njstone
BoM January 2010
This is about a 6x52 Piramide. As the name suggests, this was an EL in 2000/2001. I received this in a trade and have been waiting for a good time to enjoy it! I'm new to the world of elite cigars, and this is my first H.S.A. EL too.
Appearance:
The wrapper is a nice rosado color and feels a bit like soft leather, and fairly oily even after 10 years. There are several huge ugly veins, but I've come to expect that these kind of cigars.
Pre-light:
This wrapper smells fantastic! The cut produces a slightly tight but very smokable draw (thank God!). There is some sweet earth and coffee on the draw, and a bit of tingle on my lips. The wrapper smell alone is getting me pumped!
First Third:
After two puffs, this was already the best Partagas I've ever had! (The previous champ was a Short with 6-years on it.) I'm getting noticeable wood and pepper flavors with a core of nice aged tobacco, but also TONS of cream--seems more like a Boli than a Party in that sense (though I'm still a noob), which is not at all a bad thing
There is some earth and some coffee now too. Just a tiny bit of sweetness with some spice through the nose (some cinnamon, and maybe a bit of clove?). This cigar is very smooth--I can nose the whole thing I'll bet. This cigar is burning faster than I expected, which is only bad because it's so great! I'm really impressed with the construction of this cigar, especially given it's age and the terrible luck I've had with cigars from this area.
This old stick still has plenty of life in it--tons of full flavors in a medium body (tough to guess on the strength at this point, but probably medium). The smoke is very thick and creamy. The aroma coming off this this is amazing too, and I usually try to avoid the ambient smoke. Over the last year I've learned to lower my expectations coming into a new cigar, especially one that's "supposed' to be great. But this cigar is something special. I really am impressed.
Second Third:
The flavors are getting richer now, with more earth and coffee coming in. A bit more sweetness now too, with hints of leather here and there. It's not an incredibly complex cigar, but there is plenty to keep you interested for sure. And the overall flavor is just fantastic. I'm trying to find info on this baby and not coming up with much, other than it's apparently the #3 rated cigar on cigar-review.org, which is obviously cool. Apparently there is some controversy over the fact that there were a lot of fakes put out of this cigar (made by a specific shop it seems), and that ironically the fakes were better in some people's minds than the real thing! Fascinating. [Edit: I emailed the guy I got this from, and he said he bought several boxes and as far as he knows they were legit.] No idea if this is "real" or not, but I don't care because it's great, lol.
Either the rate of combustion is slowing down, or I'm unintentionally slowing down due to the fact that it's getting stronger and it's only mid-afternoon. I've had to touch it up a couple times, but no big deal. This sucker puts out a metric truck-load of smoke, which I love in a cigar. The earthiness is pretty rich for this kind of cigar to me (again, noob), more like a Nica cigar, only hints of that "grassiness" that's so common. The coffee is a more defined espresso now. I've only smoked a hand-full of cigars this old, but they've all had this incredibly awesome quality to them that I find hard to describe ... like a velvety richness. Just that extra "something" that puts it over the top. MMMM-goood!
The 2nd third is finishing off strong, with more leather and ever-increasing strength.
Final Third:
The burn is definitely slowing down now, which is great. The leather is starting to take the forefront, but the creaminess has never gone away. I'm gonna need to eat something when I get in though, lol. Full-strength at this point. Fortunately I have a Mt. Dew here to keep this from becoming problematic. By the way, have I mentioned that I love Japan? Maybe that's just the cigar talking
In terms of flavor and body I could smoke this cigar all day long (if only!). The smoke has gone from being blue to being yellow and blue ... interesting. The cigar is getting pretty squishy now too. The sky's looking like rain but I'm gonna nub this thing even if it hails. Just had to relight, though, not sure what that was about. Still tastes great!
Parting Thoughts:
I wonder if this is how cigars used to smoke, you know back in the "good old days" that you older guys talk about. I'm having a tough time imagining something in this profile being better, frankly. I've been gravitating to full-bodied cigars, but this is an outstanding medium-bodied stick. My only nit-picking complaint is that the ash is flakey and seems to want to drop at the 1-inch mark or before. I also had to do a relight and a few touch-ups. Not enough to ruin my enjoyment, though.
This was one of the best cigars I've ever had period, and tied with the #1 best Habano (assuming this isn't fake, lol) I've ever had (a '98 Boli PC).
You DEFINITELY have to grab one of this babies if you ever have the chance! Amazing.
Rating: 98
[Photos courtesy of my new iPod Touch]
Appearance:
The wrapper is a nice rosado color and feels a bit like soft leather, and fairly oily even after 10 years. There are several huge ugly veins, but I've come to expect that these kind of cigars.
Pre-light:
This wrapper smells fantastic! The cut produces a slightly tight but very smokable draw (thank God!). There is some sweet earth and coffee on the draw, and a bit of tingle on my lips. The wrapper smell alone is getting me pumped!
First Third:
After two puffs, this was already the best Partagas I've ever had! (The previous champ was a Short with 6-years on it.) I'm getting noticeable wood and pepper flavors with a core of nice aged tobacco, but also TONS of cream--seems more like a Boli than a Party in that sense (though I'm still a noob), which is not at all a bad thing
There is some earth and some coffee now too. Just a tiny bit of sweetness with some spice through the nose (some cinnamon, and maybe a bit of clove?). This cigar is very smooth--I can nose the whole thing I'll bet. This cigar is burning faster than I expected, which is only bad because it's so great! I'm really impressed with the construction of this cigar, especially given it's age and the terrible luck I've had with cigars from this area.This old stick still has plenty of life in it--tons of full flavors in a medium body (tough to guess on the strength at this point, but probably medium). The smoke is very thick and creamy. The aroma coming off this this is amazing too, and I usually try to avoid the ambient smoke. Over the last year I've learned to lower my expectations coming into a new cigar, especially one that's "supposed' to be great. But this cigar is something special. I really am impressed.
Second Third:
The flavors are getting richer now, with more earth and coffee coming in. A bit more sweetness now too, with hints of leather here and there. It's not an incredibly complex cigar, but there is plenty to keep you interested for sure. And the overall flavor is just fantastic. I'm trying to find info on this baby and not coming up with much, other than it's apparently the #3 rated cigar on cigar-review.org, which is obviously cool. Apparently there is some controversy over the fact that there were a lot of fakes put out of this cigar (made by a specific shop it seems), and that ironically the fakes were better in some people's minds than the real thing! Fascinating. [Edit: I emailed the guy I got this from, and he said he bought several boxes and as far as he knows they were legit.] No idea if this is "real" or not, but I don't care because it's great, lol.
Either the rate of combustion is slowing down, or I'm unintentionally slowing down due to the fact that it's getting stronger and it's only mid-afternoon. I've had to touch it up a couple times, but no big deal. This sucker puts out a metric truck-load of smoke, which I love in a cigar. The earthiness is pretty rich for this kind of cigar to me (again, noob), more like a Nica cigar, only hints of that "grassiness" that's so common. The coffee is a more defined espresso now. I've only smoked a hand-full of cigars this old, but they've all had this incredibly awesome quality to them that I find hard to describe ... like a velvety richness. Just that extra "something" that puts it over the top. MMMM-goood!
The 2nd third is finishing off strong, with more leather and ever-increasing strength.
Final Third:
The burn is definitely slowing down now, which is great. The leather is starting to take the forefront, but the creaminess has never gone away. I'm gonna need to eat something when I get in though, lol. Full-strength at this point. Fortunately I have a Mt. Dew here to keep this from becoming problematic. By the way, have I mentioned that I love Japan? Maybe that's just the cigar talking
In terms of flavor and body I could smoke this cigar all day long (if only!). The smoke has gone from being blue to being yellow and blue ... interesting. The cigar is getting pretty squishy now too. The sky's looking like rain but I'm gonna nub this thing even if it hails. Just had to relight, though, not sure what that was about. Still tastes great!
Parting Thoughts:
I wonder if this is how cigars used to smoke, you know back in the "good old days" that you older guys talk about. I'm having a tough time imagining something in this profile being better, frankly. I've been gravitating to full-bodied cigars, but this is an outstanding medium-bodied stick. My only nit-picking complaint is that the ash is flakey and seems to want to drop at the 1-inch mark or before. I also had to do a relight and a few touch-ups. Not enough to ruin my enjoyment, though.
This was one of the best cigars I've ever had period, and tied with the #1 best Habano (assuming this isn't fake, lol) I've ever had (a '98 Boli PC).
You DEFINITELY have to grab one of this babies if you ever have the chance! Amazing.
Rating: 98
[Photos courtesy of my new iPod Touch]
