ROCKY PATEL OLDE WORLD RESERVE MADURO

This is the second time I’ve smoked one of these maduro clad Rockys, and once again, I failed to take a picture.  This was a 6 or 6 1/2 inch long, 48-52 gauge, box-pressed Toro cigar.  I used a punch and it had a perfect draw.  It might have been under-filled, because it did seem a little soft and the ash was flaky.  Also, the burn was a little uneven, requiring a few touch-ups.  The flavor, however, was top notch!

This stick has a wonderful aroma with a sweetness that reminds me of the mixing of cigar smoke with a good whisky.  (Or whiskey!)  It is a medium to full flavored cigar with no harshness, just loads of creamy smoke.  The flavor is mostly rich tobacco, with notes of molasses or caramel.  The flavor builds throughout the length, maybe even becoming slightly “skunky” for the last inch.  Nonetheless, I smoked this one to the nub and enjoyed every puff.

Overall, the burn and construction were average, but the rich, deep flavor of this maduro make it a winner in my book.  A quick price check online revealed a price of around $153 for a box, making it about $7.66 a stick.  That seems like a fair price for this cigar.

OPUS X – RESERVA ‘d CHATEAU

Fuente greatness!

Since it was my birthday dinner celebration, I decided to bring a couple of these Opus X’s that Paul had given me last Christmas and give one to him.  They came in a tin of three and were wrapped in cedar and cellophane.  These were long, maybe 7 inches and about 48 ring gauge.  They were beautiful, with smooth, tight wrappers and flawless construction.  They burned with a sharp edge and threw off thick plumes of smoke.  We both used a punch, and the draw was perfect.  I found the flavor to be a nice medium with flavors of smooth tobacco, coffee and leather.  No spice was detectable.  There was absolutely no harshness associated with this stick!  I would have liked a tad more flavor or complexity, but overall this was a great cigar.  And the flavor did build over time without becoming harsh.  I smoked this one to the sweet end.

Overall, it was a great smoke.  Was it worth the $26 per stick or so?  It is very close.  I would pay up to $20 for these as a special occasion smoke.

CAO AMERICA

CAO AMERICA

I believe the size is called the “Potomac”.  It was a fatty, about 5 inches by 56 ring gauge, and beautifully constructed.  I had been saving this one for at least six months, and what better day than the 4th of July to smoke it? 

I managed to cut this fatty with my biggest guillotine cutter, and paired it with some Remy Martin V.S.O.P cognac.  Initially, this smoke reminded me of the Sopranos cigar, but I quickly realized it really couldn’t hold a candle to the Sopranos stick.  Later, the flavor became more reminiscent of a Brazilia, but again, not as much flavor.  Mostly, it gave off a “tangy” flavor.

The cigar burned fairly well, with only a couple minor touch-ups needed.  However, I was disappointed with the lack of flavor and complexity, and the volume of smoke was quite anemic as well.  Overall, I would rate this one about 6 out of 10, whereas I would rate the Brazilia an 8, and the Sopranos a 9 1/2.

OLIVA SERIES V

OLIVA SERIES V

I think this was a double robusto, since I guessed its dimensions at 5 x 50 or 52.  This came with a few other Olivas in a sampler pack.  It’s probably been in the humidor for a few m0nths.  This cigar had a beautiful, medium brown wrapper and fantastic construction.  Looking at the foot, I could see a darker colored filler leaf folded into the surrounding lighter filler leaves.  Pre-light, it smelled of sweet tobacco, caramel and spice.  I paired this beauty with some 15 year Glendiddich.

Check out the darker filler leaf!

I used a punch on this cigar and it proved adequatefor drawing lots of medium bodied, sweet smoke into my mouth.  Right off the bat, this cigar reminded me of a La Flor Dominicana Ligero, although it was slightly sweeter and less powerful than the La Flor.  It was not too sweet though, it had a nice balance between sweet and spicy.  Flavors of peppercorns and chocolate dominated the first third of this smoke.  The stick burned great and had a nice draw with a fine, light gray ash. 

The flavor builds as you get to the second half, becoming nicely richer.  I detected notes of coffee and flowers before the last third brought a little bit of harshness with flavors of leather and bitter coffee.

Overall, I really liked this cigar and look forward to trying some more!  Great construction, burn and draw with nice, rich flavors for most of its length.

GURKHA – Regent

GURKHA REGENT

This Gurkha must have come from a sampler I bought a while ago.  It looks to be a Toro, about 6 inches by 48 or 50 gauge.  It is box-pressed and the wrapper is a grayish-brown color.  It seemed to have a spicy pre-light flavor.  The draw was really tight after I used my punch, so I went ahead and got out the cutter.  Even after a generous cut, this stick was still tight.

It started out with a tangy, spicy flavor, but not harsh.  I tried to think of flavors and came up with orange, nutmeg and leather.  The cigar burned nicely and I noticed a nice, sweet aroma to the smoke through the nose.  It was almost a floral sweetness.

The flavor seemed to get richer as it smoked, but was particularly improved after I notice a stem sticking out right in the middle of the filler and pulled out a three inch piece of stem!  From then on, the draw was much improved and I was able to smoke this one down to the nub.  Although the flavor improved along the way, I’d have to say that the flavors do not fit my flavor profile enough to buy this one again.  I am looking forward to trying the Legend however!

CAO SOPRANOS – SOLDIER

CAO SOPRANOS -Soldier

Well I must really thank Paul for giving me one of these to try.  I assumed that this line from CAO was 75% hype.  Boy was I wrong!  This stick was 100% smoking pleasure.  I’m not sure how long it had been sitting in the humidor.  At least six months and probably closer to a year, I think.  I just looked at it and felt “it was time”.

There was nothing too special about the appearance of this cigar.  I did notice the cap was rather “blunt”, but it fit into my cutter and clipped off nicely.  I can’t recall any exacting flavors, but I can say that the flavors were pretty complex, and not even a hint of harshness, ever!  There seemed to be an underlying sweetness that reminded me of a Cameroon wrapper, although I can find no mention of any Cameroon leaves being used anywhere in this cigar.  The sweetness was not overpowering at all, but was always there in the background, the bulk of the flavor I would describe as a rich tobacco flavor with ample amounts of spice.

This stick threw off a huge volume of smoke, with a perfect draw which lasted down to the nub.  The taste never got harsh, and I smoked this thing down under 1/2 and inch remaining before I reluctantly dropped it in the ashtray.

This was one of the best cigars I have smoked.  I immediately checked the prices at the usual on-line sites, and although they have been coming down in the last couple years, they are still over $200 a box.  Too rich for my current “recession budget”.  But man, for $10 a stick, this cigar is worth it.

MACANUDO CAFE HYDE PARK

I’ve always liked the name of this little smoke and now I got to try one.  It had a velvety, natural wrapper and decent construction, not great.  At first light, it threw off a sweet tobacco flavor, with a mild to medium body, leaning more towards the mild side.  As I smoked, it became apparent that this is a mild, not very complex cigar with an “airy” almost menthol type of flavor.  The ash fell at about an inch and the flavor began to improve slightly, becoming a little richer and toastier. 

The flavor didn’t improve much more and the construction became more questionable, as I got not one, but two hot ashes in my lap before I threw this stick into the bowels of the ashtray!  Both times the ash was no more than 3/4 of an inch.

Overall, for being so light on flavor, it still had a harsh finish/aftertaste.  I will definitely NOT be buying any more of these anytime soon.  Maybe it needed some “Lewinski” to flavor it up.

AVO DOMAINE

I picked up one of the beautiful cigars a few weeks ago and finally got a chance to try it.  I love the unique shape and the burgundy/lilac colored label.  It had a velvety, tawny brown wrapper with some small veins.  The construction on this cigar was really excellent.  I lit the little nipple on the end and started enjoying the smoke.  Of course the draw was tight at first, until it burned past the “nipple” and got to a decent diameter.  It soon opened up and burned very evenly.  There was always tons of smoke present, throughout the whole length.  This cigar has a medium strength, with lots of aromatic smoke!  I didn’t detect any real spiciness, just a toasty, semi-sweet smoke with maybe some tones of chocolate or cocoa.

I started off drinking some 18 year old Glenfiddich neat, but ended up finishing the second half of the cigar with a bottle of Fat Tire, although my drink didn’t seem to affect the flavor much.  This Avo produced a dark grey ash, which held on to about 1 1/2 inches.  It kind of reminded me of a cross between a Romeo Y Julieta and a Padron, which is a good thing for me.  I like both of those cigars!  Towards the end, I felt there was a note of citrus, maybe orange?

Overall, a quality smoke with a mild-to-medium flavor, and not much spice.  This cigar had great construction and burned flawlessly, but I would be hard pressed to spend another $12 on one.  Maybe if I got a good deal on-line and could buy a few for $7 or so.

 

 

 

LA FLOR DOMINICANA LIGERO

 

I’ve been wanting to try a cigar from this brand since they were awarded Cigar of the Year or whatever.  I finally picked one up at a local shop and I was not disappointed!  I’m not sure how the Ligero was rated, but I sure liked the one I smoked.  It really reminded me of my favorite Romeo Y Julieta 1875 Anniversary Edition in Tubos.  Very similar flavors, with the La Flor having a touch more bite to it.

First off, the cigar is beautiful with a really wide band.  It had an oily natural wrapper and a pretty good size to it.  I’d say it was about a 54 ring and 5 3/4 inches.  I gave it a pretty big cut (was a little hard to cut, maybe my cutter is getting dull?) and it paid off with billows of thick, aromatic smoke.  It never needed a relight, and burned evenly down to the remaining nub that I reluctantly dropped into the ashtray.  The draw was perfect and the burn was good too, not too fast.

I couldn’t really pick out any individual flavors, just a slightly spicy, mild to medium tobacco flavor with a hint of sweetness.  Maybe a note of mint or citrus throughout the whole cigar.  Near the end, I started to notice a deeper chocolate or caramel flavor as the tars built up. 

Overall, I was impressed.  A great looking cigar with good craftsmanship, and my favorite flavor profile to boot!  I paid $7.50 for it, which was $1 less than the CAO Gold I picked up at the same time.  Not to mention that the La Flor was five times more enjoyable (for me) to smoke.