Hoyo De Monterey Epicure No. 2

 

This was my first over 42 ring gauge cigar, 50 to be precise, and the size and weight and all round feel in the hand felt the most comfortable. The first impressions when cut and toasted is just quality, the aroma is a bit more earthy than other cigars I've reviewed almost like fresh sawdust, but the flavours are amazing. I think this one is going to be hard to beat.

Cigar summary

Origin: Cuba

Ring gauge: 50

Length: 4 7/8

Manufactured: Hand made

Maturity: 1 month

Construction: Not great, veiny, a few tears in the wrapper

Draw: Loose

Strength: Light at first and developing to medium

Flavour: Coffee with mild pepper and spice and creaminess all through

Burn: Not great, 5 or 6 patch ups

Guy's rating (70-100): 93

General comments:

Off the bat as I've mentioned you pick up immediately that this is a quality cigar. Flavours are sweet and creamy with very mild pepper and spice and hints of coffee and cocoa. First third was a sweet espresso with creaminess. This developed into almost a honey coated nut flavour with some dried fruit, still on the light to medium side of body. At this point the cigar was really really smooth and probably one of the best I've smoked. At this stage it was starting to develop a rich creaminess and was maintaining a really good smoke volume. The last third introduced possibly a hint of pepper and spice but just a the right time - this cigar seems to hit all the right notes - I was very impressed at this point. Construction was not great but completely made up for with all the flavour. Creaminess was still there with pepper and espresso coming through strong at the end. All in all this is an excellent well balanced cigar and my recommendation is BUY!!

Montecristo No.5

I was initially banking on the MonteC No. 5 coming out tops on my review of short cigars - of course bringing the factor of price into the equation and not just all round quality. But unfortunately it was beat...Yes, by the Cohiba Siglo I. But the exercise wasn't a complete wash out as I've discovered that it's not a case of having a regular smoke available in your humidor because moods and requirements change depending on the situation, in fact maybe it's about having a variety available in your humidor to fulfill your cigar craving needs when they arise. So, below is the review of the MonteC No. 5:

Cigar summary

Origin: Cuba

Ring gauge: 40

Length: 4

Manufactured: Hand made

Maturity: 2 week

Construction: Excellent

Draw: Easy

Strength: Medium at first and developing to full

Flavour: Coffee with mild pepper and spice

Burn: Fair

Guy's rating (70-100): 89

General comments:

Once again the dry draw of this cigar was the best part with hints of a fresh fruity citrus.

Off the bat there was a mild spice and coffee but no sweetness or creaminess that I've come to associate with montec's. This flavour seemed to maintain through the smoke and although not a bad flavour just didn't develop any further - maybe this is what they aim to do with short sticks, I don't know? A real positive with this cigar is the smoke volume which is great and I really enjoy together with the fairly easy draw for such a small stick. I'll be getting some of these for the humidor at some point but will be buying some Siglo I's first.

Next review is the HDM Epicure 2 - moving on to the big boys:) Watch this space!

 

Cohiba Siglo I

Wow, the big day arrived and I smoked my first Cohiba...rolling drums, in the form of the Cohiba Siglo I. Following on from my previous post, I'm trying different short cigars hoping to find one to add to my humidor as a regular smoke. I suppose the only down side to the Cohiba's are their price, for the price of a Siglo I you can get a MonteC No. 4 and an extra 1". Oh well, on to the review:

Cigar summary

Origin: Cuba

Ring gauge: 40

Length: 4

Manufactured: Hand made

Maturity: 1 week

Construction: Very good

Draw: Slightly firm

Strength: Medium at first and developing to full

Taste: Sweet and nutty developing into pepper and spice

Burn: Not the greatest but only needed two patch ups

Guy's rating (70-100): 91

General comments:

 

The dry draw on this is just brilliant, it has this sweetness that I just can't place. After toasting it off the bat you have sweet nut flavours, almost like a creamy peanut butter with hints of vanilla.

 

The first third developed richer woody earthiness that was exceptionally smooth and fresh. The sweet nuttiness remained but more as an undertone. In the second third a fresh grassyness started to come through with a raw nut flavour becoming more prominent. An oiliness also started to come through which you can feel on you lips, almost like a nut oil. In the last third the pepper and spice that I've come to know with Cuban cigars started to dominate, but not harsh.  It had an oily finish at this point which seemed to make the strong pepper and spice more palatable. Strangely I also seemed to be picking up a hint of berry in the finish and the aroma - weird as it may be!

 

Overall this smoke was great, the aroma is like no other, it's like a burnt fruity toffee - just brilliant. Although the Siglo I is slightly expensive for such a small cigar I will definately be keeping a couple of these in the humidor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Partagas Short

I've discovered since my recent introduction to enjoying fine cigars is that they can take up considerable time to smoke and can get rather expensive. So, in an effort to save on both I've decided to review a few short cigars and hopefully find one that i can make my regular smoke. One that is still superb quality but only takes half an hour or so to smoke and that does not break the bank to buy. The three that I've gone with for now are the Partagas Short, Cohiba Siglo I and MonteC No. 5. The first to be reviewed is the Partagas Short.

This week the venue for the review was more exotic than just my cramped study and I headed off to the beach with my wife, my dog and my Partages Short - my wife is an aspiring photographer and wanted some sunset shots at the beach, so photos are compliments of her.

Here are the results of the Partagas review:

Cigar summary

Origin: Cuba

Ring gauge: 42

Length: 4 3/8

Manufactured: Hand made

Maturity: 1 week

Construction: Excellent

Draw: Poor

Strength: Medium at first and developing to full later on

Taste: Strong pepper with some spice

Burn: Became better after about half way but needed some patching up before then

Guy's rating (70-100): 87

General comments:

 

The draw let this one down, I had cramp in my ckeeks at one point due to having to pull so hard. The flavours in the dry draw were just fantastic and made me really excited to light this one up, nice pleasant hints of aniseed.

 

Off the bat the flavours were mild peppery, earthy and woody and these dominated through the entire smoke. The 2nd third flavours possibly developed a bit with the pepper becoming a little more spicy and perhaps a slight introduction to some sweetness. The draw was still tight but I was enjoying the smoke (but maybe more for the scenic view) and the tight draw was making the smoke last longer :)

 

Overall the smoke volume was small, the flavours were okay but one dimensional and the the draw tight. However the flavours weren't bad, the price is right and other reviews on the web rate this quite highly so I haven't completely ruled this one out and will maybe give it another go at some point.