Punch Gran Cru #2 Maduro

[akumushi]

This torpedo had a very crisp box press to it and a thick, toothy wrapper with a few large veins. The prelight aroma was of light hay and the prelight draw was easy. It was a well constructed cigar and felt good in the hand.
Despite the easy draw the first third proved a struggle to get much smoke out of the cigar. The flavors were mostly earthy and vegetal, with some tea and cinnamon notes and a salty, mineral finish.
The second third gave more smoke and a more spicy flavor, with some floral and citrus notes coming through intermittently.
For the last third the cigar really came alive. I would have liked for it to taste this way the whole time, or at least have this much flavor. The cigar was much more full bodied at this point, with a meaty, leathery profile and some cocoa and coffee notes with a spicy finish.
This cigar was very smooth and had a decent development of flavors for an NC, but I would have liked it to have more punch to it in the beginning, rather than waiting until the last third to get interesting. It was medium bodied. I give it an 88 non-blind.