My name is Matt and I am a Pepin whore. I have been smoking Pepin cigars since sometime in 2006 and while I don't think I have a problem I've been told that I might have some issues so I am here to take the first step. The first step is admitting you have a problem right? This is the beginning to the fictitious Pepin Anonymous meeting that I am thinking of developing, I'm sure I would not be the only one there. See, Pepin and My Father just roll out winner after winner, or at least they used to before La Reloba rolled along and temporarily derailed my devotion. Good things come to those who wait and here comes another Pepin offering, and I could not wait to get my hands on one and give it the old stink eye. There is one caveat, many have told me that the My Father people have said this was not made to be their best smoke, it was made to be more of a price point offering. I hate when I find stuff like this out, it taints my perceptions. Alas, I clear the cigar white noise from my head and I sit down to get to business.
The cigar looks a mess. I am used to pristine construction and exacting standards from this maker, and I am not getting that visual impression here. The cap is a sloppy excuse for cigar craftsmanship. It is shoddily applied and looks like as it gets moist it will unfurl like a New Year's Eve noise maker. The wrapper is dry to the touch and it has prominent veins and a strange reddish hue that I have not seen before in a cigar, it's not a colorado hue, or even a rare corojo hue, it was just reddish, almost like it had been on a Mars rover during a windstorm. The bunch seems way too loose to me, but I won't know for sure until I start smoking it. I will give props to some intricate band work, but that does not account for much. The pre light aroma is heavily floral, this is very weird from a Pepin product, and it is intensely sweet smelling as well. The pre light draw is very, very loose and has some light wood notes.
The cigar opens with a profile that is not anything like a Pepin product that I have ever experienced. The core profile is sweet, intensely so, with a perfume like remnant that clings to the palate like an aerosol spray sticks in your nostrils after it has been expelled. Aside from this Glade like presentation there are some odd cedar flavors as well, they are overwrought and sharp and really make the beginning moments horrible. The back of the palate is being fouled by the sweet forward presentations and I can't really divine anything noteworthy in this area. The draw is way too loose for me, but so far is going well in that there is no heat coming into the smoke. The burn is solid and the ash is forming nicely.
The first half of the cigar really stays way too sweet for me. The odd floral sweetness is now accompanied by some sort of hard candy sweetness and intensely sugary vanilla flavors as well. This development keeps the cigar languishing in my mind and I am really not enjoying this experience at all. The back of the palate is showing some nice notes of light wood and tobacco, but the lingering sweetness is continuing on and causing me issues in all facets of the experience. The draw is still too loose and perhaps more troubling is that I am feeling some heat coming into the draw at this point. The burn is still solid to this point.
The final half of the cigar really does nothing to redeem itself in my estimation. The core profile tempers down the sweetness and some heavy cedar flavors start to come into the fold, but the flavor is bitter and sharp and leaves a funky taste on the palate as it lingers maliciously. The back of the palate continues to reveal some light wood and tobacco flavors, but it is not enough to save the smoke, or even elevate it slightly. The draw stays loose throughout and heat becomes a factor in the final moments. The burn was solid all the way to the end.
The finish was short and full of sharp cedar notes.
As long as Pepin keeps churning out Blues, Blacks and Tats I will be ok, but they can keep their new offerings as far as I'm concerned.
Appearance- 82 sloppy cap and poor looking wrapper leads to a poor looking smoke
Taste- 80 it's just not here, there is not a single redeeming quality in the profile
Construction- 81 bad draw led to heat
Strength- 83 a medium smoke but it does nothing to complement the experience
Overall- 81.25 avoid this one please...
No comments:
Post a Comment