I’ve been itching to smoke this one, it’s been sitting in my humidor calling my name ever since I received it in my Powerhouse 16 Sampler. Today I decided was the day for it. I headed out to the tasting booth and began my pre-light inspection.
This cigar came in a cedar lined metal tube. I’ve never encountered one of these and perhaps this added a bit of mystery to the cigar.
I did the ol’ squeeze test, and felt consistent hardness throughout except for what felt like a small knot just below the band. The cigar had plenty of veins, but seemed to give the cigar character. A good looking stogie indeed. Long and narrow, a bit unusual.
After I made my cut, I tested the draw and knew immediately I’d be cutting again. After my second cut without improving the result, I had a bad feeling. After lighting my struggles intensified. The draw was so bad I was certain it was plugged. I had about 1/2 inch of ash when I contemplated dumping it. I was frustrated.
I went in the house, got a toothpick and rodded out the center. This improved it a little, but it was still bad. I was thinking the plug was near the band where I felt the knot, but I finally smoked through it about halfway through. Once I got through it, the smoking experience improved dramatically. I could finally focus on the flavor of the cigar, and wasn’t bad. When the cigar was about 2/3 finished, I began to notice a hint of some sort of mint, or perhaps menthol.
The review of this cigar was impacted greatly by the draw/plug. I can’t imagine this being a normal occurrence, but I am reviewing the cigar I’m smoking, not what I think most of them are like so I have to give this cigar a “D” with hopes of trying another one in the future and having a better smoking experience.
Posted by Sam