St.Luis Rey Serie G Maduro Rothchilde

This comes from a box that has about a year of humidor age on it. This particular blend used to be a regular part of my rotation, but it has slowly found it's way out over the past couple of years. The cigar presents with a very dark and oily wrapper that shows some veins. The cigar is firm and heavy and has some ruddy characteristics that give this smoke a rustic feel. The pre light aroma has hints of tobacco and dark fruit. The pre light draw has some intonations of pepper and tobacco.

The cigar opens with a profile of tobacco and rich earth. The smoke is straightforward, but shows enough depth to be enjoyable in the opening minutes. At the back of the palate there are prominent flavors of dark fruit and wood that throw some unexpected complexity into the mix. The draw is free and easy and booms out thick smoke. The burn is even and produces a firm white ash.

The first half of the smoke continues to surprise me, I have always liked these cigars but I had never detected this type of depth before, perhaps the aging is adding to the experience. The core profile shows notes of tobacco, earth and some white pepper. There is a level of complexity that is unexpected as well. At the back of the palate a straightforward presentation of dark wood has taken over. The draw continues to be easy and enjoyable. The burn shows some lopsidedness, but is not causing me any concern.

The final half of the cigar slows a little bit and becomes a more pedestrian presentation of flavors. The core profile shows overwhelming notes of earth, but not much else. At the back of the palate the flavor continues to be of dark wood, but there are some peppery notes as well. The draw and the burn continue to be acceptable throughout.

The finish is a bit short, but has flavors of tobacco and earth.

Appearance- 87 a bit rustic, but a nice looking smoke
Taste- 88 some late deterioration hurt a nice profile
Construction- 92 no issues other than a slight burn problem
Strength- 89 a nice full bodied smoke
Overall- 89.25 a very solid performer

St. Luis Rey Serie G Robusto Maduro

This is a big, dark, log of a cigar. I typically don't find big ring gauge cigars visually stimulating, but the near black color and ruddy exterior of this one screams that it is a man's cigar. The cigar is bold and has heft that I am not accustomed to. The construction appears to be acceptable, big ring cigars make me nervous as I typically encounter some sort of problem while smoking them. The pre light aroma is of deep earth and rich, fragrant tobaccos. The pre light draw is spicy and full.

The cigar begins and is immediately booming thick, white smoke. The profile is in your face from the get go. There are notes of rich earth, tobacco and dark fruit. There is a slightly bitter note at the back of the palate, but it is nearly cancelled out by the rich flavors in the profile. The burn is sharp and the draw is flawless and produces more than ample smoke.

The profile does not change much throughout the cigar. There continues to be notes of earth and strong tobacco. There is still a flavor of dark fruit in the background of the profile and it adds an acceptable sweetness to the nearly overpowering notes of tobacco that are present. The burn is excellent and is producing a bright white ash that seems to hold forever (I had nearly three inches before I tapped it off).

The finish is much the same as the start, a rush of tobacco and earth. There is still some bitterness, but overall the cigar performed well.

Appearance- 89 an imposing dark cigar, it was a bit ruddy
Taste- 85 the cigar lacked depth, but had bold flavors
Construction- 92 I did not have any problems with this, other than some uneven parts
Strength- 87 a full bodied brute
Overall- 88.25 I would, and do, smoke this frequently