CNY - LGC Medaille D'or No. 1 - 2001

[Philc2001]

I'm not shy about my passion for skinny cigars, so when our good brother @HarveyBoulevard decided to let go some MdO#1 I was more than happy to partake. Jeff supplied me with a generous number of these long and skinny vitolas, which he had acquired from our gracious host in one of the locker sell offs some years ago. He could not remember the code because these cigars come in a varnished box like the Partagas 8-9-8, with the box code on the outer cardboard box, which was discarded. Jeff only recalled they could be as old 1998 or as young as 2001. 

This was a lovely evening for smoking, a bit humid, but the temperature was about 73 degrees, and quite comfortable. I selected a New Belgium IPA called Voodoo Ranger for the pairing and headed to the patio to light up. My lovely wife joined me with her iPad to catch up on the daily news. This was really the first peaceful moment to sit quietly after the hustle and bustle of Christmas, and I was looking forward to a long slow smoke. 

This particular MdO#1 is not the prettiest vitola to come from Cuba, the butterscotch brown wrapper is applied well, no visible seams, but it looks a little rough with some bumps here and there, and the cigar is a little crooked, but the draw is perfect and the cigar feels and looks very elegant. Fire from my torch brings forth rich plumes of blue smoke and a terrific firewood and roasted almond aroma. The first tastes I could detect were somewhat fruity and a little sweet spice like maybe pumpkin spice, and dark cocoa, very pleasing. As the first third drew to a close, I was blissfully enjoying the slightly sweet mild-medium body of this glory from Cuba. As with most cigars I find pleasing, the aroma usually plays a key role in eliciting my sensory appreciation, and this was no exception. On this calm still night the lovely, slightly nutty, rich, smoldering cedar aroma enveloped my covered patio further heightening the therapeutic effect. 

Smooth, creamy, slightly sweet and super smooth is the way I would describe the ascent into the second third of this elegant cigar. The taste of ripe stone fruits, maybe peach, was faint and well balanced with the sweet brown sugar and tea biscuit, almost like a peach cobbler kind of taste. The terrific aroma continued to provide entertainment for my nasal senses, while the mild-medium bodied taste made me crave more draws, but I had to remind myself not to rush this delicious thin vitola for fear of overheating it. I was enjoying the quite bliss and the nice intermingling of the hoppy, flowery IPA, with the fruity, nutty sweetness of the smoke, a wonderful combination. 

As the final third approached, the cigar snuffed out, and I relit it without any adverse affect on flavor.  Having journeyed from California to SE Florida just a couple of weeks ago I probably could have let them rest a while longer, but I can't keep my hands off them. Body now has heightened slightly to a medium, and the flavor has shifted a bit with more roasted almond, cocoa, cedar and spice evident, and less sweetness. As I was adapting to this this shift in flavor, the cigar snuffed out again, requiring another relight. Again, a harmless relight, and the parade continued. The aroma also shifted somewhat with roasted almonds more evident. Quite a nice evolution. As the cigar reached about 1.5 inches it snuffed out again, and this time I decided to lay it down to rest.

Reflecting on this experience I'm quite certain these cigars need no further aging, they may have even slightly eclipsed their prime judging by the mild-medium body, but I'm not sure since I have no frame of reference back to when they were younger. Maybe they were always mild-medium, and hence why they are such an elegant and pleasant smoke. Regardless, this cigar is a really good cigar, and when a cigar is this good I feel obliged to smoke them before the flavor turns, or my tastes change. So this is the second one I've smoked from this trade, and my third MdO#1 in a week. I suspect the remaining sticks will be going down rather quickly as I can't imagine keeping my hands off them for long. 

I would rate this a 9.3/10 on my personal scale, and may have scored a 9.5 if it wasn't for the last third snuffing out. I truly enjoyed this cigar, and I look forward to spending more time enveloped in the wonderful aroma this vitola imparts. A truly pleasurable smoke. Many thanks to Jeff for the trade and the opportunity to enjoy this elegant cigar.

[Auspaul]

Good review how long do they take to smoke

[Philc2001]

1 hour ago, Auspaul said:

Good review how long do they take to smoke

About 105 minutes for this one, though I probably smoke slower than most, so for the average I would say 90 minutes.

[godpheonix]

nice review of a truly great cigar! i was lucky to fine a great box of 2000's 4 years back. From the ones i've sampled, even smoking really good now, they still got some legs to go i think.

a special cigar indeed. too bad habanos SA got rid of them!!!! sad!

 

[Philc2001]

1 hour ago, godpheonix said:

nice review of a truly great cigar! i was lucky to fine a great box of 2000's 4 years back. From the ones i've sampled, even smoking really good now, they still got some legs to go i think.

a special cigar indeed. too bad habanos SA got rid of them!!!! sad!

 

A stinking shame indeed. HSA/Tabacuba may not ever realize the errs of their ways. Maybe the pendulum will swing back the other way some day, who knows. 

[godpheonix]

9 hours ago, Philc2001 said:

A stinking shame indeed. HSA/Tabacuba may not ever realize the errs of their ways. Maybe the pendulum will swing back the other way some day, who knows. 

as much as i would love for that to happen, realistically, the trend is totally going the opposite way....faster and faster, kinda like the universe's expansion! 

[Philc2001]

Yes, true. I'm not expecting any miracles. 

[alloy]

Last year,I bought a tenner of 2001's and just like you reviewed, they were spectacular. Couldn't keep my hands off of them. I think they lasted a week and a half. Just blew me away with their smooth creamy, sugar sweetness and apricot/peach. It's too bad that HSA won't make these anymore. 

[Philc2001]

3 hours ago, alloy said:

Last year,I bought a tenner of 2001's and just like you reviewed, they were spectacular. Couldn't keep my hands off of them. I think they lasted a week and a half. Just blew me away with their smooth creamy, sugar sweetness and apricot/peach. It's too bad that HSA won't make these anymore. 

I wish I had 10 boxes of these to last me a while, unfortunately I only have half a box and those are not going to last long... DAMN YOU TABACUBA!