DBall's Newb Blind Taste Test #3

Nice work Dan,
Glad to see that you are still buying/sharing in droves.

[DBall]

Originally Posted by Mindflux

Nice work Dan,
Glad to see that you are still buying/sharing in droves.

Wow... where the hell have you been?! I'm glad to see ya!

I did this thing twice before, too... here are links to the other 2 threads:

http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showthread.php?t=21549

http://www.cigarasylum.com/vb/showthread.php?t=27728

So far I've given out 60 cigars on this set of threads alone... hahaha. It's worth it though, these guys (past and present) put out some great reviews!

Nothing beats sharing, man.

Originally Posted by DBall

Wow... where the hell have you been?! I'm glad to see ya!!

Nothing beats sharing, man.

Bought a house, got married had a kid all in a 10 month time frame. That's where I've been.



Man when I sent you those BGM's I didn't think I threw you down the slope or anything.

Wow. Awesome reviews guys. I love the great pictures, the details of both review. Very well written like in a mag. And thanks for the smokng tips dball.

[jimmyk26]

#2 is in!

[Brutus2600]

I'll be getting this in tomorrow morning I had originally planned for this morning but I didn't have time to sit down and review the cigar right, but I will tomorrow morning.


Definitely looking forward to it!

[Brutus2600]

#2 = finished and sent!

[DBall]

jimmyk26 Cigar #2
***************

Initial impressions - This short cigar, panatella sized I think, is wrapped with a medium brown wrapper that shows very few veins, in fact the only imperfections that I can see are a small crack on the foot and little missing piece of wrapper near the cap (nothing serious). The wrapper is smooth to the touch and the cigar has a nice box pressed shape with no noticeable soft spots indicating good construction. There is a pronounced aroma of manure and hay off of the wrapper, while the foot has a cinnamon and sweet tobacco scent. The pre light draw is good and it leaves a bit of wood and spice on the tongue.


Initial puffs - There are a lot of wood and spice flavors right away. The smoke is thick and drawing well.

1/3 - This is cigar is presenting all types of flavors: spice, nuts, wood, leather, and a sharp grassiness. Along with this cornucopia of flavors, the cigar is smoking beautifully with plenty of smoke coating my palate. There was a slight uneven burn, but it corrected itself and is doing just fine.


2/3 - The middle section of the cigar settles down a bit into a richness that has a taste of sweet almond that complements the spice nicely. There is plenty of flavor here. The cigar is still smoking well, with a slightly wandering burn line.


3/3 - This cigar has some strength to it, I am starting to feel it now near the end of the cigar. The flavors of the cigar now have moved to leather and spice. This cigar is hard to put down, it is still smoking well and has developed a nice inch long ash.


Final thoughts - This little flavor bomb has been surprisingly strong and good to the last drop. The flavors start off powerful and slowly mellow into a rich experience of smoking that makes me want to reach for another. The cigar smoked very well producing thick rich smoke that coated my palate and allowed me to enjoy every short inch of it. My only slight issues with it are that at the very end the rich complex flavors mellow a bit and are replaced by strength and that it ended too quickly for me. This indicates that the cigar could probably continue to age well, if I would let them last that long. Also I don't usually smoke cigars that are this small, now this sample may have convinced me to start trying some more.


Rating - 9.0: Fantastic, rich flavor experience in an unassuming little size.

[DBall]

Brutus2600 Cigar #2
*****************

Upon initial inspection the cigar appears to be about 4 1/4 x 42. The wrapper is a nice smooth wrapper with only one significant vein towards the foot. The construction is firm, and the wrapper appears nice and tight.



Initial light 10:18 - Prelight draw has a VERY distinct taste or raisins. Toasted the foot and lit the cigar with an initial burst of spice and leather. The cigar has a tight draw, but it's not too bad and produces a nice amount of smooth smoke. While I described the previous cigar as spicy, this is a different kind of spice that hits towards the back of my tongue.



First Third 10:30 - The spice has mellowed and a roasted nutty, almost coffee, flavor has developed. I am smoking this with my morning coffee, however I haven't actually drank any yet, just water so far. Taking the first sip of coffee it only accentuates what I've previously tasted. The ash is a medium gray, and seems to be holding together nicely. The cigar is producing some almost sweet notes not on top of the other flavors and is smoking quite nice.



Second Third 10:55 - After a purge the spice is virtually gone, although the nutty flavor is still there, minor coffee notes and hints of leather are being tasted now. While I wouldn't describe this as a bold cigar, it is definitely more towards that than anything. Unlike the previous cigar, this one is at the forefront of my tastes and is only complimented by my drink pairing, which is closer to what I'm used to. That consistent nutty flavor has finally been realized as almost a smoked almond flavor. Very enjoyable smoke and flavors so far.



Final Third 11:14 - The thing I've enjoyed the most about this cigar is that all the flavors have only seemed to build and mingle together (save the spice). On top of the nutty and leather tastes, I'm getting slight bursts of chocolate with sweet notes. The cigar has remained smooth without being bitter at all, despite only about an inch and a half left to it.



Finish time 11:30 - My final thoughts on this cigar is that it was a well constructed (perfect burn with only one minor touch up needed), smooth, complex cigar that I really enjoyed. Unfortunately, I fear because of the complexity and the fact that there were numerous interruptions during this cigar, that I might have missed something. Reviewing cigars and drawing their different flavors out takes all my concentration since I'm still new to attempting to do that, and having people talk to me while I'm trying to do that makes it more difficult. Despite that, I think I caught most everything and really enjoyed this cigar. I would most definitely purchase it again and add it to my rotation of smokes.

Appearance and construction: 1.4 out of 1.5
Smoke and ash: 1.4 out of 1.5
Burn: 2.75 out of 3
Overall flavor: 3.75 out of 4

Total: 9.3 out of 10

[DBall]

What they smoked:



2008 Ramon Allones Small Club Corona

jimmyk26 score: 9.0
Brutus2600 score: 9.3

I'm smoking one of these right now. Not really getting raisins, but then again, I'm not paying attention. I get in that habit frequently these days... just smoking to smoke. The thing I love about these BTTs is that you HAVE to pay attention.

I love these little RASCCs, and I don't think I've ever found a bad one...

[issues]

Excellent reviews on, what is at this time with my limited experience with the marca, my favorite Ramon Allones.

Love these threads Dan!!!

[Brutus2600]

Originally Posted by DBall

I'm smoking one of these right now. Not really getting raisins, but then again, I'm not paying attention. I get in that habit frequently these days... just smoking to smoke. The thing I love about these BTTs is that you HAVE to pay attention.

I love these little RASCCs, and I don't think I've ever found a bad one...

Two quick comments

Yeah...I didn't get raisins AT ALL in the rest of the cigar, but the predraw was so distinct I couldn't help but be surprised and sure of the taste, haha.

The other thing that has surprised me about both reviews is, without discussing these cigars with each other at all...we're still picking up distinct tastes that I normally wouldn't describe in a cigar, such as last time carmel and this time almonds.

Just find that interesting

[DBall]

Originally Posted by Brutus2600

The other thing that has surprised me about both reviews is, without discussing these cigars with each other at all...we're still picking up distinct tastes that I normally wouldn't describe in a cigar, such as last time carmel and this time almonds.

Just find that interesting

I know, right? That's crazy.

The two of you are awesome reviewers and you're both REALLY paying attention... it's incredible. Great job, both of you!

[macsauce13]

I guessed it ,I guessed it!

After following both of the previous threads and now this one as well this is the first cigar that I guessed correctly!

I feel like i have accomplished something! hahah

[RHNewfie]

I noticed two thing... look at the difference in wrapper, interesting... and Dan is on the bottom layer of the box!

Originally Posted by DBall

What they smoked:



2008 Ramon Allones Small Club Corona

jimmyk26 score: 9.0
Brutus2600 score: 9.3

I'm smoking one of these right now. Not really getting raisins, but then again, I'm not paying attention. I get in that habit frequently these days... just smoking to smoke. The thing I love about these BTTs is that you HAVE to pay attention.

I love these little RASCCs, and I don't think I've ever found a bad one...

[jimmyk26]

Originally Posted by DBall

I know, right? That's crazy.

The two of you are awesome reviewers and you're both REALLY paying attention... it's incredible. Great job, both of you!

Thanks, its good to know that what we are doing is working out well. It is also great that we are getting similar experiences, which bodes well for the cigars and their consistency.

Also, I really liked this one. Like I said in the review, I just want to smoke another one.

[weak_link]

Originally Posted by RHNewfie

and Dan is on the bottom layer of the box!

It's always a sad day in my house when I peel back cedar and dig into the 2nd row on a dress box.

Great reviews guys, looking forward to the next 8!

[Brutus2600]

Review #3 is away!

[jimmyk26]

Me too, sent it in this morning.

[DBall]

jimmyk26 Cigar #3
***************

Initial impressions - This long thin cigar, roughly 7' x 36-38 ring gauge (a long panatela maybe), is wrapped with a light brown leaf that has a few veins and it smooth to the touch. It also has a bit of a shrink wrap appearance and shows some of the topography of the filler and binder. I don't notice any soft spots and the cigar appears to be well constructed. The wrapper smells of hay and the foot has only a slight, sweet tobacco scent. The pre-light draw is good and it leaves a light, but lingering, spice on the palate.


Initial puffs - I am getting toasted wood and spice at the beginning here. The cigar is drawing well and producing good amounts of smoke.

1/3 - The spice and wood make up the initial flavor profile of this start of this stick. It is burning well and producing plenty of smoke. About halfway into the first third, the cigar has picked up a bit of mustiness and hints of walnut. This cigar also has a dry finish. The burn line wandered a bit at the start, but has since corrected itself nicely.


2/3 - Here the spice has mellowed out and the dominate flavors are now the nut and a creamy almost milk like flavor. These creamy flavors make me want to call this cigar smooth. The cigar continues to perform very well producing plenty of smoke and burning well. Also in this third, the cigar has picked up a slight grassy taste to it, which is not unpleasant. The cigar seems to be mild-medium in strength.


3/3 - In the final section here the flavors seems to have backed off, I am left with a bit of dry nuts and that grassy flavor I mentioned above but not much else. The cigar, however, continues to burn and draw very well. Nearing the end, the cigar has really pulled back on flavors. I am having a hard time picking out much at all here, though it is still producing plenty of smoke and so I puff on.


Final thoughts - This mild cigar started out well and the first two thirds were quite enjoyable, however the flavor faded considerably at the end. One thing that was interesting about the flavors to me was how similar the second third was to my experiences with the EP Carrillo Edicion Inaugrual, a very creamy flavor profile. Despite the diminishing flavors, the cigar smoked beautifully producing plenty of mouth filling smoke and it kept an even burn line all the way to the end. It will be interesting to find out if the disappearing flavors are to due to aging, either too little or too much, or just part part of that cigar.


Rating: 7.0 - The despite the flavors fading at the end, it stared off tasty and the cigar smoked very well. A good introduction for me to the narrow ring gauge cigars.