is there any love out there for the Fonseca Number 1?

[El Presidente]

Our departed mate Van always stood up for the Fonseca Number 1 and I have enjoyed many of the years but it has never made it into my rotation. I love the soft flavour nuances but I will gravitate to a Molinos or Punch Super Seleccion Number 1 for a deeper richer flavour.

Who here on FOH has had a Fonseca Number 1....who has enjoyed them....who has them in their rotation?

[hsmunoz]

they are in my rotation , a very nice change of pace cigar, not pretentious , just delivers. I would say a high value stick as well. I will say that the 98's are in their zone right now. Because of the #1 I picked up some Kadets and they are also a good little smoke, not as floral, but earthy .

[CaptainQuintero]

I always want to enjoy Fonseca but think I've only ever had one out of about ten which was not utterly plugged. The one that I manage to get a draw out of was a #1 but after two or three years of giving them a go and finally finding one that drew, after all that searching nothing blew me away and I even have a soft spot for mild cigars. People talk about how bad Cuaba are construction wise, with my experience Fonseca are by a far the worst. They just kill me, so I wait another six months and then they kill me again.

The competition is too good, if I want something mild but rich with some aromatic charm it's going to be QDO pretty much every time. Others will probably go for Juan Lopez.

Suffered from such terrible construction issues which I'm guessing for a lot of people has written them off as a box purchase, and they will probably never recover so will be a deleted marca in a few years.

If HSA can't get Diplomatico selling I can't see a future for Fonseca.

I've heard the recent Fonseca REs have done well so that may be the only Fonseca cigars we will end up seeing, but then again I can't see huge numbers of people getting excited over a Fonseca special release, the Fonseca special humidor seems to be gathering dust in a lot of stores.

[cigcars]

I've got one left in the Daniel Marshall humidor. And among the Fonsecas, it's the one with some promise. Anybody remember the Invictos, now discontinued? IT was a fine Fonseca smoke. My last one my 2 year old neice had entered one of my humidors when I was in Atlanta...and when I came upon her she had already crumbled it to dust in her exploratory little fist... *sigh* sniff~sniff

[hanhan]

Like em fine, just not a daily cigar for me, more a change of pace cigar. I have unbroken boxes and maybe 10 singles and I don't think I'll be finishing them within the next 2 or 3 years.

[mazolaman]

I really enjoy these.

I had a box last year, of which 3 were unsmokeable pluggers.

I seem to get much enjoyment from these floral flavour driven cigars than from many others, and these are one of the most flavourful aromatic cigars, without long aging.

Also worth noting, they have a tighter roll than many, similar to the R and J cedros 1,2 and 3, which are another underated cigar that I also enjoy.

[westg]

I have had only one..after dinner with the owner of an Italian restaurant. Mild to say the least, however a very pleasent smoke on a summers night. Washed down with a bottle of Prophet's Rock Pinot Noir 06..nice..Much prefer a Behike with a heavy duty shiraz any time..

[Smallclub]

Anybody remember the Invictos, now discontinued? IT was a fine Fonseca smoke.

I remember the Invictos and its odd shape. It was the best of the line but it's always been the most difficult to find.

As for the No.1, it is not inherently bad but its shyness, its lack of intensity and "scalability" make him unable to hold the attention of the smoker on the length.

[cottierm]

Looking at Trevor's website I suddenly realize that the No. 1 is discontinued as of this year.

Although I have often read that Fonseca's cigars were a good introduction to CCs, I've never been convinced by this statement. I think that they are better appreciated by experienced smokers than by newbies who may end up with a false image of CCs (that is 'too light and rather tasteless' as a first impression).

I brought back one No. 4 from my recent trip in Belgium and I have read good reviews about it ('much stronger than the normal production'). I'll let you know in a future review.

Best,

Michel

[bassman]

I have a few left from an early 09 box. Don't smoke them regularly like Bolivar & Montecristo, but a nice change of pace, along with the QdeO Corona. No draw problems with mine, nice sweet flavor & good medium strength.

[Lotusguy]

Had a couple and wasn't impressed - not in my rotation.

[thechenman]

While Fonescas don't make my regular rotation, I do smoke them from time to time. The No. 1 is by far the best of the Fonsecas still in regular production...by a wide margin I might add.

[CaptainQuintero]

With the no.1 being deleted it's probably the death toll for the brand, I totally forgot them getting the axe this year.

[cigaraholic]

I used to smoke lots of these because I love the size and they were very reasonably priced.

Lately I'll only buy them when they're on sale because their price has crept up to Cazzies and DD's which I would rather smoke for the same price.

Right now I'm going thru a couple of boxes PTO FEB09 that are very nice, great mid morning smoke with coffee......I'll miss them.

[AndrewNR]

I enjoy forenseca's, But I think I've only had the Cadets so far.. Need to broaden my spectrum with them.