This cigar came to me by way of an anonymous bomb off Reddit. I couldnt let such aggression go unchecked so /u/UnofficialGhost will be receiving some ordnance in return.
Nose:
A mixture of spices with very light cedar. The nose really undersells the smoking experience that follows.
Construction:
The La Palina Collection Goldie Laguito No. 5 comes in a robusto extra vitola measuring 5 5/8 x 54 ring gauge.
First released in May of 2013, the Laguito No. 5, rolled out of the El Titan de Bronze factory in Miami, is a limited 10 count box production run of 2,500 cigars. According to Halfwheelthe original run was 1,000 boxes and then they added another 1,500 boxes.
The cigar has quite a storied history and rather than butcher pieces of it, I felt I would paste it from La Palinas website:
Goldie Drell Paley, the namesake of La Palina cigars, was the wife of Samuel Paley, who founded the company in 1896. Bill Paley, Sams grandson and current owner, created The La Palina Collection Goldie to celebrate the history, contributions and accomplishments of women in the cigar industry. Produced at the El Titan de Bronze factory in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, the Goldie is made under the supervision of owner Sandra Cobas. Master roller Maria Sierra, who signs each numbered box, rolls the entire La Palina Collection Goldie. Maria was one of the first women trained to roll cigars in Cuba. Her historic 32 year career at Villa El Laguito began July 22, 1967. Maria is a 95 rated, category 9 roller trained by Fidel Castros personal roller Eduardo Rivera Irizarri, as well as Avelino Lara, the creator of the legendary Cohiba blend.
Each cigar is finished in the traditional Laguito style with a fan cap, exclusively taught to rollers at Villa El Laguito. The Goldie is blended with the prized Medio Tiempo leaf, found on only 10% of tobacco plants
The La Palina Collection Goldie embodies the tradition, expertise and passion of women in the cigar industry.
Flavor:
First Third
Im tasting graham crackers. Graham crackers? I cant believe I was writing this as I was tasting it but it was unmistakable. Wow. Theres a hint of pepper at the end of the draw but overall quite light and smooth. Theres a spice or herb here that I cant identify. I want to say marjoram but Im going to have to go through my spices collection and see if I can more accurately identify it. Overall a creamy mouth feel.
As the first transitions into the 2nd third theres hints of dry earth.
Middle Third
Theres more earthy notes in the post draw here. Some light cedar starts to push through and some leather but the leather strength is very light.
Last Third
The Leather picks up intensity to a medium level in the final third. There is also some toasted nuts that have a medium strength level as well.
Burn/Draw:
I used a punch here and the result was a perfect draw. The burn was straight and the ash was a crisp white color. Total smoking time was just slightly over 2 hours.
Value:
The MSRP for a single of the Goldie Laguito No. 5 goes for approximately $18. A box of 10 is about $180.00, although they can be found for less . That puts pricing into the super premium category for cigars. Is it worth? Thats tough to say without smoking it for yourself, but it is a pretty amazing cigar. I will certainly be on the hunt for a box if that is any indication of the value proposition.
Final Word:
The note I wrote as my final summary was What an outstanding cigar! The price point will definitely cause some people to balk, and understandably so as its at the higher end of the pricing spectrum. Fortunately this cigar delivers flavors in spades. I suspect that this cigar is going to sit high on the ranked list and Id be surprised if it gets bumped down any time soon.
Review including gallery: http://cigarfederation.com/profiles/blogs/review-la-palina-collection-goldie-laguito-no-5
Nose:
A mixture of spices with very light cedar. The nose really undersells the smoking experience that follows.
Construction:
The La Palina Collection Goldie Laguito No. 5 comes in a robusto extra vitola measuring 5 5/8 x 54 ring gauge.
First released in May of 2013, the Laguito No. 5, rolled out of the El Titan de Bronze factory in Miami, is a limited 10 count box production run of 2,500 cigars. According to Halfwheelthe original run was 1,000 boxes and then they added another 1,500 boxes.
The cigar has quite a storied history and rather than butcher pieces of it, I felt I would paste it from La Palinas website:
Goldie Drell Paley, the namesake of La Palina cigars, was the wife of Samuel Paley, who founded the company in 1896. Bill Paley, Sams grandson and current owner, created The La Palina Collection Goldie to celebrate the history, contributions and accomplishments of women in the cigar industry. Produced at the El Titan de Bronze factory in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, the Goldie is made under the supervision of owner Sandra Cobas. Master roller Maria Sierra, who signs each numbered box, rolls the entire La Palina Collection Goldie. Maria was one of the first women trained to roll cigars in Cuba. Her historic 32 year career at Villa El Laguito began July 22, 1967. Maria is a 95 rated, category 9 roller trained by Fidel Castros personal roller Eduardo Rivera Irizarri, as well as Avelino Lara, the creator of the legendary Cohiba blend.
Each cigar is finished in the traditional Laguito style with a fan cap, exclusively taught to rollers at Villa El Laguito. The Goldie is blended with the prized Medio Tiempo leaf, found on only 10% of tobacco plants
The La Palina Collection Goldie embodies the tradition, expertise and passion of women in the cigar industry.
Flavor:
First Third
Im tasting graham crackers. Graham crackers? I cant believe I was writing this as I was tasting it but it was unmistakable. Wow. Theres a hint of pepper at the end of the draw but overall quite light and smooth. Theres a spice or herb here that I cant identify. I want to say marjoram but Im going to have to go through my spices collection and see if I can more accurately identify it. Overall a creamy mouth feel.
As the first transitions into the 2nd third theres hints of dry earth.
Middle Third
Theres more earthy notes in the post draw here. Some light cedar starts to push through and some leather but the leather strength is very light.
Last Third
The Leather picks up intensity to a medium level in the final third. There is also some toasted nuts that have a medium strength level as well.
Burn/Draw:
I used a punch here and the result was a perfect draw. The burn was straight and the ash was a crisp white color. Total smoking time was just slightly over 2 hours.
Value:
The MSRP for a single of the Goldie Laguito No. 5 goes for approximately $18. A box of 10 is about $180.00, although they can be found for less . That puts pricing into the super premium category for cigars. Is it worth? Thats tough to say without smoking it for yourself, but it is a pretty amazing cigar. I will certainly be on the hunt for a box if that is any indication of the value proposition.
Final Word:
The note I wrote as my final summary was What an outstanding cigar! The price point will definitely cause some people to balk, and understandably so as its at the higher end of the pricing spectrum. Fortunately this cigar delivers flavors in spades. I suspect that this cigar is going to sit high on the ranked list and Id be surprised if it gets bumped down any time soon.
Review including gallery: http://cigarfederation.com/profiles/blogs/review-la-palina-collection-goldie-laguito-no-5
