El Mejor Gran Reserva Emerald - informal review

[King Catfish]

I picked up a bundle of these on a deal.



The El Mejor Gran Reserva Emerald sports a shaggy foot and a deep brown Honduran Corojo wrapper, garbed in an emerald-colored (what else?) wrapper and a cedar sleeve. Inside are Nicaraguan binder and ligero long-filler. They are reputed to be box-aged for 6 months. Construction is aces; also, I found the pigtail-style cap to be especially good. I found the pre-light and toasting aromas to be subtle but rich and perhaps a bit dark.

The shaggy foot was a bit messy to light, but caused no real trouble. Smoke volume was admirable; the first one out of the bundle was too wet and the draw was tough, but the next two of the three I smoked had settled down and the draw was quite nice. The taste was a bit weak at first (a common complaint for me), but ramped up nicely after the first third. The ash was acceptably light gray and moderately firm, nothing to write home about. The taste is earthy and a tiny bit leathery. Not overly complex, this cigar's taste profile is quiet at first developing a nice roundness after the first third, and finishing stronger than it started.

Having had three of these in recent days, I say if you can get these on a deal (around 2 bucks per stick) snatch them up. They might not be quite worth the full price of 5 bucks each, however.

Score: A solid 82 out of 100.

[ashauler]

Nice review. I've seen these around and been curious. Are you thinking of giving the espresso line of these a shot as well?

[derivation]

Anything interesting about the shaggy foot other than being messy to light and the novelty of it?

[King Catfish]

Nice review. I've seen these around and been curious. Are you thinking of giving the espresso line of these a shot as well?

Thanks. Yes, I plan to try them whenever they come up on sale.

Anything interesting about the shaggy foot other than being messy to light and the novelty of it?

Well, the flavor profile changes when the burn hits the wrapper. Other than that, not really. Looks kind of cool, sort of old-school.

[slcraiders]

I have smoked a few of these as well. Great yard/garage cigar when you get em' at the low price point.

[PackinHeat]

I had one of these last night while I was throwing stick for my dogs. It wasn't bad but it had an after taste that I didn't care for. The smoke itself was nice. Good draw and burn.

I got four of these in a "medium body" sampler I ordered a few months ago, and this is the first one I had from my humidor since I received them. I try not to be too critical until I've tried a cigar a couple of times, especially when the first round has only been in my humidor for a short time. This one definitely didn't turn me off enough to give my remaining stock away to visting friends.