Partagas

I had the opportunity to smoke a Partagas Serie D No.1 L.e. 2004 the other night. A lot of the reviews I had read about this cigar said it was pretty average, or that it needed time to come into its own.

Well, the one I smoked was fantastic. It was like smoking a steak dinner. The wrapper was a dark red color, and smelled very earthy and hearty. It produced lots of smoke, and once the initial burn problems straightened themselves out, it burned great. It was a medium-strong cigar, with lots of leathery, earthy mouthfeel. Again, it was a massive smoke, leaving you satisfied afterwards, and not wanting to smoke anything the rest of the night. It is the cigar you want to end with, and you'll need a good hour to finish it.

It had old old time Partagas smell and taste, growing stronger the more I smoked it. I will try and get a few more of these for sure!

Cigars

How often do you try new cigars? Do you always stick to one brand, or do you "cruise" the humidor of the local tobacconist to see what's new? And if you try anew cigar, is it based on a recommendation of a friend, the tobacconist, or a review in a cigar magazine? Does the way the cigar looks or smell entice you to buy? And how much does price play in the decision to purchase? I bet the cigar manufacturer's would love to know all of this.

I like to try new cigars as often as possible. Usually I'll purchase a few sticks, just to make sure I like the cigar. Price pays a factor, of course I like get a deal, but if it's a limited offering then I expect to pay more.

However, most new cigars I try I do not end up ading to my favorites list. When I want a special cigarI always end up going back to the old standbys.

Avo LE5

Another of my favorite cigars is the AVO LE5. I like this cigar so much that I have 2 boxes in my humidor! It measures 52 x 5 3/8. The filler and binder are Dominican, while the wrapper is from Ecuador. Every your Avo makes a special cigar to commemorate his birthday, the LE5 is from his birthday in 2005. The cigars in the first box I bought are all a chocolate brown color, while the cigars in the second box are a bit lighter. All the cigars I have smoked have drawn very well and produced lots of smoke. Its cedary tasting, which produces a strong taste in your mouth. I consider it a medium bodied smoke, but one of my brothers said to him it was more full bodied. It is a very flavorful, pronounced smoke. It's best smoked after a big lunch or after dinner. The burn on every one of these cigars has been superb! I'm contemplating buying another box before they are all sold out.

Perdomo ESV 1991

I smoke a Perdomo ESV 1991 last night. Again, its hard to review a cigar having only smoked one example, but it is all I had. I smoked a Prestigo, a 6 1/2 x 54 pyramid. It had a light colored, aged Connecticut shade wrapper. It was a bit lumpy, but not a bad looking cigar. The wrapper tasted very spicy. I also noticed one or two green spots on the wrapper, like what you sometimes see on cuban wrapper leaf. The taste started out rather bland, almost cardboard like. However, after smoking the first third, it changed to a woody, slightly sweet taste. The cigar also increased in strength. The burn was a bit erratic, and towards the end it started to burn hot, which suprised me because this sized cigar usually doesn't burn so hot during the last few inches of the smoke. It produced a fair amount of rich, aromatic smoke. The aroma matches the taste--woody and sweet. I will have to try a few more examples before I would buy a box of these. Overall a great smelling cigar, but its main detraction was the burn problems.