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BoM Jan '11
Illusione Holy Lance Maduro 7.5 x 40
Some of you may now that I am a sucker for a lance, so after receiving this as an “extra” from a friend in a recent split, it was clear that this go up in smoke.
For those of you who don't know, the Holy Lance Maduro was released by Illusione several months ago with in conjunction with the Candella wrapped cigar of the same size. Dion Giolito is said to have used both Corojo 99' and Cirillo 98' tobaccos in addition to the Nicaraguan grown Maduro wrapper. While it is unclear exactly which wrapper was used, it has a strong resemblance the Connecticut Broadleaf that I've seen on a number of Nicaraguan cigars as of late.
The look of the cigar it self is unique in a number of aspects. It borrows elements of beauty from its slender and elegant size, yet at the same time it is shrouded in this rustic powerful looking dark oily wrapper, quite reminiscent to the look of some well aged Cubans or vintage cigars. The wrapper has a number of notable features, the first being that it is quite course, both visually and when held in the hand. However, as rough as the wrapper is the midrib veining of leaf is barely visible and neither are the seams, in fact, the whole cigar appears to be otherwise flawless but this is more than likely due to its deep colouring.
Pre-light: The aroma of the cigar is quite lovely and surprisingly pungent, strong barnyard nuances can be sensed from the body while spice, espresso and perhaps even a hint of cocoa rise up from the foot. As beautiful as this cigar appears, I certainly didn't do it justice while removing the cap, regardless it is gave way to a moderate draw sharing notes of espresso, cocoa, spice and stout tobacco.
Light: Fearing I may vaporize the cigar, I shied away from the propane torch and instead went with my trusty Ronson, it wasn't as quick or efficient, but at least I still had a cigar to smoke when all was said and done. Initially draw was very ominous presenting notes of dark chocolate, roasted Arabica beans, and spice with background hints of nuts and cedar. In contrast to the shady nuances exuded by the draw, the aroma from the lit foot produces an almost floral meld of light powdered cocoa and spice.
First Third: Within 10 minutes or so of lighting this cigar, I have already begun to question its construction, the draw is becoming unusually stiff for some reason and the burn is displaying some rather unfavourable tendencies. Misfortune aside, the draw continues to produce rich flavours of dark chocolate, roasted Arabica beans, toasted almond and a spice that lingers well after draw. The expelled smoke is quite unique, almost a exact parallel of the aroma from the foot, floral dry cocoa and hints of spice tingle on my olfactories as I take in smoke from the air. While the cigar started out exhibiting poor construction characteristics, the burn line has become nearly razor sharp and is dropping ash in inch long segments, though many of them fail to land in my stinky – the only thing I dislike about lanceros.
Second Third: Quite to my surprise, when left to sit a bit the draw has actually begun to produce a semi sweet note of cocoa and cedar before transitioning into the dark chocolate that so far has been a core note of the flavor profile, but despite this, the draw appears to be offering slightly more intensity at this point, still offering notes of roasted Arabica beans, almond and spice. The expelled smoke isn't yet leaning away from its floral tendencies as an abundance of cocoa and spice are still detectable when taken in through the nose, though a heavy leather fragrance is also apparent afterword. The burn seems to be continuing on without issue although ash is falling at random intervals between a half inch and an inch.
Final Third: Progressing through the last two and a half inches the Holy Lance is making for a strong finish having dropped the aforementioned notes of semi sweet cocoa, cedar and the ever present dark chocolate, limiting itself to roasted coffee beans, almond and spice with the addition of leather on the finish. The retro-hale has amazingly made an almost complete reversal as cocoa is no longer present but instead emits notes of leather and almond. Not much can be said for the burn at the nub, it appears to be even but now has a tendency to drop ash at a half inch or less.
Final Thoughts: It isn't often that you run into a cigar of this strength and complexity that still offers floral notes both on the draw, retro-hale and aroma. It delivered an abundance of flavour from the light onward that developed in strength and held on to its complexity with each passing third making this one of the most well balanced cigars I've come across. I would say this was well worth the 10 dollar price tag if you can find out, but be warned, this cigar is not for the faint of heart or an empty stomach.
Total smoking time was just under an hour and a half.
Thank you for reading.
Some of you may now that I am a sucker for a lance, so after receiving this as an “extra” from a friend in a recent split, it was clear that this go up in smoke.
For those of you who don't know, the Holy Lance Maduro was released by Illusione several months ago with in conjunction with the Candella wrapped cigar of the same size. Dion Giolito is said to have used both Corojo 99' and Cirillo 98' tobaccos in addition to the Nicaraguan grown Maduro wrapper. While it is unclear exactly which wrapper was used, it has a strong resemblance the Connecticut Broadleaf that I've seen on a number of Nicaraguan cigars as of late.
The look of the cigar it self is unique in a number of aspects. It borrows elements of beauty from its slender and elegant size, yet at the same time it is shrouded in this rustic powerful looking dark oily wrapper, quite reminiscent to the look of some well aged Cubans or vintage cigars. The wrapper has a number of notable features, the first being that it is quite course, both visually and when held in the hand. However, as rough as the wrapper is the midrib veining of leaf is barely visible and neither are the seams, in fact, the whole cigar appears to be otherwise flawless but this is more than likely due to its deep colouring.
Pre-light: The aroma of the cigar is quite lovely and surprisingly pungent, strong barnyard nuances can be sensed from the body while spice, espresso and perhaps even a hint of cocoa rise up from the foot. As beautiful as this cigar appears, I certainly didn't do it justice while removing the cap, regardless it is gave way to a moderate draw sharing notes of espresso, cocoa, spice and stout tobacco.
Light: Fearing I may vaporize the cigar, I shied away from the propane torch and instead went with my trusty Ronson, it wasn't as quick or efficient, but at least I still had a cigar to smoke when all was said and done. Initially draw was very ominous presenting notes of dark chocolate, roasted Arabica beans, and spice with background hints of nuts and cedar. In contrast to the shady nuances exuded by the draw, the aroma from the lit foot produces an almost floral meld of light powdered cocoa and spice.
First Third: Within 10 minutes or so of lighting this cigar, I have already begun to question its construction, the draw is becoming unusually stiff for some reason and the burn is displaying some rather unfavourable tendencies. Misfortune aside, the draw continues to produce rich flavours of dark chocolate, roasted Arabica beans, toasted almond and a spice that lingers well after draw. The expelled smoke is quite unique, almost a exact parallel of the aroma from the foot, floral dry cocoa and hints of spice tingle on my olfactories as I take in smoke from the air. While the cigar started out exhibiting poor construction characteristics, the burn line has become nearly razor sharp and is dropping ash in inch long segments, though many of them fail to land in my stinky – the only thing I dislike about lanceros.
Second Third: Quite to my surprise, when left to sit a bit the draw has actually begun to produce a semi sweet note of cocoa and cedar before transitioning into the dark chocolate that so far has been a core note of the flavor profile, but despite this, the draw appears to be offering slightly more intensity at this point, still offering notes of roasted Arabica beans, almond and spice. The expelled smoke isn't yet leaning away from its floral tendencies as an abundance of cocoa and spice are still detectable when taken in through the nose, though a heavy leather fragrance is also apparent afterword. The burn seems to be continuing on without issue although ash is falling at random intervals between a half inch and an inch.
Final Third: Progressing through the last two and a half inches the Holy Lance is making for a strong finish having dropped the aforementioned notes of semi sweet cocoa, cedar and the ever present dark chocolate, limiting itself to roasted coffee beans, almond and spice with the addition of leather on the finish. The retro-hale has amazingly made an almost complete reversal as cocoa is no longer present but instead emits notes of leather and almond. Not much can be said for the burn at the nub, it appears to be even but now has a tendency to drop ash at a half inch or less.
Final Thoughts: It isn't often that you run into a cigar of this strength and complexity that still offers floral notes both on the draw, retro-hale and aroma. It delivered an abundance of flavour from the light onward that developed in strength and held on to its complexity with each passing third making this one of the most well balanced cigars I've come across. I would say this was well worth the 10 dollar price tag if you can find out, but be warned, this cigar is not for the faint of heart or an empty stomach.
Total smoking time was just under an hour and a half.
Thank you for reading.
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