Seven Day Cigar Summary....

[El Presidente]

It was a great cigar week as I did not have any real duds!

The standouts were several.

Fell in love again with the Partagas Connoisseur No 1. Such a rich 35 minute burst of flavour. Seriously if only sex was as good and as long

I have drifted away from the Connie 1 of late not for any particular reason but only because I sought greener pastures. On reconcilliation with a long lost lover she reminded me exactly of what I was missing. Will visit again and soon!

Hoyo De Monterrey Le Hoyo Des Dieux (Cab 50) 2003. These arrived and I was keen to sample having not been overly enamoured with 06/07/08 boxes of 25. Sweeet cream and cedar wood. Glorious! Another two years wil out them at the 93 point mark but they have hit the 90 now. For those considering a cab from the discontinues liist..pick them up. Three cabs to personal locker.

Punch Super Seleccion No 1 (Cab 50). Discontinuing this cigar is a crime against man. Rich, sweet Punch spices. Refined yet brutal, approachable yet with so much damn promise to come. Already have 5 cabs in personal locker, two more won't hurt.

Bolivar Corona Extra (50 Cabs). Again one I sampled from the discontinued 50 cabs brought in. I think I had a tear in my eye on completion of this cigar. I tried three back to back. Medium bodied, lashings of cocoa, earth and cream. POS 07. Why in Gods name did they do away with these. 5 cabs to personal locker.....will explain to Lisa later.

Cohiba Sigo 1 (08) This was palate cleanser last Friday after Arthur kassos and I polished off some Siglo VI's (good not great). So decadently rich. Were not the prettiest I have seen but they put out like a .......well.... they put out. Could expect no more in a half corona and a reminder to me that the Punch Petit Punch is not the only half corona game in town.

Had plenty of others but these were the standouts. What about yours?

[neal875]

Well, I can say it was a great week for smoking here too. But, saving the best for last, let's get the duds out of the way first. An '06 Choix Supreme in 25 box. I just can't catch a break with this cigar. They just never deliver for me and this box is no exception. And, an '07 Upmann Monarch in tube. This is almost always a great cigar but I think this one is just a victim of youth (and not the best construction). They really need a lot of time in the box to come through. And if you give them that time, they almost always do come through. Oh, and in another brilliant move--these are now discontinued in this packaging.

Okay: the good stuff. A 2007 Punch Petit Punch. These seem to be getting a lot of discussion around them lately. Too bad it didn't happen a few years ago, we wouldn't be saying good-bye to them now. They are really good. And really small. That's almost always a bad combo but you just cannot complain about these at all.

Second: A 2003 Partagas Connaisseur #1. Holy cow. Compared to my box of thees from '07, it once again proves the value of patience. The 03s are really divine--incredibly balanced, superbly flavorful and lovely to look at in your hand. A real pleasure all around.

A 2000 Bolivar Tubed Churchill. Another victim of the chopping block sometime back but an amazing liaison with the best of what Bolivar has been-- and is now-- capable of delivering. Now this is a strong cigar. Not crudely so, but it does have a real power and presence about it that is extremely exciting And it might be the richest cigar in my entire humidor. Great, great stuff.

Lastly: A 2007 PLPC cab selection. Everything you hear about these from '07 is true. If you can find some-don't hesitate to buy them. How do they get this much flavor and balance in such a small--and young--cigar? There are probably some still around in stock--if I don't get to them first.

And, best of all, it is now a new week. Who knows what pleasures it will bring.

[shrink]

It has been a good week, cigar-wise. It began with an '05 Ramon Allones Belicoso from a dress box. Every one of these beauties is better than the last. With four years of box age, it is striking a good balance between its' spicier, peppery elements and the smoother woody core. The finish on these is long and sweet.

A 1998 Cohiba Lancero made a fine accompaniment to a mug of cafe au lait in the late morning. This cigar never disappoints. The profile varies between sweet lemongrass and creme caramel. I love the stronger, darker elements that are revealed in the last two inches.

A JUN08 Bolivar Gold Medal surprised me with its bold, dark espresso character. It was very different from '06 and '07 examples I've sampled. Despite its youthful intensity, this was a very compelling cigar, showing some bittersweet chocolate and pepper in the finish. Everything about this earthy, powerful cigar demands aging.

I've been impressed by the 2008 Upmann offerings. This week, I smoked both a JUL08 Mag 46 and a JUN08 Connoisseur No. 1. I was hard pressed to choose a favorite since both were remarkably approachable and flavorful cigars. The Mag opened strongly, with a rich, spicy quality, but soon resolved into a medium-bodied profile of high quality, toasted tobacco. The Connie opened more smoothly, with sweet tobacco notes. On the lighter side of medium, it showcased the Upmann herbal profile beautifully, all the way down to a sweet, delicious nub. Frankly, I enjoyed this young Connie more than my aged 1998's. But how will it age?

One evening I was just in the mood for a Diplomatico after dinner and a chocolate dessert. A FEB06 No. 3 hit the spot perfectly, with its dark sweet cocoa and paprika spice. This cigar isn't particularly complex, but the flavor profile is rich, dense and mouth-coating, much like the dessert I had just finished.

I was also curious to see how the '07 Hoyo Regalos were coming along. Originally, I found this cigar showed a great deal of latent complexity. By now, the citrus has almost completely gone, and the peppery elements have largely been tamed. The overall profile is one of a spicy chocolate chip cookie, with some black pepper in the mix. Although I enjoyed it, I promised myself to leave these alone for another year, to bring out more depth and sweetness.

One of the best cigars of the week was a FEB05 Juan Lopez No. 2. The last time I sampled one, in 2007, it showed a lot of latent character, but was unapproachably bitter and harsh. Although some tannic elements were still present, the last couple of years have soothed its mongrel soul, and brought out a sweet caramel profile. The last two thirds of this cigar were almost like candy. I nubbed it.

[habanablue]

Saturday night: Partagas Serie D No. 5 LE 2008

I’m a firm believer that often a cigar is a conduit to a good night rather than an end in itself. Saturday night was a perfect example of this. Despite RSVPing to a wedding, we found ourselves without a seat at the reception, and so as not to cause extra stress to the bride and groom on their day, nor waste a perfectly good night out, we slinked out and traipsed down to a bar a few streets away, grabbed a seat outside and ordered some cocktails. A calm, crisp autumn evening provided the ideal conditions to spark up the Partagas 2008 Limited Edition.

The cigar lit and drew well, with strong tobacco and smoky peat flavours on show. Despite great flavours as mentioned before, it remained slightly one-dimensional. The poorly made Mojitos (the bar shall remain nameless) didn’t complement the leathery taste and I would love to pair this cigar with a single malt whisky to get a better indication of its potential. Some more time in the humidor may allow it to develop more complexity.

Despite some minor shortcomings, this Partagas was a formidable companion to a night of fun and conversation, albeit without the expected frivolity of a wedding.

[Chaki]

Bolivar Corona Extra (50 Cabs). Again one I sampled from the discontinued 50 cabs brought in. I think I had a tear in my eye on completion of this cigar. I tried three back to back. Medium bodied, lashings of cocoa, earth and cream. POS 07. Why in Gods name did they do away with these. 5 cabs to personal locker.....will explain to Lisa later.

Hey, Rob, one of these has my name on it!

[bolivr]

I lit one of the little Raf Gonzalez Panatelas Extra from Czar, recent purchase. Loved it (thanks Smithy for getting these in for me). Really nice cream and a touch of leather.

I left the final couple inches in the ashtray and lit it up 5 days later. Amazing. Tasted great and I nubbed it. Great Value cigar.

[Colt45]

In no particular order:

Hoyo Epicure No.1

Punch RS11

Bolivar Coronas Gigantes

Hoyo Double Corona

[tsolomon]

Monte Especial, very nice but a little tight

Monte #4, my wife's favorite and always a winner

SLR Serie A from 99, this was gifted to me and was the best smoke of the weekend.

[mkz]

A few Partagas Panetelas was all my time allowed this week. Tons of brutal tobacco flavour. I love ´em!

[jeromeroselli]

Over the weekend:

Bolivar PC: okay.

Siglo II: very good.

PSD4: very good.

I have been really arm wrestling with the PSD4 lately. They start out magnificent, and for me in the last third, always turn into monsters with a vendetta. Still, the first 30 minutes is bliss. I'm going to let them relax for awhile and focus on my box of regios.

[sliver54]

This past week in no particular order

Dip 4

RASS

898 back to being a flavor bomb... a little time did great things to this box

the usual siglo I

Boli PC which showed me the profile i had always expected but never gotten from these little guys

Courtesy of Mbrody, a PLPC that was exceptional

[buster]

Partagas Connie #3 (NOV 07) Had one while grilling for dinner mid-week, and one on the back nine on Saturday afternoon. These were my first Connie #3's. Wow! These are an immediate favorite. I split a box w/ a buddy, and I can see always having a couple of boxes of these around. A bit of chocolate w/ spice and some floral overtones. Shot a 39 on the back, so I can see this becoming a ritual. Besides, as my buddy mentioned, you feel like Clint Eastwood smoking these.

Por Larranaga Robusto PCC RR (NOV 07) Robustos were my favorite NC vitola, but I have favored PC's and smaller ring gauges w/ CC's. Having discovered the RASS and JL #2, some robustos are back in the lineup. The PL was full flavored, rich and creamy. Smoked it on the front nine and shot a 53... OK, maybe the cigar has nothing to do w/ the score and I just shoot psychotic golf.

Cohiba CE (JUN 06) I've had five of these in the humi since last November and held out until now to try my first one. Didn't want to waste in the cold weather. Smoked it grilling dinner last night. What a treat! I swear it started out tasting like cotton candy. After pouring a Belgian Blonde (Affligem), it settled down to a sweet, vanilla coffee flavor. Good pairing w/ the beer. I love this size cigar and can't wait for my first shot at some Trini Fundadores that have been sitting in my humi (the Reyes are already a favorite).

Rick

[bobsled]

1 Dud, a RyJ Exhibicion 4.

Thoroughly enjoyed a Short Churchill, a Partags 898V that was fabulous, and a Padron 1926. An altogether fabulous weekend for fantastic smokes

[jdbrown]

My favorite of the week was a late 07 Cazadore!

[sinnyc]

Sadly, I have been walloped with a serious head cold on top of my normal allergies and have been unable to taste a thing for over 3 days. Honestly, nothing. At lunch today, in a desperate effort to have some small bit of my senses of smell and taste return, I actually ate 3 significant bites of wasabi in the hopes that the fumes would pierce my sinuses. Nothing....

So, I've been smoking Quintero machine made's to get my nicotine fix. I'd like to tell you they were tasty but for all I know I was smoking cow dung and cardboard...

- Tim

[Ethernut]

Best to worst

SLR Series A (06) - If I could have this particular cigar every time, I'd probably smoke it everyday.

Cohiba Robusto (06) - Not the best, but certainly not dissapointing..

Choix Supreme (01)

Avo Classic #5 (grassy piece of crap) - I was in a palm tree laden area over the weekend and stopped by a large established cigar store. Picked up 6 NC's just for giggles. Kinda funny when I walked in, I told the guy, I knew nothing about NC's anymore and shared my flavor profiles. He pointed me toward 6 different kinds and I picked them up. All in all, spent about $60 on 6 sticks.

[aavkk]

I really appreciate threads like this as it gives such a wide variety of different palettes and obviously different smokes. I think these should be up every week!

I for one only smoked 2 cigars last week but both were very good.

1. Cohiba Selection Reserva Robusto from Feb 03. This cigar has seen the spotlight recently on several cigar boards and I was graciously gifted one recently by a good friend. I wanted to see the hype with these. This cigar was a very good cigar and had all the hallmark cohiba characteristics in a medium body. The standout flavors were clean, toasted tobacco and a molasses sweetness that is slightly different than my Siglo III's as a point of comparison for those familiar. I enjoyed this but have grown less and less enamored with the robusto size.

2. LGC #2 from May 02. I have been smoking an awful lot of these lately and been trying to figure out if I like the 1,2 or 4 the most. Clearly this kind of decision requires several examples relatively closely to each other. I think that this was the sweetest, most floral #2 I have ever had. IMO most of the others I have smoked from my boxes tended to be on the stronger, spicier side. Overall if I had to rank them now I would go with the #1, #2 followed closely by the #4. All 3 are outstanding and while sometimes the blend is a bit inconsistent ranging from sweet and floral to strong and spicy I kinda like the mystery before lighting up and welcome either. These are fantastic smokes and I'm glad Ive stocked up.

Hopefully this week I will light up something tasty...

[mbrody]

Thanks Justin for a memorable H.Upp Connie #1 - Started like a plugged dog rocket, then miraculously opened up to a very good smoke.

RASC was fantastic.

Petit Punch has me praying that I truly have some more boxes than what show up in my locker.

Partagas Connie #3 tasting great and showing great potential.

Wonderfull 07 PLPC.

[Mr Peales]

'02 LGC #1: an elegant spicy smoke with an impressive evolution of flavors, not a pretty cigar, a rough and tumbled appearance.

'01 Partagas Corona: from a cab, beautiful cigar, Partagas flavors, but a bit too mild and subtle for a classic Partagas.

'05 Partagas 898: medium spicy flavors with notes of carmel during the last half. Distracted while smoking this one by a large mothers-day caddis hatch and dozens of rising trout everywhere I turned.

'08 Punch SS#1: Bland, muted flavors, this cigar was the first from a cab, arrived two weeks ago, I really hope this batch comes around. I was expecting fireworks. My last cab from '01 is the worst(bland) box of cigars I own.

'07 Punch RS #11: just lit this one up, so far so good. Rich body, mellow flavors, and a little sweetness as I near the halfway point.

[PointSource]

06 Bolivar CG. Insanely good!