Arturo Fuente:Hemingway:Between The Lines

After going through some of my past reviews I was surprised to see that I didn't review anything remotely rare. Well today I bring you the Hemingway Between The Lines. I originally planned to age this cigar, but with me moving to a new house and a bottle of Baileys on a sunny day I couldn't think of a better time to smoke one of my rarities. This cigar was first conceived by Cynthia Fuente who wanted a cigar that was flavorful but yet not harsh. The BTL is only released on Christmas season on very limited quantities and to only a very lucky few. This limited window to get a BTL only adds tinder to the hype machine that is Arturo Fuente and like many Fuente's, getting one of these for the MSRP is very hard. But tobacco is tobacco,it comes goes, and today here's my attempt to review one.


SPECS-

Size-4.5x54
Wrapper-Connecticut Shade and Maduro
Binder-Dominican
Filler-Dominican
Price-$13.95
Cut-Straight
Smoke Time-45 mins
Drink-Bailey's Over Ice


FIRST IMPRESSIONS- This cigar in short words is just neat. The wrapper is very clean and almost veinless. The double wrapper seam very close together, one could think that the Fuentes grew a Wrapper leaf that is multicolored when analyzing the overall neatness of the cigar. The nearly smooth wrapper presented a succulent aroma of cedar and slight hay. The cold taste produced a very good draw that showed a bit of earth and slight chocolate truffle, the natural sweetness of the wrapper leave left a good taste on the lips. The craftsmanship of this cigar is pretty much perfect.


FIRST HALF-The nipple end of cigar was very easy to light and even with the slight breeze I was having the cigar took a flame really well. At the first puffs the cigar produces a unique taste of creamy cedar that I never experienced. The cedar produces a undertone of hay which itself has an undertone of black pepper. The profile is very mild and smooth producing subtle tastes of ripe peanuts and a nutmeg finish. There's not much going on on this first half. The main flavors of hay and cedar play on each other and sometimes highlight and outshine each other leaving the smoker with a very interesting experience. The burn is good and with a room note of sweet honey this delicacy can definitely be attributed to the touch of a woman.


LAST HALF-This cigar isn't very big on flavor spectrum. The main flavors of this cigar never really change. But what does change is the texture of the smoke. The cigar goes from a creamy wonderland to a Oreo cookie splendor. Towards the end of the cigar the smoke leaves and feels like a hearthy chocolate cake in your mouth, very soft yet moist. The finish changes from an earthy chocolate to a dry cocoa powder, what this cigar lacks in flavors it makes up for it in the smoke profile. The creaminess of Baileys just adds to the overall flavor of the cigar.


FINAL IMPRESSIONS-This to me is easily one of my favorite AF cigars. The cigar is mild and flavorful. But here's one major flaw about this cigar, the flavors and the profile sometimes is too mild. This cigar reminds of me chicken, mild but with a good taste, chicken can be prepared in many different ways but in the end it will taste like chicken and we all know chicken can get rather boring and bland. While I was smoking this cigar I wished for just a bigger bloom of smoke for my palate or maybe more array of flavors to sample, and this is the only bad thing about this cigar, everything else is just perfect. This cigar is worth every penny of its MSRP but paying anything over the MSRP is just crazy. After all chicken is just chicken even if it lays golden eggs.

Rating:92
Buy It Again? Yes
Recommend It? Yes

Camacho Triple Maduro:11/18:Maduro

I'm a big fan of Maduro. I'm always looking for the next and best Maduros out there and usually for me the more the Maduro the better. So when I eventually found out that Camacho had a triple Maduro cigar I was more than excited, being slightly disappointed with the MX2 I soon found out that too much of a good thing can be rather bad. But I'm an optimistic and I have high hopes for this stick. So my question of today is rather simple, is too much of a good thing bad?

SPECS-
Size-6x56
Wrapper-Honduras
Binder-Honduras
Filer-Honduras
Cut-Punch and Guillotine
Price-$13.00
Smoke Time-55 mins

FIRST IMPRESSIONS-This is a very impressive stick from the dual silver bands to this particular size, it just screams out strenght. The wrapper was very figured and dark black. It felt very much like a solid piece of leather and the visible pores of the leaf add to that impression. The foot had a very pleasant smell of dark earth and hay while the wrapper leaf had a compost smell to it. The leaf was very spicy and salty on the lips and tasted like soy sauce,the cold taste was very Norri. This cigar just presents itself as a very black object and I'm so far impressed.

FIRST HALF-Right off the bat you can tell this is going to be a heavy smoke. The cigar opens up with very thick white smoke with a deep and earthy chocolate behind it. Its very rich in red pepper spice. The cigar so far had a deep and simple deep chocolate taste that in indescribable in words. Overall in this half the burn was respectable, this is a Maduro cigar and it must be really hard to blend a all Maduro cigar and get no imperfections. The burn did stray off here and there but I was impressed it never went out on me. The ash is also super strong and I could probably stood the cigar in its ash but I'm a fan of long ashes so I didn't want to risk it. Construction is superb.As the cigar reaches into its second half the smoke seems to bloom out with more flavors and smoke its very enjoyable experience.

LAST HALF-This is a impressive cigar, the smoke truly opens up on this middle third or the last half for me. The simple chocolate is no longer simple, on the finish the chocolate picks up a earthy nut flavor to chug it along. The nut flavor is very smooth and has a cedar undertone to it, while the chocolate picks up a nice overtone anise. This cigar is packed rich in flavors and they deserve a lot more than just one try. Ash is also superb it gets slightly wavy but it just clings on to the cigar. The downfall of this cigar though is its strenght. As soon as the longest ash fell I was introduced to a super strong and dark tobacco taste infused with earth, the profile was tolerable for maybe 5 minutes but after that it just became too much. The nicotine of this cigar really got to me. It was a delayed effect so it was good, it was only really felt after I put the cigar down and layed in my bed. The room was spinning and my stomach hurt, it took me at least 2 soda cans to get over the nicotine lump. For those that don't know, if you ever feel like nicotine has gotten the best of you the best thing to do is combat it with sugar. This was a good cigar and I can't complain I didn't get to finish the last third it was good while it lasted.

LAST IMPRESSIONS-Overall this is a good cigar but the price range is a little steep. The price though is understandable, it's an all Maduro cigar with excellent construction and it was really big vitola so its a moot point really. Maybe with a smaller cigar the nicotine and darkness of it wouldn't be as present. But this cigar did answer my question, I guess too much of a good thing can turn out to be a bad thing. The thing though this cigar wasn't bad, just too much. Giving this cigar to a person new to cigars would be a very mean and cruel but yet very funny joke.

RATING-86
Buy It Again? Sure,
Recommended it? Yes, as a prank or for your own enjoyment if you like Maduro, others though I say be careful and take a seat this thing will knock you down.

Davidoff Maduro R:Robusto:Maduro

You've seen of how I handled a high price cigar, so is this Davidoff any different? Choosing another super premium stogie was a little bit difficult for me. But I have high hopes for this stick. Unlike the ESG this stick doesn't try to compete with anything else, its in a class of its own. So Davidoff makes a maduro, a departure from its usual lighter shade lines. So how does this Davidoff Maduro hold up against other Maduros?

SPECS-
Size- Robusto 5x52
Wrapper-Dominican
Binder-San Vincente
Filler-Sungrown Nicaraguan Cuban-seed
Price-$17.00
Cut-V,Guillatine
Smoke Time-1 hour

FIRST IMPRESSIONS-The wrapper on this stick is gorgeous, the reddish brown Maduro is lightly sweet and the foot is reminiscent of a fine chocolate truffle. The wrapper gave of a slightly salty taste to it and a cold draw that was slightly yeasty and complementing. This stick is very solid and heavy for its size. This Maduro again shows that Davidoff is in a Class of its own.

FIRST THIRD--This Cigar bellows out plenty of white and thick creamy smoke with a long finish. The first draws are a very polite spice, its just there to welcome you into a very dark and complex smoke. The long finish introduces one of the main flavors, mocha. The mocha is very thick with a good flavor profile that is well rounded. This is a very slow burning stick with a almost perfect burn line, this maduro is one of the best on the market.

SECOND THIRD-This third brings along some very complex and dark flavors. There's a good espresso flavor that is underestimated by words, along with it there are some nuts. On the finish of the thick smoke there are hints of saffron and anise. As the backdrop of all of this is a yeasty flavor very similar to fresh bread. This is without a doubt the best third.

FINAL THIRD-Overall this is a pretty one dimensional smoke. The overall flavors don't progress much but the stick is blended in such a way that you don't get bored of it. This is without a doubt a Full bodied cigar. Its very complex, it'll take you many sticks to fully understand and enjoy the flavors it produces. This is my second one and I was able to detect tastes of black cherry and hints of peach flesh that I did not get on my first stick. Overall the burn was good and the smoke entertaining. The price though is a little debatable. At $17 dollars it's a bit rich for the tastes you get and I'm sure knocking the price off this stick a buck or 2 would make it truly reflect the experience.

LAST IMPRESSIONS-This is a good cigar, truly more of a special occasion smoke or a smoke to challenge your taste buds. The yeasty flavor told me alot about this cigar, it has a lot of sugar it yet has to ferment. Ageing this stick without a doubt will make it a stupendous smoke and truly make the price justifiable. This is a without a doubt a great maduro and a great experience that any Maduro lover will greatly appreciate, now if only that price was cheaper.

RATING-93
Buy It Again?Yes
Recommended it? Yes, I recommend buying two if you can, smoke one young and then age the other, your time and money will surely be worth it.

Macanudo 1968:Toro:Maduro

So its safe to say that every cigar has a story. With me the Mac' 68' has plenty. A year ago this smoke was introduced not only to the world but to me. You see I happily turned 18 and began my cigar smoking adventures and since then the Mac' 68' followed. This is my favorite smoke and the first cigar I truly enjoyed. But now that I have experienced a whole bunch of sticks and discovered new flavors how does this Mac hold up? Does it still bring fond memories?

SPECS-
Size- Toro 6x54
Wrapper-Honduran San Agustin Havana Seed
Binder-Connecticut Habano
Filler-Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Ometepe
Cost-$10.70
Smoke Time-55 mins
Cut-Punch,Guillotine
Drink-Mcd'S Caramel Iced Coffee

FIRST IMPRESSIONS-The first thing you notice on this cigar is the appearance of the wrapper. The wrapper is very chocolate brown with no veins and slightly figured leaf. The band looks gorgeous on this fragrant leaf, the band is very sophisticated and contrasts well with the brown leaf. Punching the cap was flawless and the cold taste gave off a sweet yet spicy straw taste. This cigar is still as good as I remember.

FIRST THIRD-The cigar catches the flame quite well, what a great intro. to a dark wrapper Macanudo. The cigar first welcomes you with thin wisps of smoke. The initial flavors are a sweet cedar with backdrops of nuts. The finish isn't very strong but leaves a subtle spice on the nose and mocha as the background. A very enjoyable third. The burn line is a little hectic though needing a touch-up every 10 puffs or so. The cigar overall isn't very strong or offencive, it seems like it's very polite. As if it invites you in to a nice and cozy den on a wintry morning. If you can't tell by now I really like this smoke.

SECOND THIRD-Alright enough of the figurative description this is a review and not a poem, its just hard though, not only does this cigar offer flavors to me but every time it presents me with a experience. The second third brings about more of the same flavors but they are more defined. The nuts get toastier and the mocha more chocolaty. The nut flavors is like macadamian nuts and the mocha more like a sweet chocolate that is not all there. A thing about these flavors though, they're not pronounced flavors that linger. Their just short flavors that you recognize and decay rather quickly. The finish is lightly thick, bringing about a caramel flavor, but this might be because of my drink. Burn line is still hectic and I wish for just alittle more bang, this cigar needs a nice umph to bring it along. Its still very relaxing though.

LAST THIRD-The last third gets quieter. The cedar is still semi-present and the nuts don't taste like anything in particular. Gone is the mocha and replaced with leather. The finish is a lot dirtier and darker, this makes for a good finish to a good cigar. The flavor profile is tricky still. You get good flavors in this stick but they're mild flavors. There isn't anything over the top, I mean this is still a Macanudo. But I don't mind smoking this Mac and the last third just like always is very hard to put down.



FINAL IMPRESSIONS-I can still see why I like this stick. This is a real treat cigar. I wouldn't call this an everyday smoke, nor a celebratory smoke. It'll be good on long days that never seem to end, a cigar for when I'm feeling down. I ended up laying down and smoking this stick, after a year of smoking it still smokes beautifully. But not everything is perfect. My palate is more accustomed to stronger and bolder flavors. I spoiled myself with perfect ashes and perfect burn lines, and sadly this stick today didn't have any that. At $10 it's a pricey stick. Most people will think twice before picking up a $10 dollar stick with a Macanudo band. I'll be the first one to admit there are better sticks for the $10; "My Father" for example, but for me I never hesitate. I do apologize if this was more of a poem review, but I'm passionate for this stick and I think for good reason too. So are the ads true about this cigar? Is it"dark,rich, and unexpected? No, this cigar isn't any of that. It's just good.

RATING-89
Buy It Again? Yes, quite simply.
Recommended? For the new smokers wanting to try a Maduro leaf yes, Stronger Maduro lovers though might find the stick lacking, either case though I recommend it.