A Supremely Well Chosen ERDM

[frenchkiwi]

El Rey del Mundo Choix Supreme - from box 25 SAG OCT 09

This may be a bit late for the comp but in any case i smoked this Sunday and reviewed it for my club ... hopefully might get a few of you to try out ERDMs.

This cigar will get a rise out of your pinky

Last Sunday afternoon, i was taken... by The Mood.

I had just gone all out following the cooking muse and satisfying the very specific desires of my stomach, and successfully so, i am pleased to say... when i thought i might follow this up with another perfect conjunction of the mind's eye meeting the taste buds' soul to the heart's content. Cigar time.

Following up a tangy mustard dish ... il n'y a que Maille qui m'aille!... required some kind of zesty puro. A Diplomaticos #4 might do if i still had one... but then again it was a bit small for such a nice day and a bit too dry a smoke... i wanted something soft and creamy as well ... Finally, i settled on a El Rey del Mundo Choix Supreme, with some hope and plenty of fear and trembling. Hope - as the first singles we had almost 2 years ago were delicious; fear - as the last time i had one from this new box of 2009 vintage it had "gone to sleep", tasting dull and sickly.

This was one of those rare occasions where the stars align. The wrapper had a lovely sheen, and a light shade of colorado. I had long been suspicious of this as my stellar '07 singles had a much lighter, thinner wrapper, and the sickly smoke episode made me question whether the '09s darker wrapper leaf was taking away from the quirky Choix Supreme blend of filler. Oh Me of Little Faith. Straight from the get go i was greeted by the tangy citrus that i had often pined for, but never encountered in any cigar since that first one almost two years ago. To my even greater astonishment, it was preceded on the palate by a buttery mouthfeel that i had wished for that very afternoon, but never experienced in a Choix Supreme. I suspect that this is the contribution of the nicely oiled up wrapper leaf. In any case, this was a midwinter's afternoon dream come true.

The smoke flowed freely, but not loosely, from this perfectly constructed beast, and every mouthful was a layer of buttery silkiness with a hint of sauted mushroom, followed by a powerful cedar kick unleashing the tang of citrus - zest, flesh and aroma of a well-ripened, slightly sweet, lemon - finished off with an edge of white pepper. Simply divine. It did not change all of the way through, and i was glad of it.

One of my top cigar experiences of the year so far. To enjoy one of these, wait for a time when these sorts of flavours appeal... it is not strong, so perhaps after lunch on a sunny afternoon... and for heaven's sake, don't spoil it by eating a vindaloo beforehand, or by smoking it with a peaty whisky, or a red grape based drink. Get something light and pinky-raising made from white grape like a dessert wine, muscat, or martini bianco. You won't regret it.

[riazp]

fantastic review frenchkiwi! i've been very tempted as of late to give the choix supreme a try.

[CaptainQuintero]

Sounds delicious! The only citrus I have gotten before is from Monte #5, will have to pick one of these up at some point

[headstand]

Nice word craft. Thanks for the review. Had my first Choix Supreme just a few days ago. Looking forward to another soon.

[Dbone]

Now that's a quality review and a perfect pairing!! Great stuff

[ramon_cojones]

I've smoked a few of these, construction is top notch and draw perfect every time. It is my change of pace cigar along with epi2s and it is a good flavorful smoke a touch under medium body as Rob would say.

I wouldn't say it's a top cigar for me and I do get somewhat bored by the end but as far as milder cigars go it is one of the more flavorful that I enjoy (and I rarely enjoy mild cigars).

[mazolaman]

Nice review FK.

You got the flavour profile perfectly.

I got a box of these a while ago,and they taught me that a cigar doesn't need to be super strong to be flavourful.

An underrated cigar.

[khomeinist]

The King of The World.

Truly. Such a fantastic profile. Particularly with age

Cohiba. Schmoeheeba

[bassman]

Never did much for me. Thank goodness I still have a box of ERDM Gran Coronas.

[mdzotti78]

Loved the review. Another one to add to the list.

[PuffDaddie]

A great afternoon cigar.