danthebugman
BoM Nov '10
Size: 5" x 52
Wrapper: Ecquadorian Connecticut
Binder: Dominican
Filler: Nicaraguan & Dominican
Price: ~ $3.50-$5.00
Intro: Pinar del Rio is one of the most underrated brands out there. Which is unfortunate and fortunate at the same time. Unfortunate because they turn out some really good stuff. Fortunate because they're cheap and fairly easy to get your hands on. Abe Flores (owner of PDR) ran a contest here a little while back and I was fortunate enough to win a sampler pack of cigars. Included were one each of the 1878 Natural, Habano, Oscuro, and Maduro along with 4 other cigars all in the Robusto size. Since I smoke a lot of Robustos, it was right up my alley. It also gave me the oppurtunity to sample the rest of the 1878 line (I've already had and love the Maduro). I'm starting this morning with the Natural.
Prelight: The wrapper is a uniform tan color, minimal veins, with a slight sheen to the cigar. The cap is finished in a nice pig tail which adds to the elegance of the cigar. While slightly larger than the traditional Robusto size (52 instead of 50), the extra girth is not that noticable. Seams are tight. The band is elegant and I think the white banding complements the lightness of the wrapper. Pre-light aroma is a generic wood with some sweetness to it and a slight hint of pepper. Cap cut cleanly and yielded a just slightly tight draw. The cold draw was a woody, slightly sweet nutty flavor. Flipped the top on the Ronson, pushed the ignitor, and away we go...
First Third: There was a nice woody, graham cracker flavor that dominated the first third. There were also hints of earthiness throughout, but these were not consistent and a creaminess to the smoke. The burn started off a little less than ideal and needed a few touch ups. Not for sure that this was something that was the cigars fault. An issue I have, especially in the mornings since my back porch faces the east, is that it is sometimes hard to see the torch flame and so I sometimes miss getting a real good toast and cherry. At any rate it evened up after about half an inch. The ash was dense and a solid white.
Second Third: In the second third the sweetness kicked it up a notch, otherwise the wood and the nuttiness remained. The earthiness was still present, but again inconsistent. There was a faint, light peppery flavor on the finish. Burn remained good, draw was excellent also. Between the second and last thirds the cigar went out as it was unattended while I helped the wife clean up the new baby. Knocked the ash off and relit. There was a slight off flavor at first, but faded as it burnt into the last third.
Last Third: Finished buttery smooth. The sweetness died down leaving a slightly dry, wood and nut flavors with a now consistent earthiness towards the end of the last third. Burn was a little askew causing a couple of touch ups to be called for, but nothing major. A crack developed in the wrapper, but didn't effect the smoke or anything.
Final Thoughts: Paired well with my morning coffee. Very well in fact. Enjoyable flavors, though not quite as good as the Federal MF Connecticuts. Given the price, these are an excellent value. Cheap enough to be a daily smoke and good enough to actually smoke daily. I also just want to throw out how much I like the box they came in. I'd be down for more companies to produce something like this. It's simple yet elegant. Stay tuned for the rest of the reviews!
Dan
