Cohiba Robusto, SOM DIC 16, CLvROWAS

[joeypots]

    It took a while for me to get Cohiba but now that I get them I love them. I decided to smoke a CORO from a box that's been hiding for this review and because I could I tried to compare it with a RASS, ETP JUL 16.  I smoked the RASS with a pal on Saturday afternoon. Excellent cigar. Mine had a perfect burn, a little resistance on the draw, and that RASS funky tobacco taste. A bit of nutty flavor is there but I don't get the stewed fruit thing. Then again, I'm not very good at discerning flavors. This cigar, like most Cuban cigars needs time to evolve. 3 to 5 years Is a pretty well accepted threshold for getting rid of youthful unpleasantness, and this one at close to 6 years is ready to roll. I've been burning through this cab at an alarming rate and will be sad when the last one is ash. I'll give it a 4 stars on the I like it scale of 1 to 5 stars.

   The CORO was pretty damn good on Sunday afternoon before my wife and I went out for a lovely Easter dinner.  This cigar was very well constructed with the foot of the cigar being packed a bit looser than the head. Burn and draw were spot on with a tight ash. Smoking time was about 75 minutes. The flavor of the cigar was fantastic from the first draw. Citrus twang and toasted tobacco dominated for the first half.  The second half was smooth, delicious tobacco. Like I said I can't describe flavors like some but I know what I like. I'll give it 4.5 stars. Just a bit better than the RASS.

   Was the CORO better than the RASS? Yes. Is the Cohiba worth the premium price? That's a tough question. The fact is, in my experience, one must judge cigars by the box. Some boxes just shine while some are just not quite as good.  While almost all Cuban cigars, in my view, are better than non Cuban cigars, they are inconsistant, from box to box and year to year. I've had MC Edmundos, for instance, that are some of the best cigars I've ever smoked while the RASS I shared last weekend exploded after the first third while I smoked a great one. I can't say I'd buy any Cohiba now but I'm happy to have the ones I have.