Review These - Reviews

[bigwhiteash]

Cigar #2

This cigar is also a Torpedo shape, about 6 1/8” X 56. Natural wrapper, cap is more rounded than #1. There is a ¾” cut or dent lengthwise near the tip. Nice smooth construction with minimal veins. Firm to the touch, no soft spots.

Prelight aroma of tobacco, and leather. Cut with same cutter as #1, clean and easy. Draw is slightly firmer than #1, but still within my liking.

Lit fairly easily with my bic. This cigar turned spicy right away, and I was a bit concerned that it become overpowering. Ash is a medium gray, fairly tight… held on well.
Second half, the spice actually mellowed a bit and the leather taste came up to match it. Very nice! The last 2” became difficult to smoke as the wrapper issue noted above started to completely unravel. Cigar started to get a bit bitter, so I had to abandon the last 1 ½”.

I did enjoy this cigar, and without the wrapper issue, probably would have nubbed this one as well.

Though I hope this is not the case, I’m going to say cigar #1 is the more expensive.

Dennis

[ashauler]

Another nice review Dennis! I apologize for the damage to #2, I can't believe that I didn't catch it when I inspected the cigar. Give me a few days and I'll send you a replacement so that you can enjoy this smoke to its fullest.

Cigar #1 was a LaVieja Habana by Drew Estates.........$2 at the local
Cigar #2 was a MonteCristo Serie C.........$7 at the local

Good job on both reviews, and thanks for getting them smoked and reviewed so quickly.

Cigar #2

This cigar is also a Torpedo shape, about 6 1/8” X 56. Natural wrapper, cap is more rounded than #1. There is a ¾” cut or dent lengthwise near the tip. Nice smooth construction with minimal veins. Firm to the touch, no soft spots.

Prelight aroma of tobacco, and leather. Cut with same cutter as #1, clean and easy. Draw is slightly firmer than #1, but still within my liking.

Lit fairly easily with my bic. This cigar turned spicy right away, and I was a bit concerned that it become overpowering. Ash is a medium gray, fairly tight… held on well.
Second half, the spice actually mellowed a bit and the leather taste came up to match it. Very nice! The last 2” became difficult to smoke as the wrapper issue noted above started to completely unravel. Cigar started to get a bit bitter, so I had to abandon the last 1 ½”.

I did enjoy this cigar, and without the wrapper issue, probably would have nubbed this one as well.

Though I hope this is not the case, I’m going to say cigar #1 is the more expensive.

Dennis

[WOXOF]

I smoked these two cigars at the same time. I even took some pictures to further prove I have no life. It was a beautiful day today, about 70 -75 degrees out. Kind of weird for the middle of December. I sat down with some reading material and the Dogwatch Social Club playing on my Ipod. Due to the time of day I paired these cigars with some Dr. Pepper.

Cigar #1 (around 5" X 42)

Pre-smoke

This cigar had a Nice smooth colorado shade wrapper with some dark marbling in it. It was well constructed with a double or triple cap. The feel was consistent and firm. It was very appealing to the eye.

Smoke

As soon as it was lit I began picking up hints of burnt sugar/caramel notes. It started off medium bodied and stayed that way. Maybe it got a little more full bodied towards the end but it was hard to tell smoking two cigars at the same time. The initial flavors of caramel faded and were replaced by a leather dominance with good tobacco flavors and some sort of sweetness maybe vanilla, maybe the Dr. Pepper I was drinking. The draw was good on this cigar and the burn was even and left a dark gray ash that was a little flaky. Towards the last two inches it began to get a little spicy with the dominant flavor still leather and good tobacco. It got hot before it got bitter. I put it out with about an inch left.



Cigar #2 (around 5 1/2" X 40-42)

Pre-smoke

This cigar had a very toothy dark maduro wrapper. The constuction was noticeably inferior to cigar #1. The feel of the cigar varied from firm to a little spongy around were the band would be.

Smoke

The cigar lit with no problem and the initial flavors were sweet tobacco and some spice. Cigar #2 seemed a little spicier than cigar #1. The dominant flavors remained rich tobacco and spice without much change. I did occasionally notice some hints of leather/cedar but it was hard to tell if those flavors were unique to cigar #2 or were carried over from cigar #1. It was medium bodied to me. The burn on this cigar was good and left a white ash behind. I did have to relight and purge the cigar at the 3 1/2 mark. Other than that it burned and drew very well. It began to get a little bitter around the 2" mark. I sat this one down at about 1 1/2 inches.

Conclusion

Both of the cigars were enjoyable. Cigar #1 reminded me of an ISOM, Illusione, or a Tatuaje.
Cigar #2 reminded me of a lower end Padron maduro. Based on construction and flavor, I would say that cigar #1 was the more expensive cigar.











Both cigars laid to rest in my $6 "garage sale" ashtray.

[bigwhiteash]

Outstanding reviews

Cigar #1: Montecristo Afrique, $6.95 locally

Cigar #2: Padron Londres Maduro, $2.75 locally

Nicely done, even to the point of guessing the brand on #2

[WOXOF]

That Montecristo Afrique was pretty good. I might have to get me a few of those.

Thanks Dennis for the cigars.

[slcraiders]

Notng fancy like WOXOF's review with the time-lapsed photos and all, but I finished #2 tonight and here they are-

Review Stick #1

Toro in size range and box pressed. It had a dark brown, beautiful wrapper with a slight red hue. The construction on this cigar was very good.

The filler tobacco was tightly bunched so the draw was somewhat tight throughout but did open up a bit as I hit the second half. Medium gray ash- not the firmest ash for a box pressed cigar. The burn was extremely even throughout the smoke.

Flavor wise- I would put this at Medium. I had it right after eating a double cheeseburger so it could have been stronger if I smoked it earlier on an empty stomach? Body was Med-Full. The flavor profile stayed fairly consistent throughout with the first few puffs coming off as leathery coupled with and tapering into smoother woody flavors for most of the cigar. I detected a slight pepper taste on the finish.

Good, pleasant cigar all in all.

Review Stick #2

This cigar would be in the Corona to Robusto size category. Slightly fatter than most Coronas, but longer and a little thinner than a typical Robusto. The wrapper is dark natural. It is nowhere near as pretty of a cigar as #1. It appears to have a triple cap- either that or a double with the bottom cap running long? This is a toothy sucker reminding me of a Henry Clay in appearance.

The prelight aroma was just straight up good and earthy. Lighting this up, I was hit with instant full flavored spice. I am loving it! The flavor is much like the spicy yet earthy flavor found in Cubans like the RASS. The ash is med-dark gray. Slight uneven burn correcting itself well at the 1/3 mark. The profile changes to more medium strength from this point to the last 3rd where the stout and spice dominated once again. The draw in this was perfect all the way through.

I nubbed this sucka and would smoke another and another in a heartbeat!

I am going to guess that #2 was the more expensive because I think Chris is trying to fool me with the construction factor. That, and I liked it more!

Although I am stumped, I will stab wildly and guess something like this for actual make-

Cigar #1- Carlos Torano Exodus or Sancho Panza Extra Fuerte?
Cigar #2- Illusione? Cabaiguan? Perdomo ESV? or something Cuban? (farm rolled?)

Do tell………….

[WOXOF]

Great reviews and exactly my opinion of both cigars.

Cigar #1: Angel 100, MSRP is around $2 but I paid less on Cbid.

Cigar #2: Montecristo EL 2003, MSRP around $10 if I recall. Got a couple more resting still.

[ashauler]

Nice Reviews!!
BTW, That's a damn fine looking ashtray that simply exudes class!!