I am back in the pocket with a review of something new to the market. This cigar has some back story about being some famous maker's personal blend and blah, blah, blah, blah... I never put any stock or faith into these garbage stories about a cigar's lineage for two reasons. One, I'm not that dumb, these companies have marketing people and if you think I am gifted in the arts of metaphorical embellishment you should meet some of those folks. Two, I could give a crap about a cigar's particular bona fides, I want to smoke it and see for myself what it is all about I don't really care where it came from. These companies can fill a brochure with rhetoric about cigar greatness and you know what? Most of these verbally oversold cigars send me running for the vomit bag. Enough said about the current marketing of cigars.
This cigar was given to me in sample form in an individual cardboard coffin, the cigar wrapped en cello. After I fight it out of the packaging, it was a bit tight in the cardboard coffin, I am ready to get started. The cigar itself is bold looking. The wrapper is hearty and dark, it has some prominent veins, but after closely inspecting them I believe they are just on the surface and shouldn't cause too many problems. The construction seems too tight to me and I am hoping it does not cause any issues with the performance. The pre light aroma is odd, it seems almost wet to me, like wet earth with some spice. The pre light draw is tight but shows some earthy flavors.
The cigar opens with a profile that is all earth; dark, loamy and wet earth. This is not a flavor that you want in a cigar at anytime in my experience and I am not pleased with this opening salvo. The flavor that is present seems heavy to me and it coats the palate in a smoke remnant that seems almost humid or swampy. At the back of the palate there are some mineral flavors that are showing up and maybe a touch of anise. No matter how I cut this opening it is just not good. The draw is tight and I am getting smoke, but it is not the usual level that I expect or have become accustomed to. The burn is solid to this point, which is the only quality worth anything at this point.
The first half of the cigar continues to wallow in the deep end of the pool of disgust. The core profile is still heavy and wet smacking of loamy earth. There might be some woody notes trying to creep in here, but they are smacked down repeatedly with the blanket of wet earth that holds down the whole experience. The back of the palate is still showing a metallic mineral flavor and there are still some anise and other spice notes here, but they can't stand up and really do anything for this cigar. The draw is still too tight, but I am getting more than I was earlier. The burn is still the highlight of the smoke at this point.
The final half of the cigar is actually not awful, but it is still bad. The core profile has become more woody, but there are still some hints of the wet earth that are coming through here. I catch maybe just a bit of coffee here and there, but I wanted so much more. The back of the palate still shows mineral flavors, but there are more spice notes coming through now and the anise flavor is definitely on the verge of being a star but never gets home. The draw stays too tight for me throughout. The burn performs well to the end.
The finish was short and harsh with scorched earthy flavors.
Appearance- 88 a nice looking cigar, the positives ended there
Taste- 77 just too many inferior flavors here
Construction- 81 the tight draw throughout the cigar hurt this score
Strength- 80 not sure if this is medium or full, but there is nothing complementary to the profile in the strength
Overall- 80.75 a very inferior cigar in my summation
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