So this is one Dan sent me in a trade a few weeks back. I also have a few of the original San Cristobal line in my humi, but they are robustos and with this being a toro and equaling a longer smoke time, I felt it best to take advantage of the incredibly nice day/evening we had, and enjoy a longer smoke.
Pre-light thoughts: The first thing I notice is the beautiful double band. It has the standard San Cristobal band with the image of a parrot, and at the foot of the cigar is an aquamarine band with "Seleccion del Sol" written on it. This is the toro size, measuring in at 6 x 52.
This is a Nicaraguan cigar made by Don Pepin Garcia, and has probably the lightest wrapper I've seen on a DPG cigar thus far. It's a very light, almost coppery brown colour with lots of sunspots and small blemishes. These spots are purely aesthetic, though - there are no soft or hard spots to speak of.
The smell of the cigar is of a spicy-sweet tobacco with a nice cedar tang to it.
The cigar cuts smoothly, and a pre-light draw gives that same spice and sweetness.
First third: This cigar had a very unusual start (at least for a DPG cigar) in that there was not pepper blast. It started off supremely smooth, and the pepper and spice began to pick up about 5 to 7 draws in.
I was actually getting a little worried that this was going to be a very bland cigar, but no, after that first little bit, it began to pick up some really nice flavours.
The dominant flavour in this first third is of spicey tobacco, wrapped around a core of very sweet, almost pungent earth.
I found it strange (and very good!) when I retrohaled and got what I can only describe as a blast of vanilla. I've never had a cigar with such a very distinct retrohale. I've usually found that breathing the smoke through my nose just intensifies the flavours that are present in the mouth-smoke, but this one gave this very good, sweet flavour of pure vanilla.
Very interesting.
Second third: Into the second third, I am finding that the spicy tobacco is dying down and being replaced by a very light flavour of cocoa. The core of earth has transformed a bit, into a more defined flavour of cedar and sweet wood.
I must say that this cigar is very mellow. While it gives off nice, rich clouds of smoke that coat the palate well, it is by no means a strong cigar in flavour or nicotine strength. The flavours are all cool and tame, but I think this works really well for it, as it allows the many flavours present to mingle with each other.
Again, a retrohale gives that same beautiful vanilla flavour. If I didn't know any better, I would almost say that this was a vanilla-tipped or otherwise "infused" cigar. It's sweet and delicious.
I will make mention here that the cigar is not having the most beautiful burn. There are no major problems, I haven't had to touch it up or anything. But it's very wavy, and it has a tendency to dip down one side, then correct itself, then dip down the other side, and so on.
Like I said, nothing that required a touch-up, but something to note.
Final third: Getting down towards the last inch and a half, the cocoa has dissipated, and the spice has come back to the forefront.
The ash for the final half of the cigar has been totally different from that of the first half. The initial ash held on for nearly 2 inches, and was a bright white colour. This last half it hasn't wanted to hold on for more than half an inch or so, and has been a dark grey and flowering quite a lot.
The flavours are still subtle yet complex. No one flavour is overpowering, and they all go together really well.
When I tossed the nub, my smoking time was about 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Final thoughts: This was a fantastic cigar. I loved how complex its flavours were, and while I have found my tastes generally lie with more fully-bodied stuff, this used its medium-body profile to its advantage, allowing all of these different tastes and aromas to work together and make something really special.
Thank you again, Dan, for sending me this one!
Pre-light thoughts: The first thing I notice is the beautiful double band. It has the standard San Cristobal band with the image of a parrot, and at the foot of the cigar is an aquamarine band with "Seleccion del Sol" written on it. This is the toro size, measuring in at 6 x 52.
This is a Nicaraguan cigar made by Don Pepin Garcia, and has probably the lightest wrapper I've seen on a DPG cigar thus far. It's a very light, almost coppery brown colour with lots of sunspots and small blemishes. These spots are purely aesthetic, though - there are no soft or hard spots to speak of.
The smell of the cigar is of a spicy-sweet tobacco with a nice cedar tang to it.
The cigar cuts smoothly, and a pre-light draw gives that same spice and sweetness.
First third: This cigar had a very unusual start (at least for a DPG cigar) in that there was not pepper blast. It started off supremely smooth, and the pepper and spice began to pick up about 5 to 7 draws in.
I was actually getting a little worried that this was going to be a very bland cigar, but no, after that first little bit, it began to pick up some really nice flavours.
The dominant flavour in this first third is of spicey tobacco, wrapped around a core of very sweet, almost pungent earth.
I found it strange (and very good!) when I retrohaled and got what I can only describe as a blast of vanilla. I've never had a cigar with such a very distinct retrohale. I've usually found that breathing the smoke through my nose just intensifies the flavours that are present in the mouth-smoke, but this one gave this very good, sweet flavour of pure vanilla.
Very interesting.
Second third: Into the second third, I am finding that the spicy tobacco is dying down and being replaced by a very light flavour of cocoa. The core of earth has transformed a bit, into a more defined flavour of cedar and sweet wood.
I must say that this cigar is very mellow. While it gives off nice, rich clouds of smoke that coat the palate well, it is by no means a strong cigar in flavour or nicotine strength. The flavours are all cool and tame, but I think this works really well for it, as it allows the many flavours present to mingle with each other.
Again, a retrohale gives that same beautiful vanilla flavour. If I didn't know any better, I would almost say that this was a vanilla-tipped or otherwise "infused" cigar. It's sweet and delicious.
I will make mention here that the cigar is not having the most beautiful burn. There are no major problems, I haven't had to touch it up or anything. But it's very wavy, and it has a tendency to dip down one side, then correct itself, then dip down the other side, and so on.
Like I said, nothing that required a touch-up, but something to note.
Final third: Getting down towards the last inch and a half, the cocoa has dissipated, and the spice has come back to the forefront.
The ash for the final half of the cigar has been totally different from that of the first half. The initial ash held on for nearly 2 inches, and was a bright white colour. This last half it hasn't wanted to hold on for more than half an inch or so, and has been a dark grey and flowering quite a lot.
The flavours are still subtle yet complex. No one flavour is overpowering, and they all go together really well.
When I tossed the nub, my smoking time was about 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Final thoughts: This was a fantastic cigar. I loved how complex its flavours were, and while I have found my tastes generally lie with more fully-bodied stuff, this used its medium-body profile to its advantage, allowing all of these different tastes and aromas to work together and make something really special.
Thank you again, Dan, for sending me this one!
