It is no secret amongst my friends and readers that I don't care for this vitola, the beli is just something I have never been able to grasp in terms of appeal. Having said that, my cigar of the year from 2009 was a torpedo, so when they smoke well I am willing to overlook my displeasure about the size.
This particular cigar is made by Altadis and I have always had a hit or miss relationship with their offerings. It appears to be a bit dry in the wrapper, but there is some nice tooth to it. An examination of the smoke yields some mushy spots near the middle and I am concerned about the possibility of a void in that area. The pre light aroma is oddly floral with some strange orange mint essences as well. The pre light draw is fairly non-descript with the exception of some very light wood.
The cigar opens with a profile that is decidedly sweet, not in a nice way either. It is reminiscent of the smell of fresh tar being lain on a hot summer day. There are definitely some acrid notes in the front of the palate and I am put off right away. At the back of the palate there are some bitter hints and a dry, almost talc like, remnant on the palate. The draw is fairly decent here, maybe a touch to loose, but still ok. The burn is lopsided, but I am not retouching just yet.
The first half of the smoke shows little improvement. The main profile is still too sickly sweet, but there are some ideas of wood trying to make their presence known here. At the back of the palate bitter notes have given way to a pedestrian showing of grass and vegetation. With so little character, depth or complexity I am forced to wonder the umteenth time why producers make this stuff. The draw is still acceptable, but I am starting to sense that there might be some heat coming in soon. The burn levels off some, but is still running a bit down a vein.
The final half of the cigar caps off what could only be described as a middling experience at best and absolutely horrid at worst. The main profile becomes full blown salvos of bitter wood notes and burning sugar flavors. At the back of the palate a sublime mix of wretched flavors mix to end this experience about and inch before I normally would, I can only take some much rotting vegetation and burning grass. The draw remained average and the burn slightly below average until I chucked this burning heap.
The finish was god awful and sent me scrambling for the mouthwash and tongue scraper, flavors of rotting vegetation, bitter wood, tar and grass need to be gotten rid of toot sweet in my mind.
Appearance- 83 a somewhat dry and homely looking smoke
Taste- 77 a very poor showing
Construction- 83 slightly below average due to burn issues
Strength- 85 medium I guess, but difficult to discern
Overall- 81.25 don't waste your time, money or palate equity
No comments:
Post a Comment