El Rey del Mundo Choix Supreme 2018 (FEBW1)

[Capn_Jackson]

This is my first ever Choix Supreme. Excited to light it up and see what all the hubbub is about.

Wrapper is slightly bumpy, with some rough veins poking out here and there. Nice peanut butter brown color, with quite a bit of tooth. The aroma is like Cadbury chocolate fingers, and coffee. Cold draw reminds me of toasted sourdough, with some medium-roast coffee and burnt vanilla. After a straight cut, has an excellent draw, if not a touch loose.

Caramel and coffee are all over the opening light. A little pepper in the nose, and some dried berry on the palate. On the finish, getting a great coat of floral honey. Immediately after that first puff, I get a runner in the burn, going about half an inch up the cigar. “Uh-oh.” Luckily, it corrects itself very quickly. No harm, no foul.

The first third rolls on with lots of toasted sourdough and nuts on the palate. On the retrohale, though, much more berry, coffee, and that delicious honey note from opening light. There’s also the faintest hint of white pepper, lingering on the back of my tongue. This cigar has an excellent opening salvo, can’t wait to see where it goes! Dark caramel and honey alternate on the long finish. The strength is about medium, but starts to build quickly.

I’ve been listening to The Who a lot lately, trying to get my little girls into some rock music to balance out all the pop my wife plays them. Today I’ve been listening to Live at Leeds, quite possibly my favorite live album by any band. Raw and gritty, but nuanced in all the right places. So like a Cuban cigar.

So far this has a mouthfeel best described as oily, rather than creamy. Excellent smoke output, and no problems with the burn or draw so far. Heading towards the end of this first act, pecans and rum start to build and join the chorus. Sweet and oily, with just a bit of a spicy kick!

As the second third opens, I start to get a hint of some cooked barley. There is not as much berry here, but the spiced rum and pecan notes build. The pepper gets a little heavier, but nowhere near overpowering. Gives a slight bit more of an earthy quality, just some real nice toasted tobacco. Writing a review, I have to remind myself to stop retrohaling every now and then, to see what’s happening strictly on the palate. Doing so, that toasted sourdough is primary, but there’s a little allspice hiding out too, and more nutmeg on the finish than honey or caramel. Around the midpoint, some black licorice starts to pop up on the finish. Just a brief hello, and then goes away. Strength starts to creep up just a notch past medium. Here I can’t help but be reminded of the spice in a PD4. This is slightly less earthy, but similar.  Unfortunately, ash starts falling off here and there, and the burn gets a little wonky, requiring a few quick touch ups.

“My Generation” is my favorite track on Live at Leeds. The track is over 16 minutes, and they really only play My Generation the first two minutes. Then it’s 14 mins of glorious transitions through different jams, including the song Sparks from “Tommy.” I prefer the version here in this jam. The “Tommy” version of Sparks is orchestral, and so rich in musicality. This version here, raw and metallic, rustic and full of swagger. Phenomenal!! Entwistle’s bass is growling, and Townshend’s guitar roars like a prehistoric beast. Keith Moon plays drums as if someone told him to hit the snare only on 2 and 4, and he said “Hold my pint and watch this!!!” Back to the cigar…

In the final third, chunks of ash continue to fall off sporadically, and I have to gently touch up a couple more times.

Rum and spice take over, with much less sourdough toast. A lot of medium-roast coffee here, too. The honey is gone from the main palate, but still lingers on the very back of the finish. The berry flavor is morphing a little bit now, becoming sort of a blackberry cream. Mouthfeel is a little more dry than before, and there’s some damp earth or barnyard coming in to play. In strength, the cigar has settled back into medium at most. Towards the end, things heat up a little and the pecan flavor starts to scorch. Not offensive, but it overpowers the fruit just a little, and also brings molasses in at the close. On the last few puffs, I get some roasted corn on the cob, dipped in dark bitter cocoa. Very interesting. Now I want to take an ear of corn, slather on some molasses, sprinkle it with cocoa, then roast it over an open flame. This is Texas, so anything goes!

Sadly, things end when the wrapper pops and unravels a bit, but this has been a very nice hour-and-a-half smoke. Not overly complex, but a worthy stick, and one I would happily smoke again.

Mainly because of some burn problems here and there, I give this one an 88.

[Hyun G Shin]

Thank you for great review 

[Ford2112]

Sparks from Live at Leeds is one of the great musical statements in rock music. I have the Live at the Isle of Wight dvd . May have to break that out! Thanks for the review. May have to seek some of these out!

[JohnS]

When I heard the album, 'Live at Leeds' by the Who mentioned, I lost a little interest in the outcome of the cigar because that album can make all things you do while listening seem better.

Awesome review, by the way!

[Capn_Jackson]

On 2/5/2024 at 5:18 PM, Ford2112 said:

Sparks from Live at Leeds is one of the great musical statements in rock music. I have the Live at the Isle of Wight dvd . May have to break that out! Thanks for the review. May have to seek some of these out!

I wanted to comment on this and never get around to it. You’re absolutely correct, one of the great musical statements in rock. So raw and rustic, on Sparks, a big contrast from the polished, theatrical version on Tommy. That whole jam is just on fire! I love the part at 4 minutes into the track, stretching on to that chord Townshend hits at 5:45. Beautiful, youthful rock ballad. I used to listen to that part over and over in my younger days.

About Isle of Wight, fantastic DVD. Such a fun glimpse into their live vibe. I remember in the Summer of 2002, my guitarist and I saw that DVD at Best Buy. Picked it up, went to his house and popped it in immediately. What a rush! I love the version of “Can’t Explain,” slightly slower than the album version, and full of great drum riffs. “Water” was also a fun track. Somewhere on that video, and I cannot remember where, Townshend breaks out the windmill and it is absolutely devastating!  Kept thinking how it looked like his arm MUST have come out of its socket 😆

That video, and Live at Leeds, were what really added The Who to my list of favorite classic rockers, along with Zeppelin, Hendrix, and Cream.

[KCCubano]

2 hours ago, Capn_Jackson said:

I wanted to comment on this and never get around to it. You’re absolutely correct, one of the great musical statements in rock. So raw and rustic, on Sparks, a big contrast from the polished, theatrical version on Tommy. That whole jam is just on fire! I love the part at 4 minutes into the track, stretching on to that chord Townshend hits at 5:45. Beautiful, youthful rock ballad. I used to listen to that part over and over in my younger days.

About Isle of Wight, fantastic DVD. Such a fun glimpse into their live vibe. I remember in the Summer of 2002, my guitarist and I saw that DVD at Best Buy. Picked it up, went to his house and popped it in immediately. What a rush! I love the version of “Can’t Explain,” slightly slower than the album version, and full of great drum riffs. “Water” was also a fun track. Somewhere on that video, and I cannot remember where, Townshend breaks out the windmill and it is absolutely devastating!  Kept thinking how it looked like his arm MUST have come out of its socket 😆

That video, and Live at Leeds, were what really added The Who to my list of favorite classic rockers, along with Zeppelin, Hendrix, and Cream.

I will walk over you to see The Who!! And I have seen them MANY times along with the Stones. 

[bassistheplace]

On 2/4/2024 at 11:44 PM, Capn_Jackson said:

“My Generation” is my favorite track on Live at Leeds. The track is over 16 minutes, and they really only play My Generation the first two minutes. Then it’s 14 mins of glorious transitions through different jams, including the song Sparks from “Tommy.” I prefer the version here in this jam. The “Tommy” version of Sparks is orchestral, and so rich in musicality. This version here, raw and metallic, rustic and full of swagger. Phenomenal!! Entwistle’s bass is growling, and Townshend’s guitar roars like a prehistoric beast. Keith Moon plays drums as if someone told him to hit the snare only on 2 and 4, and he said “Hold my pint and watch this!!!” Back to the cigar…

YES!!

[Ford2112]

It's all good stuff on Leeds. That guitar tone is the stuff of dreams. I always liked Townshend with the SG. Had so much bite and grit with Entwistles thundering bass lines. Killer stuff!!

Pretty sure Isle of Wight they went on at like 3 or 4 in the morning and just destroyed. Great band. Moonie is of course legend status but I feel like Daltrey gets overlooked a lot. Great vocalist and stage presence.