DBall's Newb Blind Taste Test #3

DBall · 08-10-2010, 10:58 AM

jimmyk26 Cigar #7
***************

Here is round #7

Initial impressions - Another long and skinny cigar, this stick measures 6" x 28 and is wrapped with a medium brown leaf that shows a few veins and has a couple imperfections and discolorations. To the touch, it appears well constructed with only one slight soft spot and a slight indentation that shadows the band that was once there. The cap is so well applied that it is hard to make out the three layers. Not a beautiful cigar. The wrapper smells of dark chocolate and sweet tobacco while the foot presents an aroma of hay. The pre-light draw is easy with only a slight hint of hay left on the palate.

Initial puffs - There are rich coffee, chocolate and wood flavors in the first few puffs, with a pepper spice running through the nose. There was a little run away burn that seems to be correcting itself.

1/3 - Wow this is smoking quickly. The rich flavors carry right on through into the first third picking up a bit of sweetness and creaminess. Now the burn line has pretty much corrected itself. The ash is droping every quarter inch or so, probably due to the windy conditions were I am smoking right now. Rich chocolate and earth coating my palate and the spice is nice and strong through the nose.

2/3 - It is almost hard to keep up with the thirds of this cigar because it is smoking more quickly than I am used to. The tip did develop a little bit of tar which I cut off, this doesn't seem to have affected the cigar and I'll try to smoke this a bit slower for the rest of the review. For its size, this cigar has been smoking exceptionally well with a surprising amount of smoke for its ring gauge. While the earth and chocolate have remained steadily since the beginning of the cigar, it has picked up a bit of hazelnut and wood on the finish which seems to linger quite a while. I have struggled a bit with keeping this cigar lit, it seems that if I put the cigar down to type it goes out. It has relit easily and has picked up right where it left off each time.

3/3 - For just a brief bit, the cigar presented a slight metallic taste that seemed out of place. It left quickly and doesn't seem to be coming back. Otherwise, this is cigar has been very consistent from start to finish. A smooth easy draw with rich earth and chocolate flavors that linger on the palate, it has a nice bit of sweetness. Other than the need for attention and relights, this cigar has burnt evenly and smoked very well. The wood and pepper spice through the nose have started to linger on the palate. After the spice became more pronounced the cigar started to get a bit bitter and the flavors faded.

Final thoughts - Although this cigar wasn't overly complex, the earth, chocolate, wood, and spice flavors were quite enjoyable. This makes me wonder if the complexity of the smaller ring gauge cigars have limited potential due to the fewer leafs that make up the cigar. Surprisingly thick and rich smoke indicated that this cigar was well constructed and made for a very nice, if short, smoking experience. I think that I wouldn't have had to relight the cigar so much if I wasn't doing the review. I would definitely smoke more of these if I had the chance, but I think that this cigar lacked the complexity to be a great cigar.

Rating: 8.9 - A good cigar that had an enjoyable, straight forward flavor profile.

DBall · 08-10-2010, 11:00 AM

Brutus2600 Cigar #7
*****************

I woke up nice and early this morning before the heat and the noise of the day. Made a pot of coffee, got everything all situated, and went to go grab DBall's 7th cigar to review. As I was taking it out of the numbered five finger baggy, I made the sad realization that there are only 3 cigars left after this! However, after that, I made the exciting realization that I was still going to get to experience 3 more great cigars!

Upon initial inspection this cigar looks to be about 6 x 32. The construction is only slightly rough, I wouldn't say the wrapper is bad, nor would I say it was perfect either. It is nice and firm without any soft spots, and has nice triple cap on it, and I think I see a little plume as well.

Initial Light 7:40 - The prelight draw brings the taste of sweet tobacco and is a little loose. Toasted the foot, lit the cigar, and off we go! The first draw brought a little spice, hints of cream, and produced big beautiful amounts of white smoke.

First Third - The initial spice I tasted is now developing into a more peppery taste that hits me on the back of my tongue. I'm also picking up hints of leather and another prominent flavor that I can't pin down. The ash is a dark gray with white streaks, and only holds on for about a half an inch. There is this...soured? Almost bitter flavor that purging isn't getting rid of. It's almost like food on the verge of going bad. Very strange and haven't had that in a cigar before. Thank goodness that seems to be fading though.

Second Third 8:05 - The bitterness is completely gone by now. The burn is fantastic, not what I've come to expect from this RG. It's even staying lit and hasn't required any touch ups. This cigar has been overall very mild, flavors being almost hard to discern. I'm still picking up minor hints of leather and grassy notes however.

Final Third 8:35 - I got distracted and let the cigar go out. After a relight it's right back to it's mild mannered self again. I guess that's kind of telling about this stick. While good, it doesn't captivate me like other cigars do. The wrapper is a little loose around the last part and has created a slightly uneven burn, but nothing significant.

Finish time 8:52 - While this stick wasn't exciting, that's not a bad thing, it just makes this mild stick a great early morning smoke. As Jimmy stated earlier in this thread, this whole experience has really changed my perspective on RG sizes, and I've come to appreciate the smaller RG significantly. Something this size is almost more comfortable to me now than a 50+ RG stick. While I'm not sure if I'd actively seek this cigar out again, it is something I could see myself enjoying if I found a good deal on them.

Appearance and construction: 1.3 out of 1.5
Smoke and ash: 1.5 out of 1.5
Burn: 2.8 out of 3
Overall flavor: 2.5 out of 4

8.1 out of 10

08-10-2010, 10:58 AM	#1
DBall Cigar Jesus Join Date: Oct 2008 First Name: Dan Location: Rochester, NY Posts: 3,781 Trading: (46)	Re: DBall's Newb Blind Taste Test #3 jimmyk26 Cigar #7 *************** Here is round #7 Initial impressions - Another long and skinny cigar, this stick measures 6" x 28 and is wrapped with a medium brown leaf that shows a few veins and has a couple imperfections and discolorations. To the touch, it appears well constructed with only one slight soft spot and a slight indentation that shadows the band that was once there. The cap is so well applied that it is hard to make out the three layers. Not a beautiful cigar. The wrapper smells of dark chocolate and sweet tobacco while the foot presents an aroma of hay. The pre-light draw is easy with only a slight hint of hay left on the palate. Initial puffs - There are rich coffee, chocolate and wood flavors in the first few puffs, with a pepper spice running through the nose. There was a little run away burn that seems to be correcting itself. 1/3 - Wow this is smoking quickly. The rich flavors carry right on through into the first third picking up a bit of sweetness and creaminess. Now the burn line has pretty much corrected itself. The ash is droping every quarter inch or so, probably due to the windy conditions were I am smoking right now. Rich chocolate and earth coating my palate and the spice is nice and strong through the nose. 2/3 - It is almost hard to keep up with the thirds of this cigar because it is smoking more quickly than I am used to. The tip did develop a little bit of tar which I cut off, this doesn't seem to have affected the cigar and I'll try to smoke this a bit slower for the rest of the review. For its size, this cigar has been smoking exceptionally well with a surprising amount of smoke for its ring gauge. While the earth and chocolate have remained steadily since the beginning of the cigar, it has picked up a bit of hazelnut and wood on the finish which seems to linger quite a while. I have struggled a bit with keeping this cigar lit, it seems that if I put the cigar down to type it goes out. It has relit easily and has picked up right where it left off each time. 3/3 - For just a brief bit, the cigar presented a slight metallic taste that seemed out of place. It left quickly and doesn't seem to be coming back. Otherwise, this is cigar has been very consistent from start to finish. A smooth easy draw with rich earth and chocolate flavors that linger on the palate, it has a nice bit of sweetness. Other than the need for attention and relights, this cigar has burnt evenly and smoked very well. The wood and pepper spice through the nose have started to linger on the palate. After the spice became more pronounced the cigar started to get a bit bitter and the flavors faded. Final thoughts - Although this cigar wasn't overly complex, the earth, chocolate, wood, and spice flavors were quite enjoyable. This makes me wonder if the complexity of the smaller ring gauge cigars have limited potential due to the fewer leafs that make up the cigar. Surprisingly thick and rich smoke indicated that this cigar was well constructed and made for a very nice, if short, smoking experience. I think that I wouldn't have had to relight the cigar so much if I wasn't doing the review. I would definitely smoke more of these if I had the chance, but I think that this cigar lacked the complexity to be a great cigar. Rating: 8.9 - A good cigar that had an enjoyable, straight forward flavor profile. __________________ --------Dan--------- My Music \| My Videos

08-10-2010, 11:00 AM	#2
DBall Cigar Jesus Join Date: Oct 2008 First Name: Dan Location: Rochester, NY Posts: 3,781 Trading: (46)	Re: DBall's Newb Blind Taste Test #3 Brutus2600 Cigar #7 ***************** I woke up nice and early this morning before the heat and the noise of the day. Made a pot of coffee, got everything all situated, and went to go grab DBall's 7th cigar to review. As I was taking it out of the numbered five finger baggy, I made the sad realization that there are only 3 cigars left after this! However, after that, I made the exciting realization that I was still going to get to experience 3 more great cigars! Upon initial inspection this cigar looks to be about 6 x 32. The construction is only slightly rough, I wouldn't say the wrapper is bad, nor would I say it was perfect either. It is nice and firm without any soft spots, and has nice triple cap on it, and I think I see a little plume as well. Initial Light 7:40 - The prelight draw brings the taste of sweet tobacco and is a little loose. Toasted the foot, lit the cigar, and off we go! The first draw brought a little spice, hints of cream, and produced big beautiful amounts of white smoke. First Third - The initial spice I tasted is now developing into a more peppery taste that hits me on the back of my tongue. I'm also picking up hints of leather and another prominent flavor that I can't pin down. The ash is a dark gray with white streaks, and only holds on for about a half an inch. There is this...soured? Almost bitter flavor that purging isn't getting rid of. It's almost like food on the verge of going bad. Very strange and haven't had that in a cigar before. Thank goodness that seems to be fading though. Second Third 8:05 - The bitterness is completely gone by now. The burn is fantastic, not what I've come to expect from this RG. It's even staying lit and hasn't required any touch ups. This cigar has been overall very mild, flavors being almost hard to discern. I'm still picking up minor hints of leather and grassy notes however. Final Third 8:35 - I got distracted and let the cigar go out. After a relight it's right back to it's mild mannered self again. I guess that's kind of telling about this stick. While good, it doesn't captivate me like other cigars do. The wrapper is a little loose around the last part and has created a slightly uneven burn, but nothing significant. Finish time 8:52 - While this stick wasn't exciting, that's not a bad thing, it just makes this mild stick a great early morning smoke. As Jimmy stated earlier in this thread, this whole experience has really changed my perspective on RG sizes, and I've come to appreciate the smaller RG significantly. Something this size is almost more comfortable to me now than a 50+ RG stick. While I'm not sure if I'd actively seek this cigar out again, it is something I could see myself enjoying if I found a good deal on them. Appearance and construction: 1.3 out of 1.5 Smoke and ash: 1.5 out of 1.5 Burn: 2.8 out of 3 Overall flavor: 2.5 out of 4 8.1 out of 10 __________________ --------Dan--------- My Music \| My Videos