Paul Stulac Lord of Albany Maduro
6"x44 Lonsdale
24 days of rest
Soft flame light
Paul Stulac is a Canadian cigar lover. In his twenties he smoked his first cuban cigar and as the say the rest is history. He went to work on starting his own cigar cart and grew it into a store. With the store humming along he decided it was time to take the next step and start blending his own cigar. From there this cigar was born. The specifics of the filler blend is secret. However it is known that the stick is wrapped in an Ecuadorian maduro wrapper. Despite what Atlantic says my box says this stick comes from Miami.
The cigar lit quickly and began pumping out copious amounts of smoke. The first draws presented every flavor in a well
delineated manner. Chocolate, earth, cream, coffee, spice, leather, and wood all come out at full flavor. From the begining you know this stick means business.
Earth is leading the charge. This isn't just dirt or some "oh this must be earth" type of flavor. This is something dark and delicious. Maybe we should start a Gia cult and sing her praises. She is giving us a beautiful gift here. Chocolate and cream come in on the backside and make this a crazy delicious treat.
Chocolate, cream, earth, spice, coffee, and leather all come out to play. The chocolate is not some dark coco it is teaming with the cream to become a nice candy bar. I am already thinking that I need to buy another box. This stick is making me smile like a little kid at christmas. The spice is backing down. It is being used very judiciously as a condiment to add a bit of flavor. It adds a bit of body and a keeps things interesting.
My cell phone was running low so I decided to cut back on the pictures.
Leather rushes to the front for a couple of puffs and then things settle back into a beautiful balance. Everything I loved about the La Jugada Prieto's last third is here. The chocolate is less dessert like. It is less of an ice cream or chocolate milk type of flavor. It is still delicious like a gourmet candy bar.
The chocolate and coffee back out so that the earth, leather, and cream take the lead. Where did the spice go? It is riding in the back seat. It isn't making itself too noticed. It is adding a bit of body and just kind of pushing the other flavors along. I'm retrohaling every few puffs and just loving the sensory experience. It is all encompassing and well balanced.
The ash held on for about 1.5" before it fell off. It came off like the cigar was perforated. The drop was clean and the cherry was perfectly round.
The Spice came out big and brash for a couple of hits. The coffee and leather came to the front with cream calling the shots. Everything else slid back and provided a solid foundation. The finish was getting longer and more delicious. Occasionally a secondary flavor would pop out on the exhale. I responded by smacking my lips like a dog eating peanut butter. I wanted to enjoy each flavor as it came and went.
Earth, cream, coffee, leather, and a touch of spice are all rolling along. The chocolate is laying back and giving the other flavors a foundation to work off of. The earth slides back and the leather slides forward. Then the leather slides back and coffee pops out.
The coffee isn't a dark bitter flavor. One of the things that surprises me is that there is absolutely no bitterness to this stick. With the coffee and chocolate it is always a possibility. The blender showed a deft touch in keeping it at bay. In fact the balance shows a master's hand. Even with some flavors jumping to the front nothing gets dominating. This stick never gets tiresome even though it lacks major transitions. The balance slides back and forth between the flavors, but never slides too far in any direction.
At the band mark the spice comes back out. It hits the tongue hard and pushes the other flavors back. It is like a blanket on the flavors for a hand full of puffs. Then the stick hits complexity. I'm puffing along on cruise control. Then I get down to the last two inches and things change.
The spice is chugging along like the world's greatest drummer laying a solid rhythm. Each flavor steps up to play it's own solo and the other flavors hang way back and work at supporting the rhythm. Suddenly, bam chocolate and coffee are playing matching leads in perfect harmony. The cream is still out front directing the band. Suddenly a wood flavor comes out of no where and rips off a blistering vocal run. Then we come back to complexity.
In the last inch the spicy drummer starts building up steam. The band is chugging along building to a crescendo. The stick has become a jam band as I reach the last inch. Heat starts to build up in the smoke. Every time I think, "one more puff " the band lets loose with a riff that keeps me hanging on. I can't let go until I burn my thumb. Finally I have to just toss the stick. I literally can't go any further.
This is a stick that every smoker should try. Unless you just hate maduros you would be cheating yourself by skipping this stick. It is perfectly constructed, the draw is perfect, and it pumps out smoke like a chimney in the dead of winter, and the flavors are magnificently presented. At about $7.40 a stick by the fiver it is a worth every single penny. If I had $134 to spend I would order another box tonight. I have had sticks that cost more and offer much less of an experience. This stick not only left me fully sated it made me enjoy every second of the 90 minutes I spent smoking it. This is the third one I've smoked and every one has been a shining example of what a cigar should be.
My hat is off to Paul Stulac.
A little smoking music to enhance the experience.
6"x44 Lonsdale
24 days of rest
Soft flame light
Paul Stulac is a Canadian cigar lover. In his twenties he smoked his first cuban cigar and as the say the rest is history. He went to work on starting his own cigar cart and grew it into a store. With the store humming along he decided it was time to take the next step and start blending his own cigar. From there this cigar was born. The specifics of the filler blend is secret. However it is known that the stick is wrapped in an Ecuadorian maduro wrapper. Despite what Atlantic says my box says this stick comes from Miami.
The cigar lit quickly and began pumping out copious amounts of smoke. The first draws presented every flavor in a well
delineated manner. Chocolate, earth, cream, coffee, spice, leather, and wood all come out at full flavor. From the begining you know this stick means business.
Earth is leading the charge. This isn't just dirt or some "oh this must be earth" type of flavor. This is something dark and delicious. Maybe we should start a Gia cult and sing her praises. She is giving us a beautiful gift here. Chocolate and cream come in on the backside and make this a crazy delicious treat.
Chocolate, cream, earth, spice, coffee, and leather all come out to play. The chocolate is not some dark coco it is teaming with the cream to become a nice candy bar. I am already thinking that I need to buy another box. This stick is making me smile like a little kid at christmas. The spice is backing down. It is being used very judiciously as a condiment to add a bit of flavor. It adds a bit of body and a keeps things interesting.
My cell phone was running low so I decided to cut back on the pictures.
Leather rushes to the front for a couple of puffs and then things settle back into a beautiful balance. Everything I loved about the La Jugada Prieto's last third is here. The chocolate is less dessert like. It is less of an ice cream or chocolate milk type of flavor. It is still delicious like a gourmet candy bar.
The chocolate and coffee back out so that the earth, leather, and cream take the lead. Where did the spice go? It is riding in the back seat. It isn't making itself too noticed. It is adding a bit of body and just kind of pushing the other flavors along. I'm retrohaling every few puffs and just loving the sensory experience. It is all encompassing and well balanced.
The ash held on for about 1.5" before it fell off. It came off like the cigar was perforated. The drop was clean and the cherry was perfectly round.
The Spice came out big and brash for a couple of hits. The coffee and leather came to the front with cream calling the shots. Everything else slid back and provided a solid foundation. The finish was getting longer and more delicious. Occasionally a secondary flavor would pop out on the exhale. I responded by smacking my lips like a dog eating peanut butter. I wanted to enjoy each flavor as it came and went.
Earth, cream, coffee, leather, and a touch of spice are all rolling along. The chocolate is laying back and giving the other flavors a foundation to work off of. The earth slides back and the leather slides forward. Then the leather slides back and coffee pops out.
The coffee isn't a dark bitter flavor. One of the things that surprises me is that there is absolutely no bitterness to this stick. With the coffee and chocolate it is always a possibility. The blender showed a deft touch in keeping it at bay. In fact the balance shows a master's hand. Even with some flavors jumping to the front nothing gets dominating. This stick never gets tiresome even though it lacks major transitions. The balance slides back and forth between the flavors, but never slides too far in any direction.
At the band mark the spice comes back out. It hits the tongue hard and pushes the other flavors back. It is like a blanket on the flavors for a hand full of puffs. Then the stick hits complexity. I'm puffing along on cruise control. Then I get down to the last two inches and things change.
The spice is chugging along like the world's greatest drummer laying a solid rhythm. Each flavor steps up to play it's own solo and the other flavors hang way back and work at supporting the rhythm. Suddenly, bam chocolate and coffee are playing matching leads in perfect harmony. The cream is still out front directing the band. Suddenly a wood flavor comes out of no where and rips off a blistering vocal run. Then we come back to complexity.
In the last inch the spicy drummer starts building up steam. The band is chugging along building to a crescendo. The stick has become a jam band as I reach the last inch. Heat starts to build up in the smoke. Every time I think, "one more puff " the band lets loose with a riff that keeps me hanging on. I can't let go until I burn my thumb. Finally I have to just toss the stick. I literally can't go any further.
This is a stick that every smoker should try. Unless you just hate maduros you would be cheating yourself by skipping this stick. It is perfectly constructed, the draw is perfect, and it pumps out smoke like a chimney in the dead of winter, and the flavors are magnificently presented. At about $7.40 a stick by the fiver it is a worth every single penny. If I had $134 to spend I would order another box tonight. I have had sticks that cost more and offer much less of an experience. This stick not only left me fully sated it made me enjoy every second of the 90 minutes I spent smoking it. This is the third one I've smoked and every one has been a shining example of what a cigar should be.
My hat is off to Paul Stulac.
A little smoking music to enhance the experience.
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