r3db4r0n
BoM Jan '11
NHC Seleccion Limitada Reserva 6 ¾ x 42
A collaboration between Pete Johnson of Tatuaje cigars and Dan Walsh of New Havana Cigars (NHC) to produce a “house blend” Nicaraguan Puro that offered both Nicaraguan Habano (Natural) and a Nicaraguan Broadleaf (Reserva) wrappers. Above all else, the thing I find most intriguing about these cigars is they way they are packaged. Instead of selling the blends separately, NHC instead decided to offer both together in boxes of 40 splitting the contents between 20 natural wrappers and 20 reservas – whole boxes of either can also be purchased but they must be first opened to allow for the switch.
Writers note: You may notice that I've opted to use a less than fashionable crystal ashtray for this review, I did this as part of a gag between a friend and I that suggested I do a “retro” review, stemming back to the days before I had a proper ash tray, hope you enjoy the cheese ball factor
At first glance, the wrapper is soo richly coloured and oiled that I'm tempted to just set the foot alight and skip the review all together, however, after a closer look, I spotted some rather rough looking veins running along the back of the cigar, something that I'm not regularly accustomed to seeing in a reserva. Despite the unusual veining, there are no other visible imperfections and the cigar appears to have been bunched well quite well and rolled tightly leaving little give between the fingers, though this is somewhat expected as it appear to be a box press.
Pre-Light: The aroma that this reserva gives off is intoxicating, earth, cocoa and stout tobacco are abundant from both the wrapper and foot. After clipping the cap, cocoa and earthy notes are also apparent from the draw with a spicy finish.
Light: Not surprisingly the foot toasts and lights quickly given the small ring gauge, but as any seasoned smoker know size doesn't translate to power. The initial draw is incredibly spicy, almost overwhelming the palate but after a few puffs hints of earth and cocoa are apparent while the aroma is of a marvellous dry cocoa.
First Third: Not even 10 minutes into the cigar and already half an inch of ash dropped, unusual being that the draw is somewhat tight. The draw is still quite peppery at both on the onset and finish which is quite surprising, although cocoa, earthy notes and toasted nuts are also discernible. The expelled smoke seems to have taken on characteristics more akin to the those from the foot as opposed to the draw seeing cocoa as the only discernible fragrance. As far as construction is concerned, the burn has kept to a relatively even edge while the ash is finally holding on to more than half an inch of ash at the end of the first third.
Second Third: The farther I smoke into this stick the more perplexing it seems to become. Rather than strengthening, the draw actually seems to have mellowed out while at the same time offering more complexity. Spice has moved from an all encompassing note at the core of the flavor profile to one that is only apparent on the finish and in its place, cocoa, espresso and now leather have taken the reigns. The expelled smoke has made little improvement from the first third giving off a plethora of dry cocoa though now exuding slight hints of leather. The burn has wavered slightly since the beginning of the second third, though it hasn't presented a problem and the ash still varies between half an inch to an inch depending on the attention given to the draw.
Final Third: Entering the the last two inches, some strength is again apparent where strength is due. The draw still hangs quite firmly to cocoa, earth, espresso and leather, but spice is giving quite a good kick on the finish. The retro-hale has wavered little from the last third again keeping to dry cocoa with hints of leather, though there is something to be said about that kind of consistency. It is worth noting that the burn improved throughout the final third, shedding the uneven habits of the previous third with an ash that held in excess of an inch at the nub.
Final Thoughts: This was an unusual cigar, from the initial pre-light impressions I had pegged the NHC Reserva to be a more mellow smoke, but instead it turned out to be an ass kicker. I found the spice in the first third better suited to the finish, the mellow qualities of the second more suited to the first, leaving the final third as the only one that really felt in place. Aside from odd development, the consistency seemed a little off as well. While the NHC Reserva offered allot of flavor and consistency throughout, I didn't experience the changes in the draw that I look for to consider a smoke complex, almost making me feel as if though there was something more to be desired. Not a cigar with a wow factor, but at the 7 or so dollar price point it doesn't break the bank either.
Total smoking time was about an hour and 20 minutes.
Thanks for reading!
A collaboration between Pete Johnson of Tatuaje cigars and Dan Walsh of New Havana Cigars (NHC) to produce a “house blend” Nicaraguan Puro that offered both Nicaraguan Habano (Natural) and a Nicaraguan Broadleaf (Reserva) wrappers. Above all else, the thing I find most intriguing about these cigars is they way they are packaged. Instead of selling the blends separately, NHC instead decided to offer both together in boxes of 40 splitting the contents between 20 natural wrappers and 20 reservas – whole boxes of either can also be purchased but they must be first opened to allow for the switch.
Writers note: You may notice that I've opted to use a less than fashionable crystal ashtray for this review, I did this as part of a gag between a friend and I that suggested I do a “retro” review, stemming back to the days before I had a proper ash tray, hope you enjoy the cheese ball factor
At first glance, the wrapper is soo richly coloured and oiled that I'm tempted to just set the foot alight and skip the review all together, however, after a closer look, I spotted some rather rough looking veins running along the back of the cigar, something that I'm not regularly accustomed to seeing in a reserva. Despite the unusual veining, there are no other visible imperfections and the cigar appears to have been bunched well quite well and rolled tightly leaving little give between the fingers, though this is somewhat expected as it appear to be a box press.
Pre-Light: The aroma that this reserva gives off is intoxicating, earth, cocoa and stout tobacco are abundant from both the wrapper and foot. After clipping the cap, cocoa and earthy notes are also apparent from the draw with a spicy finish.
Light: Not surprisingly the foot toasts and lights quickly given the small ring gauge, but as any seasoned smoker know size doesn't translate to power. The initial draw is incredibly spicy, almost overwhelming the palate but after a few puffs hints of earth and cocoa are apparent while the aroma is of a marvellous dry cocoa.
First Third: Not even 10 minutes into the cigar and already half an inch of ash dropped, unusual being that the draw is somewhat tight. The draw is still quite peppery at both on the onset and finish which is quite surprising, although cocoa, earthy notes and toasted nuts are also discernible. The expelled smoke seems to have taken on characteristics more akin to the those from the foot as opposed to the draw seeing cocoa as the only discernible fragrance. As far as construction is concerned, the burn has kept to a relatively even edge while the ash is finally holding on to more than half an inch of ash at the end of the first third.
Second Third: The farther I smoke into this stick the more perplexing it seems to become. Rather than strengthening, the draw actually seems to have mellowed out while at the same time offering more complexity. Spice has moved from an all encompassing note at the core of the flavor profile to one that is only apparent on the finish and in its place, cocoa, espresso and now leather have taken the reigns. The expelled smoke has made little improvement from the first third giving off a plethora of dry cocoa though now exuding slight hints of leather. The burn has wavered slightly since the beginning of the second third, though it hasn't presented a problem and the ash still varies between half an inch to an inch depending on the attention given to the draw.
Final Third: Entering the the last two inches, some strength is again apparent where strength is due. The draw still hangs quite firmly to cocoa, earth, espresso and leather, but spice is giving quite a good kick on the finish. The retro-hale has wavered little from the last third again keeping to dry cocoa with hints of leather, though there is something to be said about that kind of consistency. It is worth noting that the burn improved throughout the final third, shedding the uneven habits of the previous third with an ash that held in excess of an inch at the nub.
Final Thoughts: This was an unusual cigar, from the initial pre-light impressions I had pegged the NHC Reserva to be a more mellow smoke, but instead it turned out to be an ass kicker. I found the spice in the first third better suited to the finish, the mellow qualities of the second more suited to the first, leaving the final third as the only one that really felt in place. Aside from odd development, the consistency seemed a little off as well. While the NHC Reserva offered allot of flavor and consistency throughout, I didn't experience the changes in the draw that I look for to consider a smoke complex, almost making me feel as if though there was something more to be desired. Not a cigar with a wow factor, but at the 7 or so dollar price point it doesn't break the bank either.
Total smoking time was about an hour and 20 minutes.
Thanks for reading!
Last edited:
