Perdomo 10th Anniversary Champagne (Nicaragua)

Name:	Perdomo 10th Anniversary Champagne
Rating:	★★★★
Origin:	Nicaragua
Cigar details:	The Perdomo 10th Anniversary Champagne is handmade using a Nicaraguan binder and filler, and, a Connecticut natural shade wrapper.  Being grown in the shade, the tobacco wrapper is intended to have few veins and an even surface for a delicate and smooth smoking experience.
Draw:	Excellent
Burn:	Excellent, even if uneven at certain points
Construction:	Excellent
Strength:	Milder side of medium
Flavours:	From the first puff the taste of creamy vanilla is prominent, entangled with pistachio, almond, burnt toast, cocoa, coffee and a soft bonfire burns at back palate with hints of cedar on the finish. An inch into the cigar, and the bonfire taste on the finish begins to fade. Tropical fruit starts to emerge, mostly lychee and fresh fleshy coconut, and a mild spiciness prickles the palate – hints of pepper and red chili especially. That bonfire taste on the finish, while fading, slowly morphs into bitter dark chocolate and roasted coffee.  Zesty undertones form beneath the complex layers of flavour mid-way through, in particular lemon and soft citrus. The flavours remain consistent, and the cigar is very puff-able.
Format:	Epicure (Toro)
Match with:	This cigar paired nicely with Bushmills 16 year old Irish whiskey, lychee beer and a number of rums, including Appleton Estate 21 year old, Havana Club Seleccion de Meastros and Pusser’s Blue Label.
Bottom line:	Buy it, if you want a smooth and easy smoking cigar with layers of complex flavours packed within a big, bold yet silken tobacco smoke. *Thank you to cigarscity.com for the stick!

Romeo y Julieta Habana Reserve (Nicaragua)

Name:	Romeo y Julieta Habana Reserve
Rating:	★★★
Origin:	Nicaragua
Cigar details:	The Romeo y Julieta Habana Reserve line is comprised on Nicaraguan and Honduran long fillers encased in a dark Nicaraguan wrapper. They are hand made in the Flor de Copan factory in Honduras.
Draw:	Excellent
Burn:	Excellent
Construction:	Excellent
Strength:	Medium, gradually becoming fuller as the cigar is smoked
Flavours:	The first few puffs are hugely disappointing – burning paper and bonfire burn the back palate with rigid embers, though notes of cedar, wood, citrus and pepper come through the smoky haze of harshness.Without warning, the harshness mellows about two centimeters or so into the stick. The bonfire taste mellows, to the point where it fades completely. Magic happens. The cigar becomes extremely integrated and smooth, with pronounced citrus, cocoa, ground coffee, mild creaminess, hints of honey, cedar, edamame, dried parsley and a sweet peppery heart – capsicum, crisp fresh peppers and bull horn chilies, not cracked pepper. The tobacco smoke is moderately dense, but no means overbearing. It is very puff-able. This is the sweet spot, and the cigar smokes impeccably from a few centimeters to around the half way point.  Just this part of the cigar would easily score into the 90’s – superb. The sharp contrast from the harsh beginning makes this part of the cigar especially pleasant, because the taste buds seem so relieved to finally sit back and enjoy the party.At half way, the harshness returns. Bonfire embers burn the back palate, and sit in the upper throat with the nagging taste of burning paper. Two thirds into the cigar, the bonfire harshness recedes and the cigar now becomes much more noticeably fuller – find hazelnuts, coal fire, wood, dark cocoa and perfumed soap infused in the dense tobacco smoke. The cigar quickly becomes hot to draw, however, and the revival is short lived.
Format:	Toro
Match with:	Romeo y Julieta Habana Reserve is a medium to full cigar with lots of varying temperaments. Try it with something that can douse those occasional harsh embers, but which will compliment the impeccable “sweet spot” – a Corona with lemon and similar style crisp lager is recommended.
Bottom line:	Seriously consider buying it.  Romeo y Julieta Habana Reserve took me on a roller coaster ride of ups and downs – a harsh start was followed by a sensationally smooth and flavourful experience which lasted until the cigar’s half way point, at which some harshness re-emerged until the cigar regained some full flavoured magic only to stumble again towards the nub of the cigar and become a tad too hot to handle. The cigar’s “sweet spot” and subsequent stint of full flavoured magic is, in my opinion, well worth buying this cigar and the long filler tobacco leaf tells quite an entertaining story of ups and downs.*Thank you to cigarscity.com for the stick!

Padrón 1964 Anniversary Series (Nicaragua)

Rating: ★★★★★

Draw: Exceptional

Burn: Exceptional

Construction: Superb

Consistency: Excellent

Flavours: The draw and initial flavours are woody with twigs and dry leaves, leather and a smoky note (think smoked meats) with a maduro rich finish, the slight bitterness of green olives and a mild oiliness. More roasted ground coffee, nuts and very dark chocolate evolves with each puff, with olive leaf undertones and dried oregano. This is an absolute classic cigar, one of the best burns and draws I’ve encountered in a cigar. Beautiful. I want a box of these. The tobacco has, apparently, been aged for four years and this is certainly noticeable in the complex yet smooth flavours offered by this box pressed cigar. Some tweezers might be advisable, because I found myself puffing it until it reached the width of my fingers!

Origin: Nicaragua

Format: Robusto

Match with: Savour with espresso and a teaspoon of raw sugar, ginger beer or a Spanish style rum (Havana Club Seleccion de Maestros immediately comes to mind) or a Navy style rum such as Pusser’s Blue Label. It also pairs particularly well with an old cognac, with rancio notes in the eucalyptus and umami spectrum (DEAU Louis Memory).

ACID Nasty (Nicaragua)

Score: 78/100

Draw: Excellent.

Burn: Excellent.

Construction: Poor, despite a careful cut the wrapper unraveled badly on one.

Consistency: OK.

Flavours: This is an intense oily cigar, offering notes of leather and thick medium-rich tobacco with bitter dried rose buds and tarry notes that matched the film of floral oils that lingered on the lips.  It did not however keep my interest and a quarter into the cigar I had lost my desire to keep smoking it – now that ain’t good! By no means is this a “nasty” cigar, but it left me underwhelmed in terms of its flavour profile despite its intensity.

Origin: Nicaragua

Format: Pyramid

Matched with: This cigar matched nicely with an espresso with a dash of Cognac and brown sugar, or some orange liqueur such as Cointreau. The brown sugar with brandy or citrus notes in the liqueur cut through the intense oily notes of the cigar, which complimented the bitter coffee lying beneath the sweetness.

ACID Blondie (Nicaragua)

Score: 82/100

Draw: Excellent.

Burn: Excellent.

Construction: Excellent, no complaints.

Consistency: Good.

Flavours: A very sweet honey emerges after a moment of puffing, but the sweetness does tend to dominate the finish as the tobacco becomes secondary to the infused flavour. Beginners who tried this loved it for its sweetness and subtle flavour profile, which is mild and perfect either for a quick smoke or to get friends interested in cigars. It did not keep my interest after half way, when it lost its sweet honey flavour and became quite harsh – the contrast was huge, from sweet honey to harsh smoke – not a great idea, to shock the taste buds like that.

Origin: Nicaragua

Format: Short Panatela