Jose Cueto

This is the last part of a three-part series. The first two parts, the BHK 54 and the 80th maduro, are in a separate thread.

In February, 2011, Jose Cueto reclaimed the longest-cigar record with a 45m monstrosity. Thus reminded, for the third cigar, I smoked my only Jose Cueto cigar - a Salamone looking to be around five years old.

Jose Cueto is 65 years old and his custom rolls can be bought at the Morro la Triada B&M in Havana. Thank-you again to the kind gentleman who shared this cigar with me a few years ago.

This is a huge perfecto cigar, at 6 1/2" long, and running razor-straight from 47 to an estimated 54 ring. The Colorado wrapper had a few white mold spots (caused a while back by a spike in humidity due to the way I stored the cigar). The cigar was otherwise flawless - except for a small tear. The foot of the cigar also had a whitish tinge, which I presumed to be excess adhesive - the foot itself was open so all that wrapper had to be glued into place.

The cigar smelled of honey sweetness and the cut head tasted like a rich butter. At a 38 ring cut, the cold draw was perfect - normally. In a perfecto, that seemed just a bit loose.

Perfectos were supposedly originally designed to be easier to light. What I like about perfectos is the flavour develops from being almost-all-wrapper to the full cigar in a few minutes.

After five minutes, I can say that was one of the best five minutes of smoking in quite a while. The wrapper's honey sweetness has faded away, but is still present. The cigar is not a strong in-your-face cigar, but it does have flavour, even though I wouldn't be surprised if there was no ligero in the filler.

The only negative note was that the volume of smoke wasn't as one would expect with such a wide cigar. It seemed the only way to smoke this cigar was to sip the smoke.

The second third started abruptly, which resulted in me delivering a long purge, breaking the ash off. The red cone told me I was smoking too fast. I slowed down and was rewarded with Cuban cigar greatness.

While I am not one to say Cuban cigars are best, a cigar like this just screams Cuban, just like the 80th screams Padron, or a glass-top box screams fake. I realize that cigars that taste like Cubans can be made outside of Cuba, but I haven't had one that tastes quite like this.

The reason is the blend - or lack of one. The complexity that comes with blending tobaccos from different regions - different countries - is not present in the Jose Cueto. Without that complexity, the tobacco stands unmasked. There is a simple honesty to the tobacco flavour. (Please excuse the hyperbole.) This tobacco was like the softest kid glove leather. Mild, subtle, but with a hugely long finish. Never bitter, or sour. Creamy and rich, but not overwhelmingly so, or even noticeable except in the nose.

I did my second long purge just after the halfway mark and an hour of smoking. Now there was spice in the nose, but not the tongue. The tongue was barely-sweet hay/grass with a mile-long finish hinting at richness. The draw was perfect now, and the character of the cigar changed, allowing large volumes of smoke to be produced.

There was more strength now, a fuller flavour, but still with creamy leather in the nose. My body told me that this much tobacco meant that quite a bit of nicotene was around.

As the cigar got spicier, I purged more often. The cigar was much stronger in its last third, with heavier earth notes to the smoke. This was a huge contrast to the delicate honey tobacco taste present when the cigar was first lit. From mild to med/full-bodied in four inches.

The Jose Cueto, like the 80th, was getting a bit too much for me near the end. I started the cigar with coffee (Cubita), but had to pour a finger of rum (HC CBP) to go with the cigar at the 90 minute mark. The rum complemented the cigar and moderated the cigar's increasing spiciness with alcoholic bite.

At one inch, the rich leather and spiciness were predominant. At 110 minutes, I put the cigar down.

Overall, it was a great cigar that didn't disappoint. It didn't have the - for lack of a better term - refinement of the BHK. It also didn't have the perfection of the 80th. There was a simpleness to the cigar that made one think of the tobacco as more important than the blend. Of the three, it was the cigar that I would get again, although I'd prefer a smaller size. Too bad one has to go to Havana to get them.

... and now, back to my more usual budget smokes!

Pics:
- from the humidor, note mold
- 25 minutes in
- at 110 minutes