Brand: Montecristo
Name: Open Eagle
Size: 5 7/8 x 54
Type: Natural
Shape: Robusto Extra
First impression: The wrapper on this cigar is a beautiful creamy nutmeg brown. Construction is near flawless with a matte finish (but not dry) to the wrapper leaf. The foot looks well rolled and gives me the impression the roller got a significant amount of filler in this stick. Might turn out to have a firm draw. The aroma is a smooth tobacco with mild cedar and somewhat grassy (maybe hay) tone. As I inhale from the for I can picture a large Feild in the open mountains. It's quit pleasant looking, feeling and smelling. Nothing overpowering or offensive.
Cut: Standard straight cut at the cap.
First draw: The draw is a easy/medium draw. The flavor on the lips is a bit peppery and a bit mineralized but not quit ammonia. This is what I typically taste in a natural wrapper from Cuba.
First 3rd: The first few draws are releasing a light creamy sweetness, somewhat nutty and much lighter on the earthy tones. The mineral taste is immediately gone but the hints of pepper on the lips is not.
Smoke on the draw is abundant and the resting smoke quickly turns from white to a bluefish hue and subsides quickly.
The burn has started a bit off and continues to hold its off shape. The ash starts as a white and turns into a dirty grey but does seem to be holding together tightly despite the fact that it started to curve on me.
I've enjoyed the first third of this stick a lot. It begs to be puffed and each draw seems to deliver another layer of flavor, most being in the creamy, nutty and slightly earthy tones with an occasional mineral spot.
The ash has held strong through the entire first third despite a few jolts I have given it. It is not ready to be ashed yet.
Second 3rd: The second third starts with the peppery lips becoming more salty and a nice coat of creaminess on the pallet.
The ash finally wanted to go but it gave me a nice warning. I saw it start to droop and a nice crack formed. Thank you, I was not wanting a lap dance right now no matter how nice that ash was looking. When it did go it left a shallow crater. I believe this is a sign that the center is burning hot vs the outer tobacco.
The draw is very consistent staying at about a medium draw. The smoke is still producing good quantities but I am noticing that if I let it sit too long it shows signs of wanting to go out. The smoke carries the earthy/hay aroma and is pleasant to experience.
The burn is still a little off but consistent from the first light and due to the hot center I am now seeing a wrinkle on the wrapper. This will either fix itself or I will need to manually fix it by adding some fire to the edges.
Final 3rd: I ended up fixing the burn and this has yielded a better burning cigar. Shorter draws now produce larger quantities of smoke and no signs of dying out. The flavors as I enter the final third are very consistent from the beginning. This is a smooth tasting stick and what I would expect from a Monte. The benefit to being able to take shorter draws is less heat ingested resulting in a mor pleasant smoking experience.
The fall third brought another burn issue that needed to be fixed. Same as before. As van be expected there more heat present on the draw and this brings about a peppery tingling on the pallet only after tasting the nutty, creaminess. It's kind of a cashew or a Brazil nut flavor and the heat is really lingering but is not yet annoying or even unbearable. Shortly after jotting this note I started pulling in significant heat and that always effects my pallet. This is my stopping point. She burned well, delivered flavor and an overall decent experience.
How long did it take to smoke: 3:25 - 4:50 (75 minutes)
Strength: I'd place thi in the medium to medium high range.
Did you have to re-light and how often: No but I did have to fix the burn twice.
What were you drinking with it: Hoegarrden
Recommend: Yes but I believe I would also recommend letting this cigar rest or age for a few years. If it's possible to describe a cigar as tasting or smoking young this is it. If presented with the choice of the Open Eagle or the legendary #2, I would opt for the #2.
Name: Open Eagle
Size: 5 7/8 x 54
Type: Natural
Shape: Robusto Extra
First impression: The wrapper on this cigar is a beautiful creamy nutmeg brown. Construction is near flawless with a matte finish (but not dry) to the wrapper leaf. The foot looks well rolled and gives me the impression the roller got a significant amount of filler in this stick. Might turn out to have a firm draw. The aroma is a smooth tobacco with mild cedar and somewhat grassy (maybe hay) tone. As I inhale from the for I can picture a large Feild in the open mountains. It's quit pleasant looking, feeling and smelling. Nothing overpowering or offensive.
Cut: Standard straight cut at the cap.
First draw: The draw is a easy/medium draw. The flavor on the lips is a bit peppery and a bit mineralized but not quit ammonia. This is what I typically taste in a natural wrapper from Cuba.
First 3rd: The first few draws are releasing a light creamy sweetness, somewhat nutty and much lighter on the earthy tones. The mineral taste is immediately gone but the hints of pepper on the lips is not.
Smoke on the draw is abundant and the resting smoke quickly turns from white to a bluefish hue and subsides quickly.
The burn has started a bit off and continues to hold its off shape. The ash starts as a white and turns into a dirty grey but does seem to be holding together tightly despite the fact that it started to curve on me.
I've enjoyed the first third of this stick a lot. It begs to be puffed and each draw seems to deliver another layer of flavor, most being in the creamy, nutty and slightly earthy tones with an occasional mineral spot.
The ash has held strong through the entire first third despite a few jolts I have given it. It is not ready to be ashed yet.
Second 3rd: The second third starts with the peppery lips becoming more salty and a nice coat of creaminess on the pallet.
The ash finally wanted to go but it gave me a nice warning. I saw it start to droop and a nice crack formed. Thank you, I was not wanting a lap dance right now no matter how nice that ash was looking. When it did go it left a shallow crater. I believe this is a sign that the center is burning hot vs the outer tobacco.
The draw is very consistent staying at about a medium draw. The smoke is still producing good quantities but I am noticing that if I let it sit too long it shows signs of wanting to go out. The smoke carries the earthy/hay aroma and is pleasant to experience.
The burn is still a little off but consistent from the first light and due to the hot center I am now seeing a wrinkle on the wrapper. This will either fix itself or I will need to manually fix it by adding some fire to the edges.
Final 3rd: I ended up fixing the burn and this has yielded a better burning cigar. Shorter draws now produce larger quantities of smoke and no signs of dying out. The flavors as I enter the final third are very consistent from the beginning. This is a smooth tasting stick and what I would expect from a Monte. The benefit to being able to take shorter draws is less heat ingested resulting in a mor pleasant smoking experience.
The fall third brought another burn issue that needed to be fixed. Same as before. As van be expected there more heat present on the draw and this brings about a peppery tingling on the pallet only after tasting the nutty, creaminess. It's kind of a cashew or a Brazil nut flavor and the heat is really lingering but is not yet annoying or even unbearable. Shortly after jotting this note I started pulling in significant heat and that always effects my pallet. This is my stopping point. She burned well, delivered flavor and an overall decent experience.
How long did it take to smoke: 3:25 - 4:50 (75 minutes)
Strength: I'd place thi in the medium to medium high range.
Did you have to re-light and how often: No but I did have to fix the burn twice.
What were you drinking with it: Hoegarrden
Recommend: Yes but I believe I would also recommend letting this cigar rest or age for a few years. If it's possible to describe a cigar as tasting or smoking young this is it. If presented with the choice of the Open Eagle or the legendary #2, I would opt for the #2.