HOYO DE MONTERREY EPICURE No. 2

HOYO DE MONTERREY
EPICURE No. 2
ROBUSTO


Origin: Cuba
Wrapper: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Filler: Cuba



TASTING SHEET RESULTS

SIZE: 4 7/8x50

APPEARANCE: very good, moderately veiny, evenly colored colorado maduro wrapper, a bit wrinkly, but appears well constructed, the only flaw is a stain on the wrapper just above the band... looks like some sort of resin residue

CONSTRUCTION: very good to excellent: firmly applied wrapper and cap, firm, nicely filled bunch with fine give, good cap, tight seams all the way

DRAW: perfect

BURN: very good, tipical cuban

AROMA: excellent

FLAVOR: excellent

DOMINANT FLAVORS: chocolate, salt, leather, earth, caramel

AFTERTASTE: chocolate, salt, leather, earth

STRENGHT: moderate

SMOKING TIME: ~ 100 minutes

GENERAL IMPRESSION: excellent

CUT: Double guillotine

PRELIGHT: salt, leather, strong molasses

LIGHT: torch flame lighter, easily

BEVERAGE: coffee black

1/3:

Upon lighting, cigar immediately releases generous amount of thick chocolate with woody background in the thick waft of smoke. Initial puff reveals salty background. Light pepper on nose blow but very, very smooth. Tipical cuban burn, thick mascara with jagged burn line. Body in the mild to medium range. Medium gray ash flakes a bit. This cigar is pure delight. Divine aroma of honey and chocolate linger in the air. Nearing second third, body slowly picks up momentum, while smoke remains very cool and smooth.

2/3:

Flavors remain constant, chocolate still dominates while wood acts as a backdrop. Smooth pepper with salt on the nose persists. Medium salty finish. Ashing reveals no cone. Since I bought single, I am not aware of box code, so I dont know the age on this stick. The key word describing this smoke is smooth. The cigar performs admirably in all departments. Body still in the lower medium, but with rich, full flavor coating the palate on every puff. One could almost eat the thick chocolaty aroma of this stick. Bordering on the final third, hints of vanilla mingle with wood in the background. Finish at this point turns to heavy wood, while salt lessens a notch of two.

3/3:

This majestic symphony of flavors continues. Heavier pepper is evident on the nose blow.

NUB:

The body of the cigar is turning soft, while flavors start heading toward bitter territory, but with chocolate coating still present. Finish is longer with heavy charred wood notes, while ash is turning darker and flakes more. Ash is not compact, much like thru the most of the smoke. No cones were revealed upon ashings. Body settles in solid medium. No tar build-up. Once I finished this smoke, I noticed that my fingers smelled fantastic... like warm, rich mixture of freshly ground coffee and sweet cocoa.
I love this cigar. It really shines in all possible directions and I will definitely smoke more in the future.

ROMEO & JULIETA ROMEO No. 1 TUBO

ROMEO & JULIETA
ROMEO No. 1 TUBO

CREMAS

These used to be machine made. My three pack (new packaging, red and white tubes) states Totalmente a mano

Origin: Cuba
Wrapper: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Filler: Cuba

Place of purchase: Gift from my dear sister

TASTING SHEET RESULTS

SIZE: 5.5x40
APPEARANCE: very good, oily, even colored colorado wrapper on a bit veiny side, slight discoloration in the wrapper, but it provides character
CONSTRUCTION: appears very good, but IMO lousy bunching of the filler was the culprit for physical performance of cigar: firmly applied wrapper and cap, firm, nicely filled bunch with fine give, good cap
DRAW: perfect
BURN: whatever this was, it was NOT burn
AROMA: very good
FLAVOR: poor to average, what was gathered
DOMINANT FLAVORS: leather, earth, pepper, caramel
AFTERTASTE: salt, leather, earth
STRENGHT: moderate

SMOKING TIME: ~ 80 minutes
GENERAL IMPRESSION: waste of time and money

CUT: Double guillotine

PRELIGHT: salt, leather, strong molasses

LIGHT: torch flame lighter, very stubborn
BEVERAGE: coffee black

1/3:The cigar opens with strong leather and earth, backed by ample amount of pepper. After only a few puffs, problems appear with either a bad light or construction problems. Two relights in the first quarter inch. Burn is ridiculous and it shows on the flavor, as bitter notes are already present. Ash at this point is flaky and sick looking. At this stage pepper is tamed somewhat while earth and leather dominate. Nose blow reveals salty notes on peppery side, but relatively smooth. Towards second third, nonsweet caramel joins the show, with leather retreating to the background. Pepper is out of the picture. Burn continues in erratic fashion, while the aroma of the stick is that of nice hay and leather.

2/3:Brings nothing new to the table, the stick goes out constantly. Touch-up is applied. Aroma is continually very good, with prominent earth, salt, hay and caramel. Towards final third, deep tunnel is formed and it show on the flavor. Bitterness is on the rise, while body is in the mild-medium range.

3/3:Stick finally went out completely. The ash shows signs of smouldering and relight brings back familiar flavors of earth, with leather and slight pepper, wrapped in solid bitterness, body in the medium. The only thing going for this smoke is nice shade of wrapper, nice band and heavenly aroma. Otherwise, I would have left this stick to die a miserable death in the second third at the latest.

NUB: Another touch-up, and I am tired of relighting this stick. The flavors are subpar with bitter, salt, earth and a pronounced chemical finish. Slight tar build-up is visible indicating that tobacco was rushed to cigar production.

As you have seen from the review, I loved the original flavor and aroma of this cigar, and would gladly smoke more of these, BUT ONLY if I was certain they would PERFORM. Sure, handmade products like cigars carry no certainty unless you light one up, but this is clearly production problem. Tobacco was fine.
No use having beautiful stick on your hands if you can`t make it burn, unless you dip it in gasoline. Hope others are light years better than this specimen...

EL RICO HABANO - HABANO CLUB

EL RICO HABANO
HABANO CLUB

Origin: Dominican Republic
Wrapper: Ecuador Sumatra
Binder: Nicaragua
Filler: Nicaragua


Place of purchase: Famous Smoke Shop Online


TASTING SHEET RESULTS

SIZE: 5x48 (equivalent to cuban robusto-like vitola Hermosos No.4)
APPEARANCE: good, veiny but nice uniform colorado maduro wrapper, oily sheen, nice, simple, but nice band skillfully applied
CONSTRUCTION: very good: firmly applied wrapper and cap, firm, nicely filled bunch with fine give, one slightly loose seam on one spot
DRAW: perfect
BURN: very good
AROMA: excellent, divine raisin, cinnamon, pepper, leather
FLAVOR: excellent
DOMINANT FLAVORS: pepper, leather, earth, wood
AFTERTASTE: salt, leather, wood
STRENGHT: very strong

SMOKING TIME: ~ 95 minutes
GENERAL IMPRESSION: excellent

CUT OF CHOICE: Xikar
PRELIGHT: salt, pepper, leather, strong molasses
LIGHT OF CHOICE: torch flame lighter, easily
BEVERAGE: coffee black

1/3:
First few puffs cut through the palate with pure pepper. This stick shows its strenght immediately, while the aroma fills the air with divine raisin, cinnamon, pepper and leather. Burn is cuban-like, with thick mascara, but ash is uniform white and very compact. Nose blow extremely peppery with salty, raisiny background. After half inch pepper tames from extreme to full and readily gives way to earth, leather and wood with hefty grain of salt. Aroma persists of fantastic burnt raisin-cinnamon. This smoke delivers a punch to the gut and head immediately. Finish is medium and carries salty, earthy notes. Resting smoke is substantial. Towards second third, pepper is tamed further leaving earth and leather to dominate. Raisin and cinnamon persist on the nose with addition of warm, sweet caramel.

2/3:
Flavors and aroma persist, with salt notes increasing. The cigar leaves palate dry, so drink is advisable - sugar variety, to combat nicotine punch. Ashing reveals slight cone, the smoke behaves admirably. Nose blow at this stage is almost pleasant. Body in the solid full range "in your face" style. At this point woody notes dominate with earth, leather in the background. Pepper still detected but only as a backdrop to other flavors. Finish lenghtens with salty wood trailed by slight bitterness, not unpleasant in any way. Crossing to final third, everything plays together really nice, with bitter citrus notes appearing, much like grapefruit.

3/3:
Flavors are static, only addition are slight nuances of roasted, salted peanuts. Aroma continues in fantastic fashion. I suspect the smoke would not be pleasant for bystander as it is real intense, albeit very aromatic.

NUB:
Nothing new is revealed. Wood dominates with salt, earth and pepper in close second. No tar build-up indicates good fermentation and smoke withstands abuse with no problem whatsoever. Body in the upper full



This is one fantastic smoke I recommend to serious, seasoned smokers only. It has enough power to easily floor someone who does not have the cigar mileage yet. I personally would decline alcoholic drink while smoking this firecracker as it would put me out easily and I smoke predominantly heavy stuff. Don`t say I didn`t warn you...

BABY GIRL

On October 3rd, I have become a father for a second time. My two year old boy now has a beautiful little sister.
It really is a blessing, watching these two pumpkins wake-up in the morning.
So, posting has taken a backseat for a little while, but I still smoke and review, just do not post.
A little peak of what is in store for those reading this blog... El Rico Habano Club is coming up shortly, then we have cuban batch... Romeo No. 1 Tubos, Hoyo de Monterrey Epicure No.2, later on my first ever Montecristo Edmundo, then Partagas Serie D, then 601 Red Robusto and the list goes on... So stay tuned and thanks for reading..

PARTAGAS PETIT CORONAS ESPECIALES

PARTAGAS PETIT CORONAS ESPECIALES
PETIT CORONA

Origin: Cuba
Wrapper: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Filler: Cuba

This vitola used to be machine made with hand applied wrapper. My box, coded SMG JUL 07 states Totalmente a mano.

Place of purchase: La Casa Del Habano Hamburg online



TASTING SHEET RESULTS

SIZE: 5x42 (used to be 5x44, but I guess when Habanos switched production method, they also changed the size on these)
APPEARANCE: average, slight box press, moderately veiny, evenly colored colorado claro wrapper, wrinkles, chipped wrapper on several spots, green dots on the wrapper
CONSTRUCTION: very good: firmly applied wrapper and cap, firm, nicely filled bunch with fine give, good cap
DRAW: perfect
BURN: good, tipical cuban
AROMA: very good to excellent
FLAVOR: very good
DOMINANT FLAVORS: salt, leather, earth, caramel
AFTERTASTE: salt, leather, earth
STRENGHT: moderate

SMOKING TIME: ~ 80 minutes
GENERAL IMPRESSION: good to very good

CUT: Double guillotine

PRELIGHT: salt, leather, strong molasses
LIGHT: torch flame lighter, easily
BEVERAGE: coffee black

1/3:
Opens with strong leather, salty earth and cedar, while pepper acts as a backdrop. Divine aroma of cedar, caramel and sweet baking spice. Burn tipical cuban, ash flaky. Nose blow peppery but on the smooth side with strong salt, leather and earth notes. Slight runner appears on one side, but corrects itself. Salt fades with sweet caramel appearing. Ash drops just as I want to tip it off. Body in the lower medium.

2/3:
Flavors at this stage are pretty much static, but very smooth with sweet caramel dominating and leather and earth firmly planted in the back. Aroma is excellent, sweet spice with a hint of vanilla. Burn thinned out and is quite even for cuban. Ash is dark grey and very chippy. Ashing reveals no cone, body in the solid medium. Pepper is picking up on the nose blow. Towards final third vanilla gains ground with prominent light roasted coffee notes while sweet caramel fades to backgroung, accompanied by ever present leather.

3/3:
Body slowly moves to medium-full. Smoke remains very smooth with light coffee roast, vanilla and caramel presence unchanged. Sweetness has lessened somewhat but still heavily present in the aroma. Finish at this point is long with heavy leather mixed with pepper.

NUB:
Flavors persist with addition of pepper and slightly bitter woody notes, but still very pleasant.


Partagas Petit Coronas Especiales are great mareva sized smoke, especially considering the price. When I first purchased a box in the early 2008, they had about 8 months of box age on them and were clearly showing youth. While they were good, they were way too perfumy and grassy for my liking, so I smoked only a couple of them to check consistency and put the rest to sleep. I have to report that as of September 2008, these are starting to come around and show great potential to be really fantastic with some more age. As a side note, these have a reputation of having the "old" Partagas blend...

GRAN HABANO COROJO No. 5 CHURCHILL

GRAN HABANO COROJO No. 5
CHURCHILL

Origin: Honduras
Wrapper: Nicaraguan Corojo
Binder: Nicaraguan
Filler: Nicaragua and Costa Rica

Place of purchase: Famous Smoke Shop Online

TASTING SHEET RESULTS

SIZE: 7x48
APPEARANCE: very good to excellent: great looking stick, uniform wrapper on the veiny side, nicely applied, A LOT of oils visible, very elaborate band, well applied, two bands "suggest a pedigree" to this smoke, very nice flattened triple head, evenly colored colorado maduro wrapper
CONSTRUCTION: excellent: the stick is well filled with only a slight give, nice roll with tight seams and a flat triple head in a cuban tradition
DRAW: perfect
BURN: average to good, as usual, with problems
AROMA: good to very good
FLAVOR: good to very good
DOMINANT FLAVORS: compost, worn leather, pepper
AFTERTASTE: worn leather
STRENGHT: moderate to somewhat strong

SMOKING TIME: ~ 2 hours
GENERAL IMPRESSION: average to good (marked down for consistent burn problems)

CUT: table scissors

PRELIGHT: barnyard, dark earth, salty tobacco
LIGHT: torch flame lighter, easily
BEVERAGE: coffee with milk

1/3:
Opening delivers ample amounts of bitter pepper notes, but on third puff bitterness is lost with only pepper and dark earth remaining. Nose blow paints the picture in non-sweet caramel and wood nuances on a hefty peppery side, but still very smooth. Quarter inch into the smoke pepper eases to the back, leaving dark earth dominating. Aroma is fantastic, sweet wood mixed with caramel and new leather. The burn is among the ugliest I have seen, thick with dark gray and black ash. Finish at this point is short, spotlighting salty, earthy notes. Body in the upper medium range.

2/3:
Brings nonsweetened caramel with cocoa into the twist. Earth backs down a bit, but still is firmly planted in the show. Burn problems appear, bringing taste to its knees. Only charred wood with hints of caramel remain and ashing reveals a very tiny cone. At this point, a touch up is applied and the burn returns to acceptable. Nearing the final third, the flavor jumps back in the gear with dark, bitter chocolate and molasses taking centerstage, while heavenly caramel fills the aroma. Body in the lower full at this point.

3/3:
Surprise, surprise... Burn is acting up again and affects the flavor - charr returns. Another touch up is in order. Things get back on track yet again, but pepper reappears this time around, complementing pronounced dark earth and worn leather. Body settles in lower full, burning qualities leave a lot to be desired.

NUB:
Stick turns soft with bitter notes becoming more and more pronounced. Aroma is still nice spicy caramel. No tar build-up, nice fermentation. Finish long and spicy with charred wood on a salty side.

Gran Habano Corojos are a love-hate smokes for me. I love the appearance, taste and aroma of the cigar, but hate its physical performance and packaging (although I can live with packaging). These are very different from other Corojos and I LOVE Corojo tobacco. They have darker flavor profile, a bit less sweetness and caramel and a bit more black pepper and molasses. IMO the blend in these overpowers the beautiful, oily, silky Corojo wrappers. Not that this is a bad thing, just different. Now for the shady part: these cigars simply refuse to burn, so I constantly have to fight the burn. They are never plugged, but always seem to have some issues with the filler which constantly mess with the burn and form tunnels. Also, I suspect oil in the wrappers also adds to this problem. As my box is from January 2008, I hope this issue will be somewhat alleviated with more age. Until I resolve this, another box is out of the question for me, only fivers.

QUINTERO BREVAS

QUINTERO BREVAS
NACIONALES

Origin: Cuba
Wrapper: Cuba
Binder: Cuba
Filler: Cuba

This smoke is machine made short/mixed filler with hand applied wrapper. It consists of scrapings of tobacco of more prestigious brands.

Place of purchase: Brnik International Airport, Ljubljana, Slovenia, Duty free shop



TASTING SHEET RESULTS

SIZE: 5.5x40
APPEARANCE: poor, even though it`s a cheapie: looks like it walked all the way from Cuba, veiny with large veins, evenly colored colorado maduro wrapper, slight oily sheen, loose seams, sloppy cap, sloppy, tainted band
CONSTRUCTION: average: firmly applied wrapper and cap, even though it does not seem so, firm, nicely filled bunch - machine made, with fine give, seams visible and not very tight on several spots, cap lousy, but holds well
DRAW: perfect
BURN: good, tipical cuban
AROMA: good to very good
FLAVOR: good to very good
DOMINANT FLAVORS: cocoa, leather, earth
AFTERTASTE: salt, sweet cocoa, leather
STRENGHT: somewhat mild

SMOKING TIME: ~ 70 minutes
GENERAL IMPRESSION: good to very good

CUT: Double guillotine

PRELIGHT: wood, worn leather, touch of molasses
LIGHT: torch flame lighter, took some time
BEVERAGE: coffee black


1/3:
At the outset, soft, sweet cocoa greets me with just hints of earth and leather. Very chocolaty aroma. Nice and smooth nose blow defines salty background. Tipical cuban burn, thick, jagged mascara. Finish is short with salty and sweet cocoa notes. Slowly, sweetness seem to be reatreating in favor of salt. Cocoa dominates with touch of earth in the back. Ash is fragile and drops easily, but it is afterall a short filler smoke. Body in mild to medium range.

2/3:
Reveals nothing new, but it does remain enjoyable with no physical problems. The stick does not tolerate overpuffing well, so relatively slow smoking recommended.

3/3:
Burn problems arise and transcend to flavor, as it starts turning to bitter, almost chemical notes. May be my fault as I almost let it go out. Touch-up necessary, although I don`t favor regulating burn this way. Soon, the stick behaves again, but the addition of pepper is noted.


NUB:
Pepper dominates at this point, with bitter, charry wood nuances in the background. Body settles in lower medium.

Quintero Brevas are another cheap cuban brand. They cost somewhat more that Jose L. Piedra, but IMO deliver a bit more also. Flavor profile is darker, sweeter with rich, strong cocoa, even coffee notes, while JLP tend to be in the lighter profile range with flavors more in the earth, cedar and leather fashion. Quinteros are usually milder than JLP, but not necessarily. Both age well, as I have a few Quinteros left from 2004 purchase that are really stellar at this point. Just remember not to stare at them and judge them heavily on their appearance and you will have a great everyday companion.