We had the BugMan family over for dinner again, last night, and as usual, we took to the way too hot patio for a cigar.
I decided to smoke an Alec Bradley Family Blend VR1, gifted by a friend. I had been hearing some good stuff about these cigars, and was anxious to give it a try. According to the Alec Bradley website, Alec Bradley Family Blend cigars were created expressly for the fathers of the companys three principal executives, Alan Rubin (President), Ralph Montero (Vice President), and George Sosa (National Sales Director)." This 5.5x50 was produced in the Raices Cubana factory in Danli, Honduras. It sports a Honduran wrapper, Indonesian binder, all encasing a filler blend of Honduran and Nicaraguan tobaccos.
(sorry, no pictures, again!)
Construction:
This stick had a nice firm construction, rich brown wrapper, and a nice pigtail cap. The wrapper had a silky feel to it, with no real visible veins.
Prelight:
A nose on the wrapper gave a woody aroma, with a foot aroma of rich leather, sweet tobacco.
Draw:
Good draw, with just enough resistance for my likings. Instead of clipping the cap on this cigar, I gave firm pull on the pigtail, and the cap came off cleanly, and left just the right opening.
Burn:
The burn stayed razor sharp the entire smoking time. Smoke just poured off this cigar, gorgeous white smoke. At some points, it seemed it nearly went out when sitting, but just a couple puffs would make this cigar roar back to life.
First third:
Light spice immediately came to me, but very quickly faded into a grilled meaty flavor. As I worked through the first third, the meatiness gave way to a dark roasted coffee and dry cocoa flavor. A fairly dry finish in the mouth, but had just a little creaminess to the mouthfeel.
Middle Third:
This middle portion of this cigar continued with the coffee/cocoa notes. Began to get a bit richer, with perhaps a little leather and sweet tobacco in there. No drastic changes, but some slight variation, perhaps. The cigar became a bit more creamy through the middle.
Last Third:
This cigar glided into the final third with the same coffee/cocoa, while the leather and wood notes came out of hiding to join the party. And the spice crept back into the cigar at the end. Bitterness never came through at all on this cigar. It burned great down to my charred fingers!
Conclusion:
The Alec Bradley Family Reserve VR1 was a great cigar in the roughly hour and a half that I smoked it. Not overly complex in the transitions and changes, but twisted just enough to make a great flavor profile in this cigar. Very tasty, never bitter, and great burn on this cigar makes for a stick I would love to have again. Luckily, my friend sent me 2 of these!
Thanks for reading!
I decided to smoke an Alec Bradley Family Blend VR1, gifted by a friend. I had been hearing some good stuff about these cigars, and was anxious to give it a try. According to the Alec Bradley website, Alec Bradley Family Blend cigars were created expressly for the fathers of the companys three principal executives, Alan Rubin (President), Ralph Montero (Vice President), and George Sosa (National Sales Director)." This 5.5x50 was produced in the Raices Cubana factory in Danli, Honduras. It sports a Honduran wrapper, Indonesian binder, all encasing a filler blend of Honduran and Nicaraguan tobaccos.
(sorry, no pictures, again!)
Construction:
This stick had a nice firm construction, rich brown wrapper, and a nice pigtail cap. The wrapper had a silky feel to it, with no real visible veins.
Prelight:
A nose on the wrapper gave a woody aroma, with a foot aroma of rich leather, sweet tobacco.
Draw:
Good draw, with just enough resistance for my likings. Instead of clipping the cap on this cigar, I gave firm pull on the pigtail, and the cap came off cleanly, and left just the right opening.
Burn:
The burn stayed razor sharp the entire smoking time. Smoke just poured off this cigar, gorgeous white smoke. At some points, it seemed it nearly went out when sitting, but just a couple puffs would make this cigar roar back to life.
First third:
Light spice immediately came to me, but very quickly faded into a grilled meaty flavor. As I worked through the first third, the meatiness gave way to a dark roasted coffee and dry cocoa flavor. A fairly dry finish in the mouth, but had just a little creaminess to the mouthfeel.
Middle Third:
This middle portion of this cigar continued with the coffee/cocoa notes. Began to get a bit richer, with perhaps a little leather and sweet tobacco in there. No drastic changes, but some slight variation, perhaps. The cigar became a bit more creamy through the middle.
Last Third:
This cigar glided into the final third with the same coffee/cocoa, while the leather and wood notes came out of hiding to join the party. And the spice crept back into the cigar at the end. Bitterness never came through at all on this cigar. It burned great down to my charred fingers!
Conclusion:
The Alec Bradley Family Reserve VR1 was a great cigar in the roughly hour and a half that I smoked it. Not overly complex in the transitions and changes, but twisted just enough to make a great flavor profile in this cigar. Very tasty, never bitter, and great burn on this cigar makes for a stick I would love to have again. Luckily, my friend sent me 2 of these!
Thanks for reading!
