Romeo y Julieta Churchill UEB OCT 17 (RyJRW)

[hrs1]

After spending the better part of the last few weeks on the road for work,  I was pretty stoked to have a long weekend at home with the family.   Travel is a great way to shake things up a bit, reconnect with old friends and make some new ones.   Especially since COVID.   But, there's something to be said for returning home and sleeping in your own bed.   Especially when you've got a lady and couple little ones excited to have you back.   Nailing the mix between the road and home is tough, but it's pretty special when you get it just right.

It's a sunny Sunday morning.  My wife wants to run out with the kids for a couple hours before nap time.  One of the perks of being at home is having the cigar stash handy.  I want something different but also familiar.  It's RyJ review weekend ....

I decide to open this dress box of Churchills.  I've been smoking from a 2020 box of tubos (TPL JUN 20) and another 2017 dress box (MSA OCT 17) recently.   Both have been great.   If you forced me to pick, the 2020 tubos have a slight edge.    But, I've heard mythical stories about the UEB code.   Why not add another horse to the race?

 

 

Crack open the box and I'm welcomed with a sweet, earthy aroma.   The wrappers have a shiny almost glazed look.  Nice rosado hue.  Some tooth.  

Grab a stick and construction is on point.   Firmly packed, but not overfilled.

Punch it open.   Perfect draw.  Getting some cinnamon and cherry.   There's a savory spiciness to it as well. It reminds me of the Tariwala Gosht I was devouring while in India the week prior.

Houston, we're clear for take off.

 

 

Head outside.  Spark it up.  We're off to a delicious start.  

There's sweet cinnamon with a hint of cherry around the edges.    A savory yet sweet woodiness is in the center.  Body is medium / medium plus.  It's rich.  Great smoke output.  Nice if slightly uneven burn.

Halfway into the first third and the ash drops.   The savory note is alternating between woodiness and breadiness.   Some floral notes come in around the edges.   Now some honey.

The different flavors are moving around in the mix.   Sometimes cherry at the core and wood on the finish.  Then the reverse.   When the flavors mix just right, it’s like a pastry topped with cherries, sprinkled with cinnamon and a light honey glaze. 

Exquisite.

 

 

Another ash drops and the second third picks up where the first left off.  

The honey and bread have settled in as the main attractions.  Cherry and cinnamon are in supporting roles.  The woody and floral notes check out while some nuttiness hops on board.   Coffee and hints of chocolate come in on the finish.

This is starting to be eerily similar to the "honey dipped in bread" taste of some Cohiba’s.   But the sweetness is a bit sharper with the cherry and cinnamon notes instead of the citrus notes.  The deeper register vanilla and herbal notes are absent, making this a bit less smooth.  You could probably fool me on a blind tasting.

 

Final third and the sweet notes start fading out.  Then it's just bread, chocolate and coffee for the last leg of the trip.   It needs a quick touch up with the torch.  I start getting a pleasant nicotine buzz.  Family's home.  It's nubbed.   Time to head back inside  

 

 

This was a 96 point, 2 hour smoke and very welcome change to the morning routine.   It hit all the familiar RyJ Churchill notes.  But, the pastry-like breadiness has been missing from the other examples I've smoked recently.   It was well-balanced and had a hard to define classiness to it.   And like a good trip, I finished looking forward to giving the family big hugs before settling into my bed for a nice afternoon nap.   

UEB put out some pretty special smokes.  

[Monterey]

I have a UEB box from 2018 of these churchills.  Almost every cigar was plugged.  Total nightmare.  The few that weren't plugged were great.  Guess I was unlucky.

[Chucko8]

Sure sounds like an absolute treat. Nicely done.

[JohnS]

I wish I had more UEB Romeo y Julieta Churchills, believe me! Thanks for the review.