while I had it pegged. If you took a graham cracker and dipped it in a nice cup of very good creamy coffee, you have what this cigar tastes like in the first third. It's so enjoyable, I love it. It comes it to me right at medium, maybe just a tad under. Very clean and balanced flavors of coffee dipped graham cracker.

SECOND THIRD: The smoke is maintaining it's thick luxurious mouth feel. The transition on this is really showing it's refined complexity. The ash is gorgeous. As the second third progresses, the coffee flavor is still there, but takes a back seat to a very sweet grassiness and buttery toast flavor. Not overwhelming or off putting at all, just a very clean and tasty coffee mixed with leather , buttered toast and sweet grass. I am now reminiscing about flavors similar and cigars that tell a progressing story like this one that made me fall in love passionately with Cuban Cigars.

FINAL THIRD: The complex and balanced progression and transition continues to tell its story. Ash is epic. Now the coffee and sweet grass has resided. The buttered toast has evolved to a sweeter short bread cookie flavor. (Which I love). Hints of milk chocolate creep in like a fog at a majestic dawn morning- not oppressive but you know it's there. During the final third, the story this cigar tells becomes scholarly. The chocolate dipped shortbread cookie falls off to a even more pleasant chocolate covered raisin and peanut butter taffy. This brings me back to my childhood. This flavor reminds me of the generic Halloween candy here in the States, that I used to love, that everybody recognizes by the orange and black wrappers, of the peanut butter taffy. This hit that nail on the head. A very enjoyable smoke, and very rememberable taste profile with a progression that is heralded up there with some of the classiest, refined and most balanced cigars I've had. As you can see the ash is superb.

RATING: 94-95

Now on to prepping dinner. A fresh rosemary, sage, garlic and olive oil marinated heritage, home grown, thick cut pork chop with a sweet potato, leek, portabella mushroom and fig hash, along side a butter and herb rice, served with a very nice Chardonnay. (Pics to follow)

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^ Winner =

[Maplepie]

^ Winner =

well, it says it's a draw....... is the winner chosen at random? that's what a draw is, right?

shame because you did toss a wholesome effort into that!

[fabes]

I've been wanting to contribute a review for awhile now so here we go..

La Gloria Cubana

Medaille d’Or No.4

MUR AGO 13

Smoking time: 1:15

Pre-light

Definite graham cracker, but not able to pick out anything else substantial. Draw is perfect. Construction also flawless. Used a punch which was great, but cut a little more of the cap off during the final third.

1st 3rd

I knew my triple flame torch would be overkill, so I pulled out a single match to start things off. Nothing too spectacular right out the gates, but slowly develops some nice woody, earthy, creamy flavors. Retrohale is very smooth with a few floral smells here and there.

2nd 3rd

Second third doesn't change much at first, but them slowly the floral smells are coming through. Consistently medium body, still got the earthy tones and floral scent on the retrohale. A subtle fruit taste peeks through. At first I can't really tell what, but it is very reminiscent of stone fruit. One puff towards the end of the second third almost tasted just like a short churchill.

final 3rd

Things are starting to get a bit more varied. Apple cider smell and tingle, grassy like a fresh mowed lawn in summer. Rounding out the finish with perfectly toasted s'mores. The graham cracker and creaminess is quite pleasant at the end. Never a lingering aftertaste.

All in all, this was a very enjoyable cigar. The second from a box I received from our host. I'm really looking forward to how the rest of the box turns out. Now just see if I can make these last. Not sure when I'll see more of these.

91/100

[LordAnubis]

Friday night is poker night on site. The electricians are the usual group keen for a game but they have been slack the last few poker nights so we haven't played for a few weeks. Needless to say, plenty a sledge was thrown at their expense with lots of statements comparing sparkies to a female reproductive organ.

There is a buy in, winner takes all, Texas Holdem poker. My buy in for the games are the cigars. This box i purchased from Dubai airport on the way through while coming back to Mali. The guy at the cigar shop was a right pain in the ass that was very hesitant to open boxes for me. Obviously just a salesman. Eventually i found an already opened box to my liking. The cigars are the good old Partagas Short. Can't really go wrong with that. I was hoping to get some Bolivar PC, but they didn't have any and the opened boxes of H Upmann HC's were not as good as these Shorts.

My nickname at the table is "Destined for Second". I always come second, without fail. Every god damn time. In terms of beverages Friday night is fly out night. As per site rules, those who are flying out have to ring the bell. This bell is not a last drinks bell, it is a "round for everyone at the bar" bell. So my 2 bottles of cokes are free They don't have Sprite tonight unfortunately. Also, tonight the bars kitchen is closed. I did an inspection of the kitchen where they make pizzas, chips, hot dogs, pasta, spring rolls and other nibblies and found piss poor hygiene standards. I'm talking a freezer that doesnt work and has thawed out hot dogs in it. When i asked them why the kitchen was so dirty their reply was "we clean it every tuesday and saturday". I laughed and fired the catering manager on the spot. Well actually i can't fire him because he is a contractor, but i can revoke his accomodation and eating privelidges in the camp. He is more than welcome to go and live in the local mud hut village with no power or running water.

Anyway the cigar is a typical partagas short. Not really paying much attention. A bit of partagas spice, a little bit of leather, but the spice of the cigars compliments the sweetness of the coke. Through the nose it's a bit rough but i guess that's just showing it's youth.

As the game progresses, i have a **** hand. High 8 is what i have and one of the players (Adam) bets big. Nothing really all that exciting on the table, no face cards, and it was just me and adam left in this hand. Josh next to me is egging me on to call Adams bluff, so against my judgement i call and show my high 8. Adam reveals his cards and has 6 high. Ahahah, that's the type of poker we play. Just shits and giggles. Nothing serious on this table!

The cigar ended fine, exactly what you expect out of a short. No real changes in flavour, it got a bit more woody toward the end instead of leathery but all in all a good 45 minute smoke while having a few laughs over poker.

It's just myself and Adam left in the game at the end. We're pretty balanced in terms of our chips on the table and we go for a few rounds playing some large pots and each of us winning a few and loosing a few. We are finishing our cigars and before our cards are dealt i say "i'll go all in". Adam has a bit more than i do so it's my game to loose. He replies "Let's f@#$ing do this **** Mus!". Our cards are dealt and we don't look. The flop reveals 6 6 Q. The turn shows a 7 and the River reveals a K. We then both flip over one of our cards. We both have a 6 in our hand. Then i flip my second card over and it's a Q. The boys all yell "ooooohhhhh". Adam says to me, "You're destined for second mate". He flips over his second card and it's a K. C@#$!!! Every. Goddamn. Time!

We both laugh, shake hands, cheers to the game and everyone at the table has a huge smile on their face. Good mates, good laughs, a good night. You can't ask for much more than that.

[subport]

How do I upload pics?

Hit the more reply button and there you will see attach options

[westg]

Friday night is poker night on site. The electricians are the usual group keen for a game but they have been slack the last few poker nights so we haven't played for a few weeks. Needless to say, plenty a sledge was thrown at their expense with lots of statements comparing sparkies to a female reproductive organ.

There is a buy in, winner takes all, Texas Holdem poker. My buy in for the games are the cigars. This box i purchased from Dubai airport on the way through while coming back to Mali. The guy at the cigar shop was a right pain in the ass that was very hesitant to open boxes for me. Obviously just a salesman. Eventually i found an already opened box to my liking. The cigars are the good old Partagas Short. Can't really go wrong with that. I was hoping to get some Bolivar PC, but they didn't have any and the opened boxes of H Upmann HC's were not as good as these Shorts.

My nickname at the table is "Destined for Second". I always come second, without fail. Every god damn time. In terms of beverages Friday night is fly out night. As per site rules, those who are flying out have to ring the bell. This bell is not a last drinks bell, it is a "round for everyone at the bar" bell. So my 2 bottles of cokes are free They don't have Sprite tonight unfortunately. Also, tonight the bars kitchen is closed. I did an inspection of the kitchen where they make pizzas, chips, hot dogs, pasta, spring rolls and other nibblies and found piss poor hygiene standards. I'm talking a freezer that doesnt work and has thawed out hot dogs in it. When i asked them why the kitchen was so dirty their reply was "we clean it every tuesday and saturday". I laughed and fired the catering manager on the spot. Well actually i can't fire him because he is a contractor, but i can revoke his accomodation and eating privelidges in the camp. He is more than welcome to go and live in the local mud hut village with no power or running water.

Anyway the cigar is a typical partagas short. Not really paying much attention. A bit of partagas spice, a little bit of leather, but the spice of the cigars compliments the sweetness of the coke. Through the nose it's a bit rough but i guess that's just showing it's youth.

IMG_2495.JPG

As the game progresses, i have a **** hand. High 8 is what i have and one of the players (Adam) bets big. Nothing really all that exciting on the table, no face cards, and it was just me and adam left in this hand. Josh next to me is egging me on to call Adams bluff, so against my judgement i call and show my high 8. Adam reveals his cards and has 6 high. Ahahah, that's the type of poker we play. Just shits and giggles. Nothing serious on this table!

The cigar ended fine, exactly what you expect out of a short. No real changes in flavour, it got a bit more woody toward the end instead of leathery but all in all a good 45 minute smoke while having a few laughs over poker.

It's just myself and Adam left in the game at the end. We're pretty balanced in terms of our chips on the table and we go for a few rounds playing some large pots and each of us winning a few and loosing a few. We are finishing our cigars and before our cards are dealt i say "i'll go all in". Adam has a bit more than i do so it's my game to loose. He replies "Let's f@#$ing do this **** Mus!". Our cards are dealt and we don't look. The flop reveals 6 6 Q. The turn shows a 7 and the River reveals a K. We then both flip over one of our cards. We both have a 6 in our hand. Then i flip my second card over and it's a Q. The boys all yell "ooooohhhhh". Adam says to me, "You're destined for second mate". He flips over his second card and it's a K. C@#$!!! Every. Goddamn. Time!

We both laugh, shake hands, cheers to the game and everyone at the table has a huge smile on their face. Good mates, good laughs, a good night. You can't ask for much more than that.

I give you second in this to Mus ....good story Skyfall only just beats you on cigar and food....just

[LordAnubis]

I give you second in this to Mus ....good story Skyfall only just beats you on cigar and food....just

Rigged !!!! I had some pop corn in my picture.

[bradbrennan]

Well since I already started this in my newbie intro a few days ago, maybe I'll post my other notes from my Bolivar Royal Corona. This was the first of a special shipment from FOH, it was a single, so no box code. And I'm sure it needed more rest but I'd been waiting a good amount of time for these. Even prepared my palate a little by not smoking for almost a week before! I've noticed with cigars, much like my coffee, if I let my craving build it heightens my experience. Paired with filtered water as I wanted to truly taste just the cigar.

Pre light was simply a lovely cigar! After slightly wetting the cap, minimal clip was perfect.

2:40 p.m.

First light, beautiful rich tobacco, somewhat floral notes with a bit of honey, first time I've ever tasted honey, very special start! Half inch in and more changes, lots of character. Nose is thick, rich, leathery sweetness with spice.

3:10 p.m.

Almost an inch in, still a lot of sweetness, almost a perfume quality. The cigar seems to like two to three draws at a time to get the full smoke output. Makes you think it's going out but comes right back.

3:35 p.m.

Had to really slow down as it was getting a little hot. Hints of graham cracker with a little anise spice. Still lots of rich smoke, burning better than ever.

4:05 p.m.

Ended a very nice cigar! Could've got another twenty minutes I bet, but was mostly black pepper and hot, so I let it go out on it's own.

I don't know enough about CC's but I'm assuming with more rest and age this cigar would have maintained more of the wonderful sweetness all the way to the nub. Great smoke, thanks, Rob! Overall I'd say 92, but the first third was at least 95.

[Cmontoya79]

Cohiba Maduro 5 Genios 2010, box code unknown.

Pre light:

Appeance, Colorado brown maduro wrapper. Dry and nicely rolled. Aroma of cocoa powder with sweetness and barnyard at cold. Flavor of cold draw, of aged tobacco, saltiness and cocoa unsweetened. Draw is nice and open. Tobacco is nicely packed, stick feels right in hand. Cut with blade cutter. Drink accompaniment is Dalmore cigar malt with ice. Weather is about 50 degrees and cloudy with a slight breeze.

1st third:

Opens with aged tobacco and wood. Slight earthy and salty flavor kind of pretzel like. Aroma is of sweetness like caramel with burning woods. Flavor continues to be salty, with aged tobacco and a slight black pepper. A Cohiba like grassy flavor that is like Yerba mate or green tea makes an appearance. Halfway through 1st third. Aroma is dominated by caramel sweetness. Like kettle corn. Smoke volume is low to medium, and ash is a dark grey with black striping. Burn is self correcting after opening up a bit uneven. Cigar is a solid medium in strength and full flavored. Nearing final of 1st third a slight anise or black licorice flavor is in background. Finish is long and flavorful.

Cigar malt goes well with this stick as the strong sherry notes awaken a caramel sweetness in the flavor that is dominant in the aroma.

2nd third:

Opens with caramel faint, and an almond like note. Cohiba grassiness is also faint but present. Spice is more white pepper at this point. Cigar malt is smooth, buttery, and caramel sweetness. Sherry dominates. Smoke is velvet. Delicate. Flavors continue with white pepper, almonds, grassiness and aged tobacco dominate. Caramel fades in and out. White pepper and cinnamon like spice dance on the tongue.

Wood flavor present of hickory with sweetness in background. Burn is getting a bit crazy at this point, slight correction required. Into final third, cigar continues full flavored and a solid medium body. Hickory with sweetness dominates at this point with grassiness present. Band comes off with ease.

Final third:

Continues with hickory, grassiness and pepper is subsided greatly. All but gone. More of a faint cinnamon note. Cigar malt compliments this stick well. Malt is buttery, smooth and caramel. Smoke output continues low to medium, nice white with slight tan color. Aroma is of hickory. Zero harshness and bitterness. Midway in final third hickory turns to cedar in aroma and in flavor. Caramel sweetness dominates. Almonds are present, and yes the Cohiba grassiness continues. Pepper is almost non existent. Spice gone all together near end. Ash color is dark grey with black. Last of malt goes down easy. End of cigar is cocoa dust, and cedar and caramel sweetness along with Cohiba grassiness.

Final smoke time: 50 minutes.

Overall: 4 out of 5

93 points/100.

Great smoke, would highly recommend.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Skyfall]

Cohiba Maduro 5 Genios 2010, box code unknown.

Pre light:

Appeance, Colorado brown maduro wrapper. Dry and nicely rolled. Aroma of cocoa powder with sweetness and barnyard at cold. Flavor of cold draw, of aged tobacco, saltiness and cocoa unsweetened. Draw is nice and open. Tobacco is nicely packed, stick feels right in hand. Cut with blade cutter. Drink accompaniment is Dalmore cigar malt with ice. Weather is about 50 degrees and cloudy with a slight breeze.

1st third:

Opens with aged tobacco and wood. Slight earthy and salty flavor kind of pretzel like. Aroma is of sweetness like caramel with burning woods. Flavor continues to be salty, with aged tobacco and a slight black pepper. A Cohiba like grassy flavor that is like Yerba mate or green tea makes an appearance. Halfway through 1st third. Aroma is dominated by caramel sweetness. Like kettle corn. Smoke volume is low to medium, and ash is a dark grey with black striping. Burn is self correcting after opening up a bit uneven. Cigar is a solid medium in strength and full flavored. Nearing final of 1st third a slight anise or black licorice flavor is in background. Finish is long and flavorful.

Cigar malt goes well with this stick as the strong sherry notes awaken a caramel sweetness in the flavor that is dominant in the aroma.

2nd third:

Opens with caramel faint, and an almond like note. Cohiba grassiness is also faint but present. Spice is more white pepper at this point. Cigar malt is smooth, buttery, and caramel sweetness. Sherry dominates. Smoke is velvet. Delicate. Flavors continue with white pepper, almonds, grassiness and aged tobacco dominate. Caramel fades in and out. White pepper and cinnamon like spice dance on the tongue.

Wood flavor present of hickory with sweetness in background. Burn is getting a bit crazy at this point, slight correction required. Into final third, cigar continues full flavored and a solid medium body. Hickory with sweetness dominates at this point with grassiness present. Band comes off with ease.

Final third:

Continues with hickory, grassiness and pepper is subsided greatly. All but gone. More of a faint cinnamon note. Cigar malt compliments this stick well. Malt is buttery, smooth and caramel. Smoke output continues low to medium, nice white with slight tan color. Aroma is of hickory. Zero harshness and bitterness. Midway in final third hickory turns to cedar in aroma and in flavor. Caramel sweetness dominates. Almonds are present, and yes the Cohiba grassiness continues. Pepper is almost non existent. Spice gone all together near end. Ash color is dark grey with black. Last of malt goes down easy. End of cigar is cocoa dust, and cedar and caramel sweetness along with Cohiba grassiness.

Final smoke time: 50 minutes.

Overall: 4 out of 5

93 points/100.

Great smoke, would highly

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1396743241.627821.jpgImageUploadedByTapatalk1396743252.121014.jpgImageUploadedByTapatalk1396743263.581569.jpgImageUploadedByTapatalk1396743277.980761.jpgImageUploadedByTapatalk1396743287.536417.jpg

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I know these get bagged a lot, but I've always liked them. I have some Original Releases that are fantastic. Thanks for the review!

[Cmontoya79]

I think it's one of those you either like or don't. I've now sampled all three, Genios, Magicos, and Secretos. In my opinion, I believe these are the better of the three. From what I've read, not unlike many Cubans, when it's on its on.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Skyfall]

I think it's one of those you either like or don't. I've now sampled all three, Genios, Magicos, and Secretos. In my opinion, I believe these are the better of the three. From what I've read, not unlike many Cubans, when it's on its on.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Secretos, in my opinion, are straight trash. Every one I've had has been horrible. I think I still have a 10 box stashed away somewhere I need to dump off to someone.

[Cmontoya79]

The odd thing about these all, they do taste non Cuban, but this one tasted the most cuban in my opinion.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[canadianbeaver]

1990's PSD4 - from my vintage collection.

Here is my review:

Tons of smoke. Wonderful taste, aroma and a real smoothie. Romantic. Matthew liked his too.

[contracorrientes]

Great idea, Rob! This is my first ever review, and a bit of a milestone for me. This is the first cigar I’ve been game to try since being fitted with two orthodontic appliances. For weeks, I’ve had two…thingies…permanently stuck both above and below my tongue, in preparation for the horror that will be braces in a few months. Of concern: reduced tongue movement from wires above and below; there’s a small piece of acrylic bonded to one wire that covers part of my palate. Now that the oral trauma’s eased off a bit, I was interested to see if there would be any impact on my cigar appreciation. I already know that my sex life is doomed.

Juan Lopez Selección Number 4, 2010 Regional Release

This was the first Juan Lopez I’ve ever had, and I teamed it with a flat white made from beans from Five Senses. The new album from S. Carey (fantastic) plays in the background, and the scene is set!

Perfectly constructed, with a nice oily sheen, and beautifully aromatic on the nose. This cigar’s handsomeness, teamed with a spot-on draw, gives me that special tingle of anticipation I like to call a “cigard-on”. Don’t judge me.

Sparked up, this was rich right off the bat. Medium body. Earthiness, for sure, with something like sultanas, perhaps, mingled with an underlying hint of…orthodontic acrylic?! Regular sips of coffee seem to help with that. Saliva production is much greater now I’ve got these wires cemented into my mouth, but the confused taste of plastic and smoke on the palate is a small issue in the first third. Still, it is the return of a familiar stranger. There is a terrific smoothness that is clear, even if subtlety is lost on me right now.

Progressing, flavours develop and change. At times apple pie, then vanilla, then hay, then wood. A couple of inches in, I’m left with an tight ash that’s like Hugh Jackman - it looks only kinda straight. Otherwise, my tongue feels joyfully liberated of its wire cage as time goes by. By half way, I notice I’ve been consistently puffing away clouds of nice, dense, smoke - the very kind that leads me to that cookies-and-cream feeling of satisfaction that marks a winner. The complexity of flavour becomes difficult for me to describe, but it remains rich. Smooth. Juanderful.

Then, out of nowhere, the intensity ramps up. The first hints of bitterness–but not yet harshness–smack me around the mouth. Coffee beans, chocolate, oak. What was a cigar I would earlier have described as being approachable to anyone was now strictly full-bodied. Herb and earth dominate, for me, but there’s always something else thrown in the mix. Citrus peel? With the flavour density of mud cake!? I give up!

But in the words of one other J Lopez, don’t be fooled by the rocks that this got. Although there were harsh elements during the final third, each time I thought I’d put it down for good, I’d give it one last puff. Which would lead to another, then another. One-hour-twenty later, I let the blessed thing sleep, only because I don’t want to burn my fingers again on the nub.

This is, simply, exactly the kind of cigar I want to smoke.

[Hafner32]

I'm not much of a "Review Guy" as I generally sit back and enjoy a cigar with a few cocktails or some coffee. I rarely take any detailed notes on a cigar as I usually let my mind wander about whatever has transpired during the day or what is to come that night.

The weather in Pennsylvania has been god awful this winter and early spring. yesterday was no exception as the temp was in the low 40s with wind and rain. I was relegated to the garage and chose a '99 Hoyo Du Prince which I picked up some time ago and paired it with a Boat Beer which is a small local brewery out of the Jersey shore

The Hoyo started out very mild and slowly developed into a wonderful experience. I have by no means an "expert" or "refined" palette but throughout the cigar I was able to pick out many different flavors and aromas including some nutty, coffee, and honey flavors along with a nice floral aroma at times.

I went on to enjoy a Lagunitas Lil Sumpin Sumpin when the Boat Beer was finished and I highly recommend it as a "must try" for anyone who enjoys a nice west coast IPA. The cigar remained enjoyable and smoked extremely well for 50 minutes requiring one relight which was my fault since I ended up taking a phone call and discussing the upcoming NCAA Final Four games that were to be played.

As I set it down to rest, I was happy that I have a few more of these left in the humidor. Hopefully the weather will cooperate for the next one and I can enjoy it on the porch or deck.

Excuse the pics as the lighting in the garage sucks and they were taken with my IPad.

Trevor

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Paneotto]

My first review is of a cigar that I have never tried before, HDM Epi De Luxe. It seems to be a petit robusto with a toothy Colorado color. Triple cap is good and some slight veining on the shiny wrapper. Time to cut and smoke this looker with a Jim Beam Black and coke on the lanai. A sunny 82F with a slight northerly breeze.

Mild to medium strength with a great draw, slight resistance. I am not great with picking out subtle flavors, but this tastes like the epicure especiales I enjoy so often. Toasty tobacco with some cedar. No youthful harshness even though this is a 2013 stick. Draw is not razor sharp but that must be the breeze which has picked up.

As I approach the second third there is some caramel notes as best I can tell. There is some subtle spiciness in the retro hale that adds some bite to a cigar that is gaining strength. For those of you that are curious, the ash is white with some grey flourishes. I dry box my cigars for at least 48 hours before smoking in a behike box.

Despite the breeze, the cigar is burning slowly. The second third is more of the same, which is quite pleasurable. Medium strength and toasty tobacco rule the flavor with a floral aroma. Ash still holding strong. This is a well rolled cigar.

I tend to smoke slowly with a puff every 1-2 minutes. Actually, this gives me time to concentrate on the flavors that are continuing to get sweeter. Not chocolate but more of a fruity or citrusy note. Damn this is a good cigar. As I approach the final third, the burn has become sharper and the flavor is steady. Strength is back to mild-medium.

Towards the end, the LCDH band comes off and the cigar is done. Not a lot of complexity but it is highly enjoyable. A great afternoon relaxation cigar that pairs perfectly with bourbon and coke.

[Laynard]

RASCC AME OCT13

Since this is a "luck of the draw" and not an aptitude competition, I figured I'd throw my hat in the ring with my first Habano review.

The Small Club Corona is well packed, as the draw is a little tight, but certainly not "golf ball through a garden hose" tight. The wrapper is beautiful with angel kisses dotting near the cap. The first flavors are woody with a little bit of peppery spice. The burn gets a bit wonky at times, but the little champ makes a good effort to correct itself. Near the midway point, I can taste a heavy cream coming through. Although that taste seems to get overpowered by more wood (oak I believe) as the cigar progresses. The spice mellows out a bit and hay joins the party. The last half of the cigar seems to change often, but is always a combo of cream, hay and wood. It is definitely a youthful cigar that will mature nicely if I can keep my grubby mitts off of it.

I would hate to give a rating to this cigar, as it would be like judging a man on how he was as a teenager. Also, I should have let it acclimate after it's journey across the Pacific a little longer. The burn would have been far straighter I believe. But, suffice it to say, I think I should track down another box to give this cigar a fighting chance at aging in my humidor.