Punch Mantua (Italian RE) Review

[Puros Y Vino]

Punch Mantua Review

 

Cigar: Punch Mantua

Release: RE Italia 2018

Vitola: Laguito No 2.  38 x 152mm

Production: 2500 50 count boxes made. Box # unknown

Box Code: UNKNOWN

 

• Date: Saturday, June 26, 2020
• Start Time: 7:54PM
• End Time: 9:17PM
• Paired with: plain water.

 

 

Reviewers Notes:

My style of cigar reviewing is “open”.  I try to jot down what I’m experiencing with every draw.  When you see a “/” consider that a break in between puffs.  What I leave out in fancy prose is made up with observation.  Consider each segment a play by play.  This style works for me. I hope you enjoy it.

 

Visual:  Nice firm roll.  Slightly dark milk chocolate wrapper. Toothey to the touch

Aroma at cold: Chocolate, cookie, very appealing. Perfect draw upon

Punch Mantua

 

First Third

Rich toasty tobacco / bbq char / good draw / black pepper / burn askew / good draw but doesn't seem lit, though it is / corrected burn / espresso grounds / nice stringy cedary flavour / burnt almond / spicy on the tongue, like cayenne but smoother / water / chalky, salty draw / lots of smoke / toasted nuts, but not burnt, very nice / dry finish on every draw so far / cedar / nutty / water / tangy tobacco / chalky mouth feel / dry nuts / hints of nutmeg / nice sweetbread hints / nutty finish / medium bodied so far with a few strong draws / toasty tobacco with anise finish / water / ash falls as I lift it, not on me for once / cigar goes out!! / lighter misbehaves / upon relight I’m treated to a nice, sweet flavour, cookies / more sweetness, some cocoa, hint of pine on the finish / more sweetness / draw is good but I seem to need 2 puffs minimum to get anything out of it.  Internal combustion issues? / chalky, minty note / fin

Second Third

Water / black beans / dry finish / minty again, tastes fresh / draw seems firm / milder bodied at this point / light mintiness persists / water / chalky , soapy mouthfeel / very light / tap off ash, going to a touch up with the lighter / 3 lighters with me, none of them barely working / relit / still minty and light bodied / smooth chocolate flavours now / anise, mint, very perplexing / smoke production up a bit / so far it’s behaving like a vintage smoke, very smooth.  The opening seemed to hint that a medium-full cigar experience awaited me.  So far it’s been transitioning back and forth in the medium realm, with some interesting flavour twists /  trouble staying lit, it's not windy or humid, odd. / with lighter in hand i execute about 5-6 deep draws, the cherry glows red. Perhaps it's finally lit! / nice rewarding flavour at the end of this exercise, rich tobacco and anise / cedary-cinnamon hit / salty, bready like a cracker / touching up the burn / nice hit of leather and cocoa on the finish /  cocoa, anise with a dry finish / really nice rich, earthy flavours as I crank up UFO’s “Lights Out” on my headphones / water / rich cedary notes with an anise finish / ash went from pitch black to white / rich white smoke now, performing a lot better / intense hint of anise, almost like dry Sambuca / tongue retains some of that anise as I break between draws / water / smooth, creamy coffee that ends in a mint finish? So weird, but I like it / i swear I can taste a bit of lemon zest as I sit here typing this on the finish too / bit of baking spice / having a hard time trying to pull out “Punch” trademark flavours (at least to me) such as peanut, coffee, dark chocolate / as i type, I’m still tasting some mint and anise on my palate / knock the ash off, inspect foot, doesn’t seem lit. a quick puff tells me it's not.  End of this third. Time for a relight.  

Final Third 

My Iroda lighter comes back to life after a few smacks. I do a retro burn and a stream of gases light the way / its lit again and the first puff is a nice smooth cedar note / slight saltiness giving way to anise / water / very smooth pleasant mint flavour again / very dry on the finish.  At the beginning, I sensed there’d be some oiliness but it hasn’t materialized. It stayed dry / nice black bean hit / the burn line approaches the RE band, time for some surgery / RE band off / mint that leads into strong cedar, like I bit into a cedar lining in a cabinet / out again! / tap off ash and relight / concave burn / toasty tobacco, mint finish / cedar notes / black bean, anise finish / at this point, I’m not convinced I’m smoking a Punch, buts its been good / UFO album done, switching over to some Scorpions Lovedrive / more cedar / water / chalky mouthfeel, cedar / very dry and cedary, good smoke production / OUT AGAIN! / I slide the Punch band up and relight / smooth cedar, at least its not charry as I find that's an issue towards the last third of many cigars when you relight this often / tasty, rich “meaty” draw, some roasted nuts / more roasted nuts, cigar is going medium-full now / some saltiness on the palate, like a Sancho Panza / hickory-BBQ, salty finish, so odd, but good / bbq lingers on tongue, the rest of my palate still senses mint / going to end up nubbing this / cocoa / more anise, slightly muted / dry, chalky toasty tobacco / quick burn correction / hot, very strong earthy draw / minty finish / slide off Punch band and grab nub tool / of course it goes out! / stale draw / good cedar hit / might have to finish this / last puff is decent, some cedar / FIN

Conclusions &  Thoughts

 

The Punch Mantua was released to a lot of fanfare. When people heard about it they contacted their Italian cigar contacts/buddies/B&M’s etc to try and get a hold of them.  I guess people were hoping for lightning to strike twice and thought this could be the La Escepcion Selectos Finos spiritual successor?  Or they loved that they were coming in 50 Cabs? Or they just like Punch long and skinnies? Not sure.  But there is/was hype for them. Even for me. I reached out and grabbed some myself.  They are not in my hands yet, but this single found its’ way to me via a good friend.  

I’ve heard good things from others who smoked them so after dry boxing this for about 10 days I felt it was time to smoke it.  

Right off the bat. This is not the LESF by any stretch.  Other than sporting a similar vitola, it did not deliver the initial, flavourful, complex “punch” to the balls.  But it is a Punch.  When I sit down for a review, I try to bypass the hype and do my best to be objective.  Whether or not it’s a cheapie or a high end, costly RE or LE.  I want to be able to honestly approach it for what it delivers,not for what market niche it sits in.

 

On to the smoking conclusions.  This cigar did not perform as I’d hope in terms of staying lit.  I haven’t had to relight and touch up a cigar in months. This one needed several.  With that said, it did deliver a unique smoking experience; which I like.  Overall it went from full bodied, to medium to mild and back again.  I did not taste any typical (for me) Punch tasting notes. I was hoping to, but it did not materialize. At least not in this one particular sample. When I get my cabs, I’ll revisit them and see if there is any discernible difference.  The cigar did take me on a flavour journey.  That is for sure.  I don't like monotone cigars, especially in the RE/LE lines. There’s no bang for the buck when that happens.  This cigar was definitely holding my attention.  It was complex and took me in directions I did not expect.  That “minty’ tasting note I kept experiencing is something I typically get out of vintage cigars. In particular, my Dip 7’s from 1988. It was so smooth. Even after multiple relights, which can tend to add a charry note to a stick.  

 

Final thought.  It was an excellent stick. Not a Punch, but a noteworthy stick. My only concern is how these will age given that they were not very full bodied. The LESF was and it still has the legs almost 10 years later.  With that said, this was only one cigar.  I look forward to my next ones. 

 

Score: 92. 

 

[Connoisseur Kim]

Thank you for sharing Punch Mantua experience Frank! I have one freebie Mantua in my tupperdor and can't wait to post Mantua review! Do you prefer Punch 898 over Mantua? I never had any Punch, so can't tell a lot about Punch.

나의 SM-N950N 의 Tapatalk에서 보냄

[Puros Y Vino]

8 hours ago, Connoisseur Kim said:

Thank you for sharing Punch Mantua experience Frank! I have one freebie Mantua in my tupperdor and can't wait to post Mantua review! Do you prefer Punch 898 over Mantua? I never had any Punch, so can't tell a lot about Punch.

나의 SM-N950N 의 Tapatalk에서 보냄
 

Having smoked one of each so far, the Punch 898 definitely made a better impression as it did have clear Punch DNA. And it only needed to be lit once.  ☺️ the Mantua does stand out on its own. There's nothing boring about it.  Once I've smoked at least a half dozen or so of each, i'll have a more informed opinion.  

[Connoisseur Kim]

Just now, bundwallah said:

Having smoked one of each so far, the Punch 898 definitely made a better impression as it did have clear Punch DNA. And it only needed to be lit once.  ☺️ the Mantua does stand out on its own. There's nothing boring about it.  Once I've smoked at least a half dozen or so of each, i'll have a more informed opinion.  

Thanks Frank! I wish I have 898 to compare with Mantua, since Dalia is one of my favorite CC sizes. The positive reviews of 898 made me want to buy stockpile of these. ?

[maverickdrinker]

Great review Frank. Interesting it did not have the punch characteristics, given it is a skinny. Wonder how it would stack up an a side by side with a Ninfa or after a few years when it settles down with some downtime in the humidor.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Like your ply by play style of review. Good job.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[cottierm]

Many thanks for the review Frank. A question though: dry-boxing for 10 days seems an awful long time. Could you explain the reasoning behind it?

All the very best my friend.

Michel

 

[Puros Y Vino]

On 7/5/2020 at 4:44 AM, cottierm said:

Many thanks for the review Frank. A question though: dry-boxing for 10 days seems an awful long time. Could you explain the reasoning behind it?

All the very best my friend.

Michel

 

Hi Michel! Long time no talk.  My version of "dry boxing" in this case is that the cigar resided in my Peter James case for around 10 days.  And it was only that long because I kept putting off smoking/reviewing the stick.   I was planning on smoking it 3-5 days after getting it.  

[cottierm]

And so that was the reason!

Many thanks for your answer Frank. My question was not only to have the pleasure to recontact you but had also practical point: I have been given a few dozens of cigars which had been over-humidified for years and which I am currently trying to revive. They have already spent two to three months in my humidor but that appeared not to have been sufficient and I am now dry-boxing a few at a time but after already five days the ones I have tried to smoke have still no real taste. Do you think it is possible to kill a cigar by over-humidifying it?

All the very best,

Michel

[Puros Y Vino]

37 minutes ago, cottierm said:

And so that was the reason!

Many thanks for your answer Frank. My question was not only to have the pleasure to recontact you but had also practical point: I have been given a few dozens of cigars which had been over-humidified for years and which I am currently trying to revive. They have already spent two to three months in my humidor but that appeared not to have been sufficient and I am now dry-boxing a few at a time but after already five days the ones I have tried to smoke have still no real taste. Do you think it is possible to kill a cigar by over-humidifying it?

All the very best,

Michel

I've had better luck with reviving dry sticks than over humidified ones.  With too much RH I would imagine the oils could "escape" as the cigar comes down to a lower, desired RH.  Whereas if they're dry the oils are kinda stuck there and dont evaporate as much?   Maybe take a stick and put it in the fridge for 3-4 hours and see how it smokes then?  

[cottierm]

Hi Frank,

Thanks for the fridge advice, I'll try that!

All the very best,

Michel

[nKostyan]

Thank you, great review!
Your style is similar to decoding an flight recorder (black box)

[Kongelunden]

On 6/27/2020 at 4:36 PM, bundwallah said:

Having smoked one of each so far, the Punch 898 definitely made a better impression as it did have clear Punch DNA. And it only needed to be lit once.  ☺️ the Mantua does stand out on its own. There's nothing boring about it.  Once I've smoked at least a half dozen or so of each, i'll have a more informed opinion.  

Amazing review! Thanks for sharing. I unfortunatelyh have missed out on the Mantua, but have a box of 898 coming in (once airfreight to DK is running again following covid) - so seems that I have something to look forward to despite missing the Mantua.

[Islandboy]

Just had one last night, I really like the exotic spice element in the aroma - I was thinking clove but now that you mention anise, bingo!

Interesting that despite what appears to be perfect construction, draw, etc, my cigar required several re-lights as well.