I was going to post this tomorrow, but i found out the kid has a 1 hour delay for school in the morning due to the severe cold temps here in Ohio (thank god for the basement to smoke in) and she doens't have to be there until 10 am, so i'm staying up later than planned.
Anyhow, i smoked this double robusto in almost exactly 90 minutes. I wasnt' effin around with it. I drank some of my Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee with it; perfect compliment.
I've now adopted CA official rating system...
Appearance & Construction - 14/15
This was a great looking cigar. The labeling and cedar wrap had been making my mouth water for weeks. As is my custom, i disbanded and unwrapped to find a well made cigar. The cap was pristine and it was evenly firm from head to foot. There was some slight color change in a couple spots and it had 2 veins running down it. I gave this one my standard punch and it revealed a thick cap. No tearing or cracking after the punch. There were a few small wrinkles in the wrapper from rolling and it had one tiny hole in the outer layer of wrap that showed the under layer of the wrapper; this had no effect whatsoever, just a point worth noting.
Flavor - 23/25
I'd smelled the foot of these cigars on numerous occassions and it only made the anticipation of smoking one that much greater. The pre-light flavor was amazing, just as the foor odor was. It had a very pleasant spice cake with cream cheese icing. There was a pleasant spice on the lips as well. It was very creamy tasting and it drew wonderfully
1/3 The first third was nothing out-of-this-world, just a very soft leather and smoked wood flavor. This continued for most of the first third and was well balanced by the coffee. To that point, the cigar flavor was very well balanced. None of the flavors stood out distinctly, they all meshed seamlessly together. To no surprise, the pre-light flavor began to emerge at the end of the 1/3.
2/3 The balanced flavors continued in this third. A hint of true coffee bean began to faintly emege as well. Again, it was perfectlyh introduced into the flavor profile.
3/3 In the final third i really noticed that the flavors were extremely soft on my palatte. The slight smoked wood flavor picked up a little, as did the creamy spice cake. There was some hidden spice brought in as well. It showed up in the finish after the cake and wood flavors began to dissipate. A nice touch. The sweet spcie on the lips continued. I did notice that i began to feel this one in my chest, indicating to me this cigar has some power. Even almost a half hour later i can still feel it. At this point, the after taste is still soft and the smell in the house is great. You can tell it was a good cigar and not some dog rocket.
Smoking Characteristics - 24/25
This cigar burned a little uneven for the first third. I resisted the urge to correct it with complete faith that Carlito wouldnt' let me down and that it would correct itself. It took the entire 1/3, but it did correct itself by the time the ash fell off on it's own. That's an even trade in scoring points, the burn difference was about 1/2" at one point. Quite a correction. The foot smoke was that beautiful gun-metal blue-grey and the exhale was a creamy cloud that rose out of my mouth then gently floated back down around my head. There's not many things better than smoking a cigar twice in one breath. As i said, the burn evened itself out and continued to burn evenly to the end. The draw remained consistent throughout as well; another sign of a well made cigar. I did purge it in the 3/3 to help take away the bitter taste from the resin build up.
Overall Impression - 33/35
Having recently smoked and Anejo and being blown away by the flavor profile from it, i was expecting great things. The spice cake flavor was completely unique, and the depth of the 3 or 4 flavors was amazing. They were seemlessly meshed and extremely well balanced, which is worth megapoints. This cigar will certainly improve with age and that spiciness will certainly mellow into an even creamier tasty goodness.
TOTAL SCORE = 94
TOTAL SCORE + 3 yrs = 97-98
These are good cigars.
I have edited this review twice now. After having the night and morning to reflect on this cigar, i have come to realize it is truely a great one. From now on i will not finalize a review for at least several hours after i have smoked it. I feel ashamed that i only gave this beauty a 92 the first time. What an idiot!!!
Anyhow, i smoked this double robusto in almost exactly 90 minutes. I wasnt' effin around with it. I drank some of my Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee with it; perfect compliment.
I've now adopted CA official rating system...
Appearance & Construction - 14/15
This was a great looking cigar. The labeling and cedar wrap had been making my mouth water for weeks. As is my custom, i disbanded and unwrapped to find a well made cigar. The cap was pristine and it was evenly firm from head to foot. There was some slight color change in a couple spots and it had 2 veins running down it. I gave this one my standard punch and it revealed a thick cap. No tearing or cracking after the punch. There were a few small wrinkles in the wrapper from rolling and it had one tiny hole in the outer layer of wrap that showed the under layer of the wrapper; this had no effect whatsoever, just a point worth noting.
Flavor - 23/25
I'd smelled the foot of these cigars on numerous occassions and it only made the anticipation of smoking one that much greater. The pre-light flavor was amazing, just as the foor odor was. It had a very pleasant spice cake with cream cheese icing. There was a pleasant spice on the lips as well. It was very creamy tasting and it drew wonderfully
1/3 The first third was nothing out-of-this-world, just a very soft leather and smoked wood flavor. This continued for most of the first third and was well balanced by the coffee. To that point, the cigar flavor was very well balanced. None of the flavors stood out distinctly, they all meshed seamlessly together. To no surprise, the pre-light flavor began to emerge at the end of the 1/3.
2/3 The balanced flavors continued in this third. A hint of true coffee bean began to faintly emege as well. Again, it was perfectlyh introduced into the flavor profile.
3/3 In the final third i really noticed that the flavors were extremely soft on my palatte. The slight smoked wood flavor picked up a little, as did the creamy spice cake. There was some hidden spice brought in as well. It showed up in the finish after the cake and wood flavors began to dissipate. A nice touch. The sweet spcie on the lips continued. I did notice that i began to feel this one in my chest, indicating to me this cigar has some power. Even almost a half hour later i can still feel it. At this point, the after taste is still soft and the smell in the house is great. You can tell it was a good cigar and not some dog rocket.
Smoking Characteristics - 24/25
This cigar burned a little uneven for the first third. I resisted the urge to correct it with complete faith that Carlito wouldnt' let me down and that it would correct itself. It took the entire 1/3, but it did correct itself by the time the ash fell off on it's own. That's an even trade in scoring points, the burn difference was about 1/2" at one point. Quite a correction. The foot smoke was that beautiful gun-metal blue-grey and the exhale was a creamy cloud that rose out of my mouth then gently floated back down around my head. There's not many things better than smoking a cigar twice in one breath. As i said, the burn evened itself out and continued to burn evenly to the end. The draw remained consistent throughout as well; another sign of a well made cigar. I did purge it in the 3/3 to help take away the bitter taste from the resin build up.
Overall Impression - 33/35
Having recently smoked and Anejo and being blown away by the flavor profile from it, i was expecting great things. The spice cake flavor was completely unique, and the depth of the 3 or 4 flavors was amazing. They were seemlessly meshed and extremely well balanced, which is worth megapoints. This cigar will certainly improve with age and that spiciness will certainly mellow into an even creamier tasty goodness.
TOTAL SCORE = 94
TOTAL SCORE + 3 yrs = 97-98
These are good cigars.
I have edited this review twice now. After having the night and morning to reflect on this cigar, i have come to realize it is truely a great one. From now on i will not finalize a review for at least several hours after i have smoked it. I feel ashamed that i only gave this beauty a 92 the first time. What an idiot!!!
