The KC/DW Review Series

[King Catfish]

Deedubya’s post above inspired me to have another go at this reviewing thing. Hopefully I’m doing a decent job at it.

This is a firmly packed robusto with a light brown wrapper of medium texture with some noticeable veins. I enjoyed it today after lunch with a glass of water, listening to talk radio. This cigar comes from DW, and I thank him again for the opportunity to experience a new cigar.

Prelit aroma was faint and unremarkable. Not much of an oily sheen. Construction and color were very even. I managed to cut it perfectly. After toasting the foot, upon lighting the cigar I was greeted with a voluminous cloud of tasty smoke. The taste was a bit woody and certainly mild. A leatheriness started to assert itself almost immediately, with a spiciness following. A very eventful first few puffs.

The first third saw the leatheriness start to fade almost as soon as it arrived, and the woodiness reigned. Smoke volume stayed solid. A spiciness was deep in the background, the spice taste reminding me more of cinnamon rather than black pepper. The draw remained pleasantly easy throughout. The wrapper tasted lovely on the lips, moreso than any cigar I have had in recent memory. Usually the taste of the wrapper on the lips fades before the increasing press of the smoke itself, but not so with this cigar. Near the end of the first third a nice sensation in the upper soft palate was developing, perhaps vanilla? I’m not sure how to describe it, but it was very pleasant. The aroma of the smoke filling the room was soft and creamy and very nice.

As the cigar progressed into the second third I was beginning to be very glad I decided to have a glass of water with this cigar rather than whiskey or coffee. Coffee probably would have been a good pairing, but this cigar carries enough with it that it deserves the palate’s full attention. The second third presented a waltz between leather and wood, with spice fading into the background in envy at their dancing prowess. The last third was largely a continuation of the second third.

A most lovely cigar. I smoked it right down to the point at which it started to burn my fingers, and I was sorry to see it end.

Score 19.1 (x5) = 95.5

EDITED TO ADD: The cigar was a nice slow smoke, too. Lasted for about 1.5 hours.

[DeeDubya]

Deedubya’s post above inspired me to have another go at this reviewing thing. Hopefully I’m doing a decent job at it.

This is a firmly packed robusto with a light brown wrapper of medium texture with some noticeable veins. I enjoyed it today after lunch with a glass of water, listening to talk radio. This cigar comes from DW, and I thank him again for the opportunity to experience a new cigar.

Prelit aroma was faint and unremarkable. Not much of an oily sheen. Construction and color were very even. I managed to cut it perfectly. After toasting the foot, upon lighting the cigar I was greeted with a voluminous cloud of tasty smoke. The taste was a bit woody and certainly mild. A leatheriness started to assert itself almost immediately, with a spiciness following. A very eventful first few puffs.

The first third saw the leatheriness start to fade almost as soon as it arrived, and the woodiness reigned. Smoke volume stayed solid. A spiciness was deep in the background, the spice taste reminding me more of cinnamon rather than black pepper. The draw remained pleasantly easy throughout. The wrapper tasted lovely on the lips, moreso than any cigar I have had in recent memory. Usually the taste of the wrapper on the lips fades before the increasing press of the smoke itself, but not so with this cigar. Near the end of the first third a nice sensation in the upper soft palate was developing, perhaps vanilla? I’m not sure how to describe it, but it was very pleasant. The aroma of the smoke filling the room was soft and creamy and very nice.

As the cigar progressed into the second third I was beginning to be very glad I decided to have a glass of water with this cigar rather than whiskey or coffee. Coffee probably would have been a good pairing, but this cigar carries enough with it that it deserves the palate’s full attention. The second third presented a waltz between leather and wood, with spice fading into the background in envy at their dancing prowess. The last third was largely a continuation of the second third.

A most lovely cigar. I smoked it right down to the point at which it started to burn my fingers, and I was sorry to see it end.

Score 19.1 (x5) = 95.5

EDITED TO ADD: The cigar was a nice slow smoke, too. Lasted for about 1.5 hours.

A decent job? I would say that even had I not smoked an Aurora, your colorful discription would make me want one right now.

Which I might add is exactly how it smoked for me. Great cigar. I believe the La Aurora line was awarded "Cigar of the Year" in Aficionado a few years back. I'm going to try the Brazil this evening. I fully expect a little more body so I think I'll have a small glass of Dow's 10 Tawny Porto.

[King Catfish]

A decent job? I would say that even had I not smoked an Aurora, your colorful discription would make me want one right now.

Which I might add is exactly how it smoked for me. Great cigar. I believe the La Aurora line was awarded "Cigar of the Year" in Aficionado a few years back. I'm going to try the Brazil this evening. I fully expect a little more body so I think I'll have a small glass of Dow's 10 Tawny Porto.

Nice. I would love to read a review of it, if you're willing.

About the Diablos, they are discontinued, yes? I would like to get some (waiting for the funds)... I'll need to move on them soon, correct?

[DeeDubya]

KC,
I don't think so. Famous still has their 2-fer deal going plus free freight. I just got 2 boxes yesterday and sent one to my son. Find an bud and split an order.

[DeeDubya]

This evening I smoked the Aurora Brazil. Toasting produced a pleasurable hint of salty "Old World" flavour with a subtle note of roasting nuts.
The dark sun grown Sumatra wrapper was not as smooth or oily as one might expect, and had a couple pronounced veins but certainly were not unfavorable. Old World cigar with an Old World appearance. Why not?
I immediately tasted the saltiness on the wrapper that I noticed when toasting. Not too much, maybe just right (matter of opinion). Maybe the person rolling this cigar was eating Doritos and licked the wrapper to stick it down. I'll never know.
The draw was close to perfect. The burn not so great. It burned uneven most way through and the ash was far less than perfect, flaking and black in places.
However, the taste never let me down. Start to finish, it had a somewhat spicy, peppery, a little woody, and most delicious flavour. One could be hungry and enjoy this cigar.
And, it was a finger burner. I smoked that little puppy till I could no longer hold it.
Finally, I would give this Aurora Brazil a 9 on a scale of 1-10.
I look forward to the Camaroon, Corojo and Connecticut.
At around 6 bucks a very good value.

[King Catfish]

Nice review, DW.

Not exactly a review, but I had a Fonseca 5 x 50 with my morning coffee today and I was very pleased. Construction was aces, draw nice, burned so slow I could not finish it in my 45-minute drive. Nice mellow taste and big smoke.

[King Catfish]

Today I decided to review the Gurkha Louis XIII, sent from the generous DeeDubya. This was the first “flavored” cigar I have tried.

I presume this is a cigar more suited to the evening and accompanied by a glass of Cognac, but one only lives once; I had it after a pasta lunch with a glass of Coke. The cigar sports a Connecticut wrapper over Dominican binder and filler tobacco.

It is a Churchill-sized cigar that comes in a glass tube sealed with a plastic cork covered with a bronze-colored wax. Immediately upon pulling the little tape strip that cut the wax, I was greeted with a sweet, candy-like smell which of course must be from the cognac. I pulled the cork and smelled the cigar, which did not smell as strongly as that first whiff implied it would. It did smell lovely and brandy-sweet, and this aroma, although not strong or cloying, seemed to fill the room a bit. The cigar wore a red band identical to that of the Master Select Series.



The Connecticut wrapper was a medium to light brown and fine with very minimal veins. Construction was good, firm with no lumps or irregularities. The cigar felt solid in the hand but not heavy. There was a small crack in the wrapper near the cap and a couple of tiny cracks at the foot, as if the cigar had suffered a bit in transit. The latter disappeared (burned away) after the first few puffs, and the crack near the cap never presented any problems or grew in any way until I took the band off in the last third.

The first third started very mild, with the sweet Cognac taste present but more subdued than was the aroma. There was perhaps a bit of woodiness at the start. Smoke volume started respectably and stayed solid. The aftertaste seemed to me to imitate pretty well the taste one’s mouth would be experiencing a minute or so after a sip of brandy or cognac. Thus far, I was beginning to feel as if this cigar was much too mild for me; however, if it were stronger, it might overpower the cognac taste, so I understood why it would be this mild. The mostly white ash fell off after about an inch and a half, revealing a cone-shaped coal. The burn was even with a very minor bit of tunneling that resolved itself without any assistance. The burn remained perfectly even throughout the rest of the cigar.

In the second third, the woody flavor was starting to assert itself a bit, and a nuttiness was rising; these complimented the cognac taste rather than competed with it. The aftertaste was starting to increase in prominence (Becoming almost creamy? Hard to describe), and the cigar as a whole was showing itself to be very civilized on the tongue and throat.

In the first third I was starting to feel as if the cigar was going to turn out a bit one-dimensional, but the second third gave the lie to that. Interestingly, as the drawn smoke’s flavor was becoming more complex, so was the aftertaste: cognac/sweet brandy only at first, then an unexpected creaminess. In the middle of the second third it really started to come out of its shell.

In the final third the crack in the wrapper expanded after I took off the band, which was unfortunate but inevitable, I think. Also, the cognac sweetness had faded into the distance by the time the last third was well underway. The final third completed the evolution from a candy-sweet, one-dimensional but pleasant stick to its final stop… which tasted exactly like a Master Select that had been locked up with an open bottle of cognac for a long time… which, I think, was the intent of the makers, and thus a smashing success in that respect. I have always expected flavored cigars to be overpowering and obnoxious (just an assumption; I have never had one before), but this cigar is well done, and avoids overpowering the palate.

18.95 (x5) = 94.75, losing half a point for the weak start, a full point for construction issues, and a quarter point for fading of flavor at the end for a final score of 93. This cigar is too expensive for a regular smoke, but I would be willing to procure myself some for special occasions. It certainly was a unique smoking experience. Many thanks to DeeDubya.