Buzz's Review Part 1


Quote Originally Posted by buzz
I smoked the Robusto (2008) last night but unfortunately time did not allow for the sparking up of the Toro (2011) yet. I will get that fired up tonight. Here are my thoughts on the Robusto:

Smoked in the backyard, listening to talk radio discussions about the death of Osama. The wifey made some delicious pizza for us to eat and I had a couple fat fingers of delicious Caol Ila 12 year scotch. Beautiful weather outside. Smoking time was about 1.25 hours but could have been done in 1. I nubbed it.

Appearance is great, a nice looking cigar and cool band. Nice construction, dense, firm with no soft spots. Cut easily and had no wrapper issues for the duration. Burn was a tad erratic at the beginning but fixed itself within the first inch and stayed even till the end. Draw was perfect - got tons and tons of smoke. Ash was gray with black stem lines, somewhat flaky but held for a little over an inch. Aroma was great, wifey approved. I'd put the strength of the cigar in the medium range.

Prelight taste had some nice spice and cedar wood. First third was dominated by black pepper spice, which was fantastic. Earthy wood and leather were there too, and some saltiness. Went really well with the scotch. Wifey took a couple puffs and said "spicy" - but what the heck does she know? Second third went muted, less spice and more leather, very pleasant tastes and tons of smoke. Final third had less spice and got a tad harsh, but I nubbed it without force.

I am looking forward to burning the toro tonight. I'll have the same scotch on hand again. I'd definitely smoke this cigar again, but in my opinion the price is a tad high for a box purchase (it looks like CI has them for about $11/stick). I'd recommend this cigar to someone looking for a semi-strong nighttime cigar that pairs nicely with a delicious peaty scotch.

1st third = A-
2nd third = B
3rd third = B-
Overall = B

Thanks Michael for the fantastic cigar!

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