havanaphile
Banned
Monsdale Dalia (6 ¾ x 43) 2004
A little story behind this cigar. The Monsdales are the cigars that Enrique Mons, the former president of the Cuban state-run monopoly Cubatabaco. He currently runs the La Casa del Habano at the Hotel Nacíonal in Havana, and he has these cigars made for his personal use. His favorite cigar is the Montecristo No. 1, but these cigars are like the Montecristos of old, tremendous, full bodied cigars. They are available at Hotel Nacíonal for 7 Pesos Convertibales, however, unfortunately they are exclusively available there. Mons has the tobacco aged for an additional three years, and these cigars are examples par excellence of the benefits that are to be gained by additional ageing of tobacco before it is rolled.
Visual:
This cigar had a beautiful silky Rosado wrapper. No significant veins were present on the wrapper, which had a very fine tooth to it, similar in texture to Cameroonian wrappers, albeit much darker. It was exquisitely applied without any stretch marks present. It had a very sharp, very defined triple cap on it, and was a beauty to look at. It was the epitomie of what a cigar should look like. Simply it was visual perfection.
15/15
Construction:
This cigar was built like a brick. It was hard as a rock, and yet, had a perfect, firm draw, like many of the cigars made back in 1998, long before the dry spell of the plugged cigars of the 1999 and early 2000 vintages. Surprisingly, it was rolled using the booking method, with the wavy layers of tobacco zig-zaging back and forth in the filler. The cigar had sizeable amounts of ligero present, where it should be, out towards the outer part of the filler, with the volado and the light seco bunched in the middle of the filler. The ash held on to the cigar in 2 1/2 and 3 increments, respectively. Possibly due to the wind, and possibly due to the construction, the cigar did not burn perfectly evenly. Some touching up was needed, but it never went out. The cigars smoke did not get hot, even when just less than half an inch of the cigar was left, after over 100 minutes of smoking.
18/20
Flavor:
To describe this cigar is somewhat difficult. Monsdales produce an incredible amount of smoke. The amount of smoke that they produce is equivalent to a piramide or a canoñazo. I lit the cigar with a cedar spill and was immediately met by a tsunami of cedary, grassy and nutty flavors, complimented by a delicate velvet-like soft creamy texture. This cigar was an extremely full bodied cigar, with an extremely substantial component of strength. To describe the blend, it is somewhat of a half and half composite of the Cohiba Linea Classica blend (specifically the Lanceros), and the Montecristo No. 2 blend, both with their respective flavors far more concentrated than their regular production counterparts. The grassy, bean like Cohiba flavors were omnipresent in the cigar, and became far more present as the cigar progressed, as the initial Montecristo-like nutty flavor subsided, leaving the peppery component and the sweet salty hint of cashews and light whiffs of vanilla. After the cigar had progressed into its last third, the cedary flavor of the cigar subsided, leaving a definitive floral flavor. It was literally like three different cigars, much like the Trinidad Funadores, but far more powerful and far more full bodied than the Funadores. The extremely complex full bodied flavors in the cigar were amazing, both in their depth and nuances. The fact that this cigar was less than a year old is even more stunning. The cigar was definitely made with first-class aged tobacco, simply the best. Not a hint of ammonia and youth were present. The flavors were very congruous to each other, and did not subtract from each other. My only complaint that I had was that it was a mere dalia and not a double corona. As I sat there holding the ½ stub I could only imagine: How would this cigar taste if it was a double corona? The cigar had a very pleasant cedary/floral finish retaining its creamy texture.
65/65
Overall:
Overall, this is as close to perfection that one can get in a cigar. I like the Montecristos, as well as the Cohibas. This Monsdale perfectly combines and unites the two. It is an amazing substantial cigar with tremendous flavors. This is a definite MUST for those who like full bodied cigars, and an essential cigar for those who admire and enjoy the Cohiba line. This cigar is notably better than the Cohiba Seleccion Reserva line. For those who are left nonplussed by Montecristo line, they must at least try this cigar, because this is how a Montecristo SHOULD taste. If only they made these as regular production cigars. Such a shame.
97/100
A little story behind this cigar. The Monsdales are the cigars that Enrique Mons, the former president of the Cuban state-run monopoly Cubatabaco. He currently runs the La Casa del Habano at the Hotel Nacíonal in Havana, and he has these cigars made for his personal use. His favorite cigar is the Montecristo No. 1, but these cigars are like the Montecristos of old, tremendous, full bodied cigars. They are available at Hotel Nacíonal for 7 Pesos Convertibales, however, unfortunately they are exclusively available there. Mons has the tobacco aged for an additional three years, and these cigars are examples par excellence of the benefits that are to be gained by additional ageing of tobacco before it is rolled.
Visual:
This cigar had a beautiful silky Rosado wrapper. No significant veins were present on the wrapper, which had a very fine tooth to it, similar in texture to Cameroonian wrappers, albeit much darker. It was exquisitely applied without any stretch marks present. It had a very sharp, very defined triple cap on it, and was a beauty to look at. It was the epitomie of what a cigar should look like. Simply it was visual perfection.
15/15
Construction:
This cigar was built like a brick. It was hard as a rock, and yet, had a perfect, firm draw, like many of the cigars made back in 1998, long before the dry spell of the plugged cigars of the 1999 and early 2000 vintages. Surprisingly, it was rolled using the booking method, with the wavy layers of tobacco zig-zaging back and forth in the filler. The cigar had sizeable amounts of ligero present, where it should be, out towards the outer part of the filler, with the volado and the light seco bunched in the middle of the filler. The ash held on to the cigar in 2 1/2 and 3 increments, respectively. Possibly due to the wind, and possibly due to the construction, the cigar did not burn perfectly evenly. Some touching up was needed, but it never went out. The cigars smoke did not get hot, even when just less than half an inch of the cigar was left, after over 100 minutes of smoking.
18/20
Flavor:
To describe this cigar is somewhat difficult. Monsdales produce an incredible amount of smoke. The amount of smoke that they produce is equivalent to a piramide or a canoñazo. I lit the cigar with a cedar spill and was immediately met by a tsunami of cedary, grassy and nutty flavors, complimented by a delicate velvet-like soft creamy texture. This cigar was an extremely full bodied cigar, with an extremely substantial component of strength. To describe the blend, it is somewhat of a half and half composite of the Cohiba Linea Classica blend (specifically the Lanceros), and the Montecristo No. 2 blend, both with their respective flavors far more concentrated than their regular production counterparts. The grassy, bean like Cohiba flavors were omnipresent in the cigar, and became far more present as the cigar progressed, as the initial Montecristo-like nutty flavor subsided, leaving the peppery component and the sweet salty hint of cashews and light whiffs of vanilla. After the cigar had progressed into its last third, the cedary flavor of the cigar subsided, leaving a definitive floral flavor. It was literally like three different cigars, much like the Trinidad Funadores, but far more powerful and far more full bodied than the Funadores. The extremely complex full bodied flavors in the cigar were amazing, both in their depth and nuances. The fact that this cigar was less than a year old is even more stunning. The cigar was definitely made with first-class aged tobacco, simply the best. Not a hint of ammonia and youth were present. The flavors were very congruous to each other, and did not subtract from each other. My only complaint that I had was that it was a mere dalia and not a double corona. As I sat there holding the ½ stub I could only imagine: How would this cigar taste if it was a double corona? The cigar had a very pleasant cedary/floral finish retaining its creamy texture.
65/65
Overall:
Overall, this is as close to perfection that one can get in a cigar. I like the Montecristos, as well as the Cohibas. This Monsdale perfectly combines and unites the two. It is an amazing substantial cigar with tremendous flavors. This is a definite MUST for those who like full bodied cigars, and an essential cigar for those who admire and enjoy the Cohiba line. This cigar is notably better than the Cohiba Seleccion Reserva line. For those who are left nonplussed by Montecristo line, they must at least try this cigar, because this is how a Montecristo SHOULD taste. If only they made these as regular production cigars. Such a shame.
97/100
