Fuente Opus X Fuente (corona gorda)

[earthson]

Went against the grain and decided to foray into one of these guys after a month in my humidor at 65%. Dry boxed it overnight on account of all of the complaints re: burn.

APPEARANCE: Reddish wrapper, on par with some Cuban H. Upmann's I've been digging lately. Slightly rough looking wrapper, but rather oily. Firm throughout, though not too firm. Smell is somewhat unique, sweet, and earthy, especially at the foot, though I can smell the acrid youth of these. After a little clip with my Palio, off we went!

BURN/CONSTRUCTION: The #1 complaint about this marca! Fortunately, keeping my smokes at 65%, plus dry boxing this smoke overnight offered up a wavering burn that was easy to stay on top of with moderate attention paid. No relights needed!

FLAVOR/AROMA: The first centimeter was LOTS of pepper, and some earth and spice. The ever-famous "bread pudding" note appeared large and announced the beginning of this unique cigar. Into the second third, the flavors intensified and notes of earth and leather assert themselves as the dominant root flavor. The bread pudding finish is sweet, cinnamony, creamy, and smacks exactly of bread pudding (or freshly-baked cinnamon bread). For the final third, these flavors continue to amp up. Nicotine content is noticed at the end and I nubbed this cigar down to its finish.

VERDICT: Expensive cigars, yes, though not so bad if you are used to paying Cuban prices. These cigars are rumored to need as much age as Cuban cigars, and I can agree. I smoked a 2 year old robusto that was a MAJOR letdown - bad burn and far too young and harsh. I was surprised that this guy was ready to go being so young and I would say that the youth seemed to muddle and mute background flavors and subtly.

I would rather that the cigar developed more, instead of a steady climb in the intensity of the flavors and aromas. Still, I have never smoked a cigar quite like this, so if you're into something new and have avoided these for years, try one! Keep the RH low and dry box the suckers, and the burn should cooperate.

I am still VERY partial to the Fuente Anejo over these as they are more complex and ready to smoke earlier. Opus X is not as good as most cubans, but could conceivably hold its own against them if aged for several years. I have a 3 year old Opus X churchill that I am saving for my buddy's wedding in May. I'll let y'all know how it turns out!

[Peter11216]

Thanks for the review. Sounds like an interesting stick. I have a number of Perfection No. 4's sitting around. The few I've had so far have been very nice. Before lighting, to me, they smell like a cigarette factory I used to live beside. From the Opus, I quite like the scent, from the factory, not at all.

Not sure if I agree about the Añejos . . . I too prefer them to few Opus sticks I've had, but I can't say I have a sensitive enough palate to tell a difference in complexity.

Best,

Pete

Went against the grain and decided to foray into one of these guys after a month in my humidor at 65%. Dry boxed it overnight on account of all of the complaints re: burn.

APPEARANCE: Reddish wrapper, on par with some Cuban H. Upmann's I've been digging lately. Slightly rough looking wrapper, but rather oily. Firm throughout, though not too firm. Smell is somewhat unique, sweet, and earthy, especially at the foot, though I can smell the acrid youth of these. After a little clip with my Palio, off we went!

BURN/CONSTRUCTION: The #1 complaint about this marca! Fortunately, keeping my smokes at 65%, plus dry boxing this smoke overnight offered up a wavering burn that was easy to stay on top of with moderate attention paid. No relights needed!

FLAVOR/AROMA: The first centimeter was LOTS of pepper, and some earth and spice. The ever-famous "bread pudding" note appeared large and announced the beginning of this unique cigar. Into the second third, the flavors intensified and notes of earth and leather assert themselves as the dominant root flavor. The bread pudding finish is sweet, cinnamony, creamy, and smacks exactly of bread pudding (or freshly-baked cinnamon bread). For the final third, these flavors continue to amp up. Nicotine content is noticed at the end and I nubbed this cigar down to its finish.

VERDICT: Expensive cigars, yes, though not so bad if you are used to paying Cuban prices. These cigars are rumored to need as much age as Cuban cigars, and I can agree. I smoked a 2 year old robusto that was a MAJOR letdown - bad burn and far too young and harsh. I was surprised that this guy was ready to go being so young and I would say that the youth seemed to muddle and mute background flavors and subtly.

I would rather that the cigar developed more, instead of a steady climb in the intensity of the flavors and aromas. Still, I have never smoked a cigar quite like this, so if you're into something new and have avoided these for years, try one! Keep the RH low and dry box the suckers, and the burn should cooperate.

I am still VERY partial to the Fuente Anejo over these as they are more complex and ready to smoke earlier. Opus X is not as good as most cubans, but could conceivably hold its own against them if aged for several years. I have a 3 year old Opus X churchill that I am saving for my buddy's wedding in May. I'll let y'all know how it turns out!

[#2 man]

I agree They need time

[tmac77]

I bought a box of these at a Detroit B&M about 3 years ago. If memory serves me correct there were either 32 or 48 in the box. Got a great deal from the owner as I bought a box of the Perfection X at the same time.

I have smoked about 6 of each so far and found the Perfection X to be somewhat more complex than the Fuente (corona gorda) yet not as strong with the peppers as the Fuente. Been about a year since I tried one now so I might just dig one out of the humidor on the weekend and see how they have developed.

Nice post

Tom

[thechenman]

I agree with you in that I prefer the Anejos to the OpusX. They are both fine cigars though and each brings something different to the table. The OpusX give more spice/pepper, the Anejo more sweetness/earth. Both are fairly complex when on though, at least IMHO.