Litto Gomez Small Batch #3

[RevSmoke]

Litto Gomez Small Batch #3
6.75X52
This is a Dominican puro, with everything grown on the La Flor Dominicana farms.

0.0 - 2.0 = poor/inferior quality
2.1 - 2.9 = fair
3.0 - 3.5 = good
3.5 - 4.5 = excellent
4.6 - 5.0 = superior

1) Aesthetics: What a great looking cigar! The Colorado maduro wrapper veritably glistens with oil. I love how the color isn’t entirely uniform, but has light variations which follow the small wrapper veins, giving it a barely noticeable mottled effect. It also sports a gorgeous band that accentuates the wrapper.
Score for aesthetics: 4.9

2) Pre-light Construction: A solid stick with no soft spots... Ooops! You gotta be kidding me. Please, Lord... Oh no, what a klutz. Yes, I dropped it and it landed a about a 65 degree angle to the floor and there is a split that runs a good 2.5 inches. This is not a good thing. Once I snipped it, I noticed that even the wrapper by the head was also having issues, this bad boy has suffered some serious trauma.
Score for Pre-light construction: 4.8 (solid construction on the other one I have)

3) Post-light Construction/How it smoked: OK, I started out not expecting a whole lot. I figured I’d get maybe an inch or two and then it would explode, unravel, and generally be unsmokable. Well, it did have some burn issues brought on the by the blunt trauma of cement floor from about 6 feet up, but not as bad as I expected. It did require some touch-ups to keep the burn even as it slowing expanded, but it was reasonable. I also think it burned a bit quicker than it might have were I not to have clumsily abused it. Even with the expansion, the ash held quite firmly for a good inch and a half. This resiliency of this cigar to stand up to flame and a good hour and forty-five minutes of smoking shows the quality of the tobacco and the stellar construction.
Score for post-light construction: 4.9

4) Flavor and strength: This is not a cigar for the faint of heart, it is full bodied, but it is so with class. I hate in-your-face-strong cigars that are so for no reason, this isn’t. A bold sweetness and spice (allspice?) kicked this stick off, and in the background was something fruity, but I am not sure what kind, but it wasn’t citrus. A complexity was woven with some nutmeg, pecan, and cedar interwoven in a bold complexity. The flavor grew, faded, came back, and were constantly changing. I am not sure how much of this was due to the unraveling nature of this poor saps limited smoky existence. I do know this, I loved it from beginning to end.

Score for flavor and strength: 4.9

5) Aftertaste/Finish: I like a finish that lingers sweetly, this did that with some slight spice, exquisite.
Score for aftertaste: 4.6

6) Aroma: I was smoking this outside, so I didn’t get all that I’d normally enjoy getting in the form of aroma, but here the cedar came more to the fore and this is where some sweetness with hints of nutmeg and leather seemed to shine.
Score for aroma: 4.5

7) General Comments: I was impressed how this cigar took the abuse I accidently subjected it to, and came out like a champ. With a tear running along one side and gapping a good 1/16th of an inch into the cigar, I was astounded that it didn’t fall apart in my hands. I’d love to buy more of these, but I won’t, only because I am a tightwad. I am glad I got to experience this one and am looking forward to the other two I have sitting in my ‘dor. It is also my hope that they are not subjected to the same clumsiness on my part. I enjoyed the Small Batch #1 that I had a bit over a year ago, and some say that this one doesn’t stand up to it. Well, I don’t know if that is true or not. I think this is all of SB#1, but what role did the abuse have to play in the flavors. Maybe I’ll revisit this review and update it with after smoking another. But don’t expect it to happen anytime soon.
Overall score for the cigar: 4.8