May Blind Tasting: The unveiling

[Fuzz]

I find this very interesting that there is so much variation from a single box.

Thanks Rob for the chance to participate.

Can't wait to read the June blind taste reviews.

[Miami101]

Guy's

You must smoke it crazy Cuban style.....Huka time....:-D

Light up the Huka............and take it to a new level..

Miami101

[Guest rob]

For some reason, and I'm not sure why.... which ever computer I log in from I cant see the end of this thread - it just greys out from GTS21's post onwards.

Any clues on a fix?

[Colt45]

Construction: Seems a coronoa gorda. very firm but not hard. Weight in hand felt perfect. Though the

foot was a bit squashed from transit, it showed a good bunch. Head under cap also looked quite good.

Wrapper: Finely toothed medium colorado. Somewhat veiny with the veins lighter in color than the

surrounding leaf - almost like blond highlights.

Pre light Aroma: Sweet hay / barnyard.

Pre light draw: Taste of sweet cocoa with a spicy tingle on the tip of the tongue. Draw on the easy side.

Draw / Burn: Perfect draw, erratic burn, excellent smoke volume.

Taste: First draws are full and thick with a taste of leather and black pepper. Full bodied - in your

face - right out of the gate. What I feared might be a loose draw based on pre light turns out to be

the perfect draw with clouds of smoke. Burn early is rather flowery. Medium gray ash which seems

to be quite solid.

About an inch in, body throttles back just a bit. Flavor is now more of a spicy, velvety chocolate -

think spicy mole sauce (thanks Tigger), with a light fruit layer on top. So far, quite smooth, with a long,

velvety, spicy finish.

Moving into the mid third, burn is quite erratic and the cigar feels like it is softening up just a bit.

I think it is still on the moist side. Becoming more fruity in flavor still with a spicy kick for a finish.

I find that if I wait too long between draws it does not want to stay lit, though wrapper burn aside,

combustion is generally quite good.

At midpoint, the mole starts to lean toward earthy tobacco, along with the spicy fruit elements.

Into the final third, the mouth feel is more buttery, with hints of hazelnut and amaretto, with the

spicy tingle remaining on the finish. The nutty flavors quickly subside, leaving a buttery front and

mid, with a finish which has become somewhat bland, yet still peppery.

With about an inch left, the finish is black pepper and cardboard, and I set it down. Overall, a smooth,

full bodied, complex cigar.

Score: 89

Guess: Hamlet Corona Gorda

(Regular production guess - RyJ Exhibicion No.3 - I know, two guesses, no fair:-) )

Conclusion: The little voice in the back of my head is saying this cigar is young-ish, but it is very

smooth, though not totally balanced. A very, very good cigar with outstanding potential.

I hope my guess is incorrect, and that it is regular production.

Thanks so much for the opportunity, and I'm looking forward to the rest of the reviews!

[Mr. Japan]

BLIND FOH – MAY 2008- TASTING SHEET

GENERAL DETAILS

DATE : 21/05/2008

CATADOR : MR.JAPAN

COUNTRY OF PRODUCTION : CUBA

BRAND : PUNCH (________________)

FACTORY NAME (VITOLA DE SALIDA) : ROYAL SELECYION ( _____________________ )

SIZE (VITOLA DE GALERA) : CORONA GORDA 46*143

METHOD OF MANUFACTURE : Totalmente a Mano

DATE OF PRODUCTION AND CODE : 2005 ( ___________)

( _____________ TO FILL WITH CORRECT ANSWEARS)

ANALISYS PRE-LIGHTING

WRAPPER (COLOUR): – Colorado

WRAPPER (HUE) : Golden

WRAPPER (SHEEN) : Luminous

WRAPPER (FEEL) : With Veins

WRAPPER (TEXTURE): Velvet

CONSTRUCTION : Good

FILLING : (Regular

AROMA (INTENSITY) : Mild

AROMA (DESCRIPTION) : Earth

ANALYSIS UPON LIGHTING

DRAW : Tight

BURN : Regular

ASH (QUALITY): Solid

ASH (COLOUR) Gray

ASH (SHAPE) : Flat

VOLUME OF SMOKE : Modest

BRIEF DESCRIPTION and ANALISYS OF FLAVOR AND AROMA

As soon I lighted up the first few puff have been very sour almost acid. Not easy to find out a firm flavor during all the smoke. The burn is been smooth and the ash firm and nice grey colour, just a bit tight in the draw. I could get some wood at end of first third that developed more in the second third , little bit salty but ,mainly it was a tobacco and wood taste. Final third tangy .

STRENGTH (FORTALEZA) :

1° third : Mild

2° third : Medium

end : Medium

ORGANOLEPTIC ANALYSIS

COMPLEXITY : Medium

EVOLUTION : Medium

BALANCE : One Dimensional

AFTERTASTE : Short

QUALITY : Acceptable

FINAL CONCLUSIONS

TIME REQUIRED TO SMOKE :45 minutes

SUITABLE FOR : Everybody

SMOKING TIME : Anytime

RECOMMENDED PAIRING: I went with a Guinness

QUALITY IN TERMS OF PRICE : Medium

AGING POTENTIAL: 5-10 Years

POTENTIAL FOR INVESTMENT (COLLECTION) : Unlikely

THANK YOU FOR LETTING PLAY AT THIS GREAT GAME.

[SmokinAl]

It’s a quiet Thursday afternoon in Brisbane. My architects are off architecting, my developers are developing and I’m peering out the window into a rapidly approaching storm front that promises quite a blow for the next few days. Screw it. I’m outta here.

The nastiest thing about my job is it puts me a five minute drive from Czar and that just makes it too damn easy to goof off for a couple of hours with a nice bottle of wine (yes, you get a bottle each whenever you visit) and a smoke or two. Unlike Smokum I don’t have any pictures of squirrels in my review, but I can show you a picture of a nut:

The mystery cigar is a lovely looking little number and the pre-light aroma is bloody gorgeous. Not the first thing I notice though. It’s as hard as a rock. El Prez sits across from me whilst I make appropriate throat clearing noises between my uttering of broken sentences.

“Too big to be a Corona..Ahem...Gorda maybe?...mumble...tightly packed...good smell...don’t think it’s a Siglo IV...er...give me a hint?”

“Sure” says Rob “just as soon as all the reviews are in, you can read about it like everyone else”.

Bastard.

1/3

The draw on this stick is a nightmare. Neither massage nor prayer seem to fix the problem. I wish I had brought the drill with me instead of the camera. The burn is quite ragged and I end up with an inch and a half of burn on one side to a quarter of an inch on the other. Flavour is good Cuban Tobacco with cocoa laying around the edges.

2/3

Draw is still very tight. I might need a bit of a lie down after I finish this and I fear I’m punishing the stick too much trying to get a good volume of smoke. That said, I notice a familiar fruit taste coming into the mix. If this thing hadn’t been rolled by a bodybuilder in a bad mood, it’d be glorious.

3/3

Good Cuban tobacco. Still wishing I had a few extra lungs in case I wear out this pair. I toss it with about an inch and a half to spare before I do myself an injury.

This cigar whilst an excellent blend was too tight to get a high score. If it was “right” I’d be happy to give it a low 90’s score and I envy you, my friends who scored a good one. I’m thinking this a RyJ Ex No 3 from last year’s production. I’ve had a few of these in the past few months which all had perfect draws so this one was a bit of a surprise (if I’m right).

There’s really only one thing to do if you if you have a nasty spill at Czar House with cigar. Climb straight back on and have another one (or two) cigars to help wash down the next bottle of wine.

Thanks Rob, for the opportunity, for the booze, the council and the BBQ!

Cheers,

Smokin (has anyone seen my lungs) Al.

[Evo03]

I smoked this cigar tonight, after dry boxing for 3 days.

Wrapper is medium/light in color, good construction, nice triple cap, minimal oiliness. Smell was floral and spice. Cut the cap, and the draw was perfect. Sweet and spicy cold draw.

The cigar started with some spiciness and grassy flavor. Pretty strong tobacco taste. Good smoke and draw. Some bitterness and leather start to develop, along with charcoal. After an inch or so, the spiciness went away. There was some coffee and cocoa showing up.

In the second 3rd, It's starting to smooth out. The bitterness is mostly gone, and sweetness comes and goes. Leather and light charcoal flavors are predominant. Some spiciness and floral notes return. Cigar is getting better.

The last 3rd continues with leather, floral notes, some sweetness, and a little charcoal. It has smoothed out, with no grassiness left.

Overall, this was an enjoyable cigar. I'm guessing it's fairly young, 1-2 years. I consider it full bodied, and full flavored. I assume it would smooth out in a few years. I'm going to guess it's a Rafael Gonzalez Coronas Extra. Not that I know much about that cigar, but I can't identify it with any other corona gorda.

Thanks to Rob and Lisa for including me in the tasting.

[ATGroom]

A handsome stick. Nice dark oily wrapper with a square end.

I slice and lift off the cap and light it with a cigar store match. The first few puffs are bitter chemicals, but it quickly settles down into a very mild, milky flavour. Draw is perfect. Things look good for this cigar. I sip a little warm, flat Coca-Cola that is sitting on my desk, and perhaps accounts for the burnt toffee I start to get.

I’m working on my computer, writing some emails, and perhaps not puffing as much as I should, because this cigar seems determined to go out. I have to get a good lungfull through it every time I pick it up just to keep the fire going. The burn is becoming uneven, but I have hope that it will correct itself. I once read an interview with Castro (in Cigar Aficionado, I think), where he claimed that a good Habano should always even up, even if you only light one corner, which has made me loath to touch up burns. You should give it a chance to make Castro proud, I feel. The flavour now is very mild, all burnt tobacco. I feel a need to spit, which is never a good sign.

The flavour gets still milder to the point that I have to look at the smoke I’m breathing to convince myself it’s still alight. At about the three quarter mark, it isn’t. I relight.

Into the second third and the flavour heats up for a moment. All manure and campfire. Still an effort to keep the thing alive and the burn is getting more uneven by the puff. I crack a beer. A bit below the halfway mark it goes out again.

The relight sends me into the final third, where I usually expect to find the flavour, but this cigar persists in its mildness. Slight herbal overtones at a stretch. I take it down till I start to feel the heat in my fingertips. For once it doesn’t seem to want to go out. I put it down with the intention of letting it go out gracefully, but as it’s still going five minutes later, I can’t resist an extra couple of puffs.

The aftertaste, like the cigar, is very mild on the pallet. Interestingly, about an hour later I’m still feeling pretty buzzed from the nicotine. Perhaps there was more punch in there than I realised.

A quite pleasant, if mild cigar with some burn issues. If I had to guess, and I understand I do... I dunno, Bolivar Coronas Extra?

[El Presidente]

» al, how the hell did you get him to open a katnook? you must have brought

» it. i'm expecting a vast improvement in the standard of grog served on the

» czar balcony next visit.

I still have the last red you brought to open any time you want.

[shrink]

Lest we forget.... what could be more appetizing than a soft, dry, red stool?