Your Personal Top 5 and Bottom 5 of 2014

[ssaka]

Out of deference for my compadres, I am only going to announce my top 5 - in no order:

1. LP Velvet Rat - are they even selling this one yet?
2. Las Calaveras - in particular the Double Corona, nice, beefy, kinda rough, what it lacks in grace it delivers in flavor.
3. Padron 50th Maduro - the long robusto size one… this was kind of a no brainer choice...
4. La Historia - the churchill format, nice to see Ernie hit one out of the park
5. La Naranja - the toro, this one surprised me with it complexity - hope they can keep the blend consistent, tough task for a young factory.

Oh wait, I have a sixth… the Horatio Robania (HR) - great depth of flavor, excellent capa, love the finish, but damn $20 plus is a tough swallow for someone's first brand in the US…

BR,

STS

 

[Mikenice81]

I'm a new guy with limited exposure, but I'll give it a shot. Different perspectives, diversity of opinion is great, and all that other jazz they teach in required workshops at work.

Favorites
1. La Jugada Prieto (Great burn and good tobacco taste that turns into a spiced chocolate desert.)
2. Gurkha Wicked Indie (A consummate gentleman with smooth delivery and nicely pronounced flavor.)
3. CAO Gold (Soft and smooth with hints of spice, wood, nuts, and something that reminded me of honey butter my grandma use to get on trips to the mountains.)
4. Room 101 San Andres ( A reviewer said it reminded him of mole sauce. That was close if you take out the bitterness and add in some sweet caramel.)
5. La Aroma de Cuba Mi Amor (A gift with at least three months of age. It had a nutty, leathery, earthy taste that was pleasing.)

Disappointed
1. Oliva Serie G Cameroon (There was nothing to it. A very mediocre tobacco taste that would be at home in the next cigarette blend from Winston.)
2. La Perla Habana Classic (Rake all of your leaves into the gutter and set them on fire. Enjoy the cost savings. In all fairness I bought this one at a "tobacco shop" that specializes in cigarettes and cheap RYO tobacco sold by the bag. So, storage and care may have played a part in this.)
3. Nub Cameroon (This is what I imagine the air would taste like if somebody set the nearest cow pond on fire. It was just dirty barnyard and compost heaps.)
4. CAO OSA Sol (Some reviewers said it was zesty and even had hints of sour cream. I want to know where they got their stick. Mine was slightly spicy with a very flat earthy taste that reminded me of potting soil and that was about it.)
5. Oliva Serie G Maduro (It started out promising and then turned harsher than a high priced dominatrix. Then the bitterness came and I just tossed it out. The flavors from the first 1/2" completely disappeared and by the second third I was sure they weren't coming back.)

 

[Chuck N]

Top 5

1 Tatuaje Regios Reserva
2 Tatuaje 10th
3 Litto Gomez Small Batch
4 1502 Black Gold
5 Tat Gran Marravilla

 

[davo]

Top 5 :

Monte 2

Lp#9

RASS

Perdomo 10th champaign epi

R&j short churchill

Bad 5 (4)

Cohiba red dot

Comacho room 101

5 Vegas gold

Rocky Patel vintage 1990

 

[jsnake]

I do not have a bottom 5 and 99% of what I smoked was Viaje. So if it was Viaje released in 2014 that is my list. I know I need to diversify.

 

[Franklin_Stove]

As maybe I am a little bipolar, and definitely partial to black and white thinking, there are times I firmly believe that better than 90 percent of what's being sold is pure shite. By this I don't mean that so many cigars taste nasty, but just that their taste leaves me thinking why'd I even bother -- or what a waste of time. Sorry but I hafta include The LP9 in this category,. It has cuerpo for days but I smoke less for body and more for stimulation of the taste buds themselves.

Having just smoked a Papas Fritas, I can say for certain that I much prefer it to the LP9. The PF is the best short filler Cuban sandwich I've ever smoked. Love the taste of cedar shavings and pepper and pig iron.

That being said, for the money, the HVC Cerro blend Sabrositos are a fucking a world beater among long fillers. I also did enjoy a few RoMa Craft Intrigue, which is almost the Quesada Seleccion Espana for far less money.

Some vitola of the Litto Gomez 2012 vintage are now incredible and an Oliva MB3 I had recently smoked surprisingly sweetly. What a treat!

Also the Edgar Hoill Vida I had was good, when smoked a little on the dry side. Though not the equal of the smokes mentioned above

Two sticks whose taste I found FOUL and loathed: the Iconic Recluse OTG and the Ezra Z. Jamais Vu

Did not care for the Warped Flor del Valle. Although by being so unbalanced it taught me what people mean when they describe a smoke as balanced

Merely disappointing: the Eiroa (Salud, Amor, etc.), the Ortega "Honest Abe," the CyB a lonsdale I think, and the Illusione Rothchild which I really wanted to like as I want to support the TABSA factory