DBall's Newb Blind Taste Test #3

[DBall]

jimmyk26 Cigar #6
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Here is round #6...man this is awesome thank you so much for the opportunity to try such great cigars.

#6:

Initial impressions - This tasting flight has really changed my perception of cigars. When I saw this cigar in the bag I though it was a big cigar, maybe a Toro or Double Robusto. To my surprise, it measures 5.5" x 46 RG, a Corona Gorda! So for better or for worse, Dan you have officially altered my perception of cigar sizes. The dark, smooth, oily wrapper on this has almost no veins showing; it looks like a great leaf. Capped with a nicely applied triple cap, the cigar has no noticeable soft spots. The wrapper, however, does appear to be lifting slightly along the spiral edge. When I bring the cigar up to my nose, the wrapper smells of hay and leather while the foot offers up a sweet tobacco scent. The pre light draw is perfect and it leaves a taste of hay and unsweetened cereal on my palate.


Initial puffs - Right away there are rich earth and leather flavors that are backed with a strong spice especially noticeable through the nose. The smoke is thick and drawing well.

1/3 - The initial flavors of earth, leather, and spice have carried right on through this first third. They are also joined by a dark sweetness, like you get in dark, bitter chocolate. The burn is fantastic, the smoke is thick and plentiful, the is draw smooth, and the ash is developing a zebra like quality alternating between light and dark rings. The cigar has a dry finish. Through out this section the flavors have settled down a bit with only the spice retaining its strength. There has also developed a sharp grassiness that I am beginning to think is the "twang" everyone keeps talking about.


2/3 - Now this cigar is starting to show its strength, which is impressive because I am only in the first half of the cigar. The flavors are proving consistent and powerful. The grassiness has picked up a bit and now reminds me more of dry green tea. The rich leather and earth are ever present and the spice is still firing through the nose. The finish on the cigar is short for every thing except the green tea which lingers. The cigar continues to perform perfectly. I actually got lost in this section of the cigar only to be pulled back by the ash that fell into my lap before I could take a picture!


3/3 - Entering this final section, the cigar has taken on a slightly tannic characteristic, something I don't remember ever getting in a cigar before. I am even temped to even say this cigar is developing much like a glass of earthy red wine. I am now also tasting cinnamon and nutmeg. The burn line has wandered a bit, but it is still smoking beautifully. Nearing the middle of this third the earth and leather reclaim their dominance on my palate and the spice continues to present through the nose. It continues like this until I physically can't hold the cigar any more.


Final thoughts - This is a big, solid cigar (there, I said it, 46 RG is now "big" in my book) that delivers on its flavor, strength, and smoking characteristics. On top of all of this, it is a good looking cigar with the smooth dark wrapper and solid construction. Even though the burn did wander a bit, it never stopped smoking well. Although the flavors were very good, it didn't have the complexity that I found in other cigars in this tasting flight (not necessarily a bad thing). The straight forward flavors coupled with the tannic nature of the final third leads me to believe that this cigar has plenty of long term aging potential. Before I started this tasting series, I had a preference for strong cigars that had plenty of spice, earth, and richness. This cigar brings me back to that time by fitting my preferred flavor profile almost perfectly. I could see myself smoking lots of these cigars given the opportunity.


Rating: 9.3 - It is the type of cigar that I have always liked smoking, rich and strong with nice smoking characteristics.

[DBall]

Brutus2600 Cigar #6
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Here's review 6!

Initial inspection looks like the cigar is about 5 1/2 x 42, silky smooth wrapper, great construction, minor plume, and what looks like a quadruple cap on it. The more I look at this cigar the more excited I am to try it.



Initial Light 10:30 - Prelight draw brings the taste of sweet tobacco, hay, spice, and a hint of raisins to my tongue. If this is any hint of things to come, this will be a complex and flavorful cigar! The draw is tight, but not too much so. Toasted the foot and lit the cigar and the initial burst of sweet, creamy, smoke with hints of cinnamon were quite the boutique of aromas.



First Third - The smoothness of this cigar is surprising. It's mild without being bland, and it's already making me sad that I only have one of these unknown sticks to smoke (and if any of the previous cigars are a hint, not easy to obtain either, lol). The draw is a bit of an issue, it's pretty tight and I have to take two or three puffs to get a good amount smoke, but it's the least of my worries right now. Hints of vanilla, sweet hay/tobacco, and cinnamon are still very easily distinguishable. The ash is a wonderful white with gray streaks and is still holding on nicely at almost one inch. I think the knot in the cigar holding up my draw is towards the end of the stick unfortunately, but I've been able to massage it a little without cracking the wrapper and it's opened up a little.

On a side note, nobody is mowing their yard this morning, all I hear are birds and the occasional dog bark, it's warm but a nice cool breeze is left over from the rain yesterday, and along with this cigar it is making this morning a wonderfully relaxing break from the stressful week.



Second Third 10:59 - With some previous cigars in this taste test, I've felt that I've had to work to discern any flavors out of the cigar at all. This cigar I'm having to work at discerning WHAT flavors I taste. Although it's enjoyable work I am getting hints of almonds on top of the previous vanilla and sweet tobacco taste. Honestly, this cigar is probably the "sweetest" cigar I've smoked. Not sweet like the sugar tipped POS swisher sweets, it's not a sweetness on my lips, but just like the smoke itself seems laced with sugar. I'm not sure how else to describe it The ash is still phenomenal, the second part holding on nicely. The burn has stayed pretty even, and even the draw has opened up some.



Final Third 11:34 - This cigar has continued to be amazing. There haven't been ups or downs, just consistent greatness! All flavors described previously have continued throughout the cigar, and even recently developed some minor toffee notes. The sweetness probably peaked halfway through the cigar and has died down some, but that hasn't detracted from the cigar at all. With only one minor touch up after I ran inside to refill my coffee, the burn has been fantastic, and I've only had to ash twice so far (probably will only be three total for the entire cigar).



Finish time 11:53 - Out of all of the cigars I've reviewed so far, I can say I haven't enjoyed another this much. Such an all around amazing smoke, and would LOVE to get my hands on more of these as soon as I find out what it was. The flavors were full, plentiful, and fantastic. After the first third the cigar opened up enough that the draw wasn't an issue at all. The burn and ash couldn't have been better. My only worry is with my luck this is going to be a well aged CC that I won't be able to duplicate for years even if I bought some

Appearance and construction: 1.5 out of 1.5
Smoke and ash: 1.5 out of 1.5
Burn: 2.9 out of 3 (minor ding for the single touch-up I did)
Overall flavor: 4 out of 4

Total: 9.9 out of 10

[DBall]

What they smoked:



2009 H Upmann Mag 46

jimmyk26 score: 9.3
Brutus2600 score: 9.9

Aren't these things great? I may have one tonight... but I'm nearly out.

I gave many of these away and then after a few months in the humi and after over half the box was given out, they became MAGNIFICENT. I need more, but they aren't free... unfortunately.

[kgoings]

Originally Posted by DBall

What they smoked:



2009 H Upmann Mag 46

jimmyk26 score: 9.3
Brutus2600 score: 9.9

Aren't these things great? I may have one tonight... but I'm nearly out.

I gave many of these away and then after a few months in the humi and after over half the box was given out, they became MAGNIFICENT. I need more, but they aren't free... unfortunately.

One of my favs!

[DBall]

What they smoked:



2002 La Gloria Cubana MdO#4

jimmyk26 score: 8.9
Brutus2600 score: 8.1

I love these smokes... bought a ton of boxes when they were around and seem to be running out at an alarming rate. Still one of my all time favorites, though.

Editing to mention that I'm not as huge a fan of this particular box as I have been of others... not too sure why... maybe the roller was having an off day.