Fonseca Fonseca No. 1 - 2020 (OYMRW2)

[saltbox]

Received this in a prize sampler from FOH, alongside a Cohiba Siglo III and a Partagas Serie P No. 2 that I haven't touched yet, so don't know the box code on it. First experience with the marca, though that didn't stop me from picking up a box of PSP aged No. 1's preemptively which is currently resting. This one in particular has been resting for just over 3 months at 62RH.

Meetings wrapped up early yesterday and the weather was great (75F), so I felt like reaching for a longer smoke. A cigar during the day doesn't preclude another in the evening, so if I'm reaching for a larger smoke earlier in the day I prefer a lighter one, presenting a great opportunity to try the Fonseca No. 1.

First third: started at 4:15pm, opens with a nice light and creamy tobacco, very much like a lighter Romeo y Julieta Cazador. Some light floral and herbal notes appear, but it's mostly just the tobacco so far.

Middle third: 4:34pm, the cigar has picked up a plain oatmeal cookie flavor on the palate, on the less sweet side of normal, with nice creamy tobacco and floral notes on the retrohale. Towards the end, there's some additional light honey sweetness, vanilla, and almond nuttiness.

Last third: 5:00pm, I was skeptical of the toasted marshmallow tasting note but right as I hit the last third, that oatmeal cookie flavor I picked up earlier becomes a bit more creamy and suddenly I can see it. It's a nice toasty creamy sweetness that lingers through to the nub at 5:25pm.

Overall: definitely very light but also more flavor than I expected. I was worried I wouldn't enjoy this, although looking at the smoking time (1 hr 10 min) I definitely finished this one faster than I normally would a lonsdale, and it's possible that the lighter flavor profile had me puffing more frequently than I would a fuller bodied lonsdale (like a RyJ Cazador). 88/100, looking forward to comparing to my 2014 box once it's had more rest time.

 

[rcarlson]

Nice review.  You've described my experience with the Fonseca 1 to a T.  

[Chucko8]

Nice review and pictures. I agree with you on the smoking time being a tad quicker on these lonsdales compared to the fuller bodied examples. I find that I'm able to get through the Fonseca a little quicker generally. Though in so saying I did on my last example hit one that was unusually stronger than all others I've had.

[patrickamory]

Ah interesting! Very intrigued by the return of the oatmeal note. I had one of these in a FOH sampler, date and year code unknown, and also ordered a 2014 box in the recent sale. Mine is ARG NOV14 - what is yours? And how long are you going to let them rest? I was thinking a month before trying one.

[saltbox]

Turns out I have two boxes, I've got an MTS JUL 20 that's been resting for about 5 months and an ARG NOV 14 (same as you) that I received earlier this week. I'll probably give it 6 months before I try one from the ARG NOV 14. That's just my personal preference based on my experience, but I've found that even after 3 months of rest flavors still feel a bit muted, whereas at 5-6 months they're where I want them to be.

[patrickamory]

Wow six months. That's going to be tough. But I'll try!

[saltbox]

3 hours ago, patrickamory said:

Wow six months. That's going to be tough. But I'll try!

Don't take my word for it! I can wait 6 months now because I have built up a good collection of Cubans over the course of the last almost year now, and still have a lot of non-Cubans that I enjoy and can smoke while I wait.

When I only had a few boxes of Cubans, I was definitely smoking through them with much less rest, and that's what also helped me develop my own personal preferences as to how much rest I like before dipping into a box.

[patrickamory]

You argued me into it! I am going to smoke one tonight 🤗

[dominattorney]

27 minutes ago, patrickamory said:

You argued me into it! I am going to smoke one tonight 🤗

Me too. 

[patrickamory]

Okay, both good and bad with the ARG NOV14 ROTT. 

Started with a nice nutty, slightly sweet flavor, some hay. Ash beautiful, draw just right. In the first third some notes of freshly shelled peas. Definitely a floral, garden-y smoke.

In the second third, the oatmeal appeared. At first I couldn't ID this new flavor, and then I recalled @philipl's review at the top of this thread. Really lovely.

In the final third, the trouble began with some serious canoe action after the first ash drop. It looked like it would repair itself sitting in the ashtray but got worse and worse until tunneling began and the stick went out. In despair, I cut the entire ash off, but could see tunneling even in the unburned portion. Relit with some difficulty but the magic was gone - slightly bitter and burned even after a purge - and went out again shortly thereafter.

90 minutes, paired with a Chilean cabernet. Lovely for the first part of the smoke. Hopefully the rest of the box doesn't have construction issues!