Quai d'Orsay imperiales ??? '09 (PQDRW)

[Notsocleaver]

The Story: As I mentioned in the HdM churchills review, A while back a generous fellow sold to me for a song a lot of cigars that he said he would never get around to, mostly Cuban churchills and lonsdales. The boxes of most of these were long gone, so I can go only on the recollection passed to me. Many of these cigars have been average at best and it hasn't been hard for me to understand why they got discontinued. I love the idea of a LGC Tainos, but what was actually produced underwhelmed. These cigar tend to sit in my desk top because I know that once I finish them, they're gone but I'm using these review contests as an excuse to go and revisit as many as I can

physical performance: Wrapper is just a little darker than what I consider claro. There are signs of small stems in the foot. upon clipping it has a firm but acceptible draw. Smoke time was about 1 1/2 hours. Uneven rolling lead to some canoeing, but after correcting with a lighter performance improved.

subjective impressions: Many here have lamented the loss of the imperiales, yet while it was around no one really seemed to love it. It was a cigar that was always a little too low on my buy lists. Quai d'Orsay had a reputation for being airballs in certain circles. This 10 year old QdO is certainly very mild. I found that if I was doing anything besides just sitting and focusing on the cigar, it was utterly unremarkable. This is actually a good lesson in the value of sitting down and attempting to review a cigar. Had I not been intent on writing a review, I would have missed the nuances of this cigar. It had a creamy lead note, with a touch of sour, like cream cheese with a touch of lime zest. It had a sweet element that I would place some where between caramel and marshmallow. This went with the ceder backbone of the cigar. But all of those notes were very subtle, and if I was distracted at all it simply tasted like an aged out cigar. I'll give it an 83. I'll save my last couple and enjoy them and when they are gone I will be okay with that too. My Qdo coronas from '14 have been gems, it seems like Habanos SA figure out how to reinvigorate the blend some time around then. Shame I never got around to getting those tail end production Imperiales, I bet they were a much better cigar.

[dflan82]

I have a few ‘14 Imperiales in my desktop that I’ll need to try this Spring. Thanks for the review!

[TheMonk]

Good job, thanks!