Montecristo No.4 ENE 06

[Colt45]

Construction: Felt a hair light in the hand but firm, and as it turns out, properly filled.

Wrapper: Medium+ colorado, a bit lighter and warmer in tone than the band. Relatively smooth

and vein free, though slightly leathery to the touch.

Draw: Fairly firm with great smoke volume, the draw was just slightly annoying.

Taste: Samples from this box smoked over the past year have started out nicely, but have quickly turned

bitter and sour, showing their youth. This latest sample shows them to be coming along nicely.

Started out with what I consider to be the classic Montecristo profile of coffee with cream. An integrated

overlay of rich black forest cake. No spice to speak of.

As the smoke progressed, the original flavors faded to the background, giving way to a fruit juciness -

as in a hard fruit candy. A little mouth puckering. This is how it remained from roughly the start of the second

third to the end. Nicely medium in body, it still has plenty of back bone, and a hint of the rough edges.

A nice cigar now, I expect it to smooth out further and become even better. 89

Addendum: I should add that it's my feeling that the "fruit juicy" aspect is part of this cigar's transformation in progress.

I think that the sourness of previous samples has become this mouth puckering fruitiness.

Time will tell.

[mgillett]

I got a bunch of these as singles earlier in the year and have had the same experience with a few of them. They start of nicely with the classic milk coffee profile and after about an inch they turn quite bitter. Is this an ageing thing? I thought they were using 3 year aged leaf now on current production?

[Colt45]

» I got a bunch of these as singles earlier in the year and have had the same

» experience with a few of them. They start of nicely with the classic milk

» coffee profile and after about an inch they turn quite bitter. Is this an

» ageing thing? I thought they were using 3 year aged leaf now on current

» production?

I'm not exactly sure when in '06 they started to use the 3-2-1 aged tobaccos. But for whatever reason, these

and the Montecristo No.5s really showed their youth. I do think that with a little time, they'll come around

to the "classic" Montecristo profile, as this most recent No.4 started to show.

[cls515]

» » I got a bunch of these as singles earlier in the year and have had the

» same

» » experience with a few of them. They start of nicely with the classic

» milk

» » coffee profile and after about an inch they turn quite bitter. Is this

» an

» » ageing thing? I thought they were using 3 year aged leaf now on

» current

» » production?

»

» I'm not exactly sure when in '06 they started to use the 3-2-1 aged

» tobaccos. But for whatever reason, these

» and the Montecristo No.5s really showed their youth. I do think that with

» a little time, they'll come around

» to the "classic" Montecristo profile, as this most recent No.4 started to

» show.

It's true. I have a box from 06 and half way in, they've changed from good to better. Time to step outside now with one. Cheers.

[bassman]

Haven't opened mine yet, but the 06 #1 & #2 are both superb.

[El Presidente]

» Addendum: I should add that it's my feeling that the "fruit juicy" aspect

» is part of this cigar's transformation in progress.

» I think that the sourness of previous samples has become this mouth

» puckering fruitiness.

» Time will tell.

I have noted this transformation on some 06 cigars Colt. The Sourness appears to be a 6 month-12 month abberation replaced by a sweet creamy/citrus note.