Letting My Mind Wander With An: El Rey Del Mundo Aniversario


polarbear

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I don’t like to admit it to people, but at heart I’m a collector. Over the years I’ve collected (or hoarded if you ask my missus) a great number of things. Cars, Records, Tazos, Spiderman Comics, T-shirts, and now it seems, Cigars. I once read a quote by a comedian that said “I don’t like telling people I have a cigar collection because the word collection implies that I don’t plan on smoking every damn one of them!” I tell myself I’m the same. I have a couple of thousands cigars and I tell myself it’s not a collection, it’s a stash. That being said, if a cigar has two bands, is limited production, hard to find or short run, I find myself drawn to it. I have to have it. Not just one either, I Ultimately end up buying at least 2 boxes in case I like it so much I need more after my supplier runs out. Then they sit there for ages until I bring myself to smoke just one cause” I’ve gotta ration them cause they’re not easily obtainable anymore”. It a vicious circle really.

There are brands out there that I would have never looked at or tried if it wasn’t for the fact that at one time or another they released some limited edition stick that got my “I’ve just gotta have it” side excited. Seriously, I’m not a very bright person at times. This brings me to today’s cigar. An El Rey Del Mundo Aniversario, Asia Pacific RE. I bought this cigar purely because it was a PCC Regional Edition. I’d smoked one other ERDM in my life before I dropped the coin on this one. But this one is a RE, therefore it is limited, therefore it must be good, therefore I had to have it. So I bought a few (they were expensive and I came to my senses before dropping good money on a box of sticks from a marca I’d really never tried) and today I smoke one, to see if they are worth the $400 a box they are selling for, before they all run out.

So, let’s see what all the fuss is about, shall we?

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The cigar beautiful to look at but, it is a large cigar. At 5.9x54 it is one of the larger cigars I’ve seen come out of Cuba in a while, but the big ring gauge trend seems to be spurred on by Americas love for all things bigger, so I guess we’d better get used to it. I cut the perfect triple cap and take a draw. Mild tobacco and hay greet my taste buds . The draw is a touch on the light side, but with a cigar of this size that is kind of expected. It’s not a wind tunnel by any means. A match is struck (well, a few actually, it was a windy day and I couldn’t find my lighter) and heat is applied to the foot of this cigar. It takes a while to burn fully; there is a lot of tobacco that needs to be heated. I take a draw and this cigar shows me its promise with a floral herby note and a touch of grass on the finish. It looks like I’m going to be here a while, I get comfortable and allow my mind to wander.

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I look at the band and it takes me back to my last ERDM. El Rey Del Mundo ,The King Of The World. I was standing in a Davidoff of Geneva in Copenhagen. I was in town to visit an old friend. David had lived in Australia for 5 years while finishing high school. After he completed his NTCE he went back to Denmark to start Uni. After 5 years of his bugging me to come and see him, I landed in Copenhagen for 4 weeks of fun and Adventure. I’d been in Denmark all of 6 hours and I’d already had 3 beers, a massive feed and about 2 pots of coffee. David and I both decided it was time for a smoke. He took me to his local B&M where he could get a fresh tin of Pipe Tobacco (the Danes LOVE the Pipe) and they had a well-stocked walk in humidor for me to peruse while David and the shop assistant started to open and smell some of the 500 different tins of Pipe tobacco they had in stock. A well-dressed gentleman walks into the humidor and speaks to me in the throaty Danish tongue I was having trouble getting used to hearing. “Sorry bud, English only” I reply to his greeting. “Ah, Englishman?” he replies with a polite smile. “Ah, no, Australian” I say (at least he didn’t think I was American). “Well then, what can I help you with?” His tone is features a touch of polite boredom, I get the feeling he thinks I’m just some College kid on holiday in Europe and want a cigar to make me look like a Baller, I get this a lot. I ask about the Cohiba 1966, Montecristo Especialis #1’s, Ramon Allones Specialty Selected, Partagas 898’s and Diplomatico #4’s. Picking up boxes and checking codes and dates as I go. The assistants face completely changes and his tone becomes helpful. This is not some kid who wants any old cigar. This kid knows what he’s talking about.

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This is a young cigar. A very young cigar. The burn is perfect and the draw is good. There are touches of the floral note from them cold draw and a little coffee. There is some sweet spice through the nose too. Unfortunately, these flavours are only there for a second before the familiar young, green flavour I’ve come to expect from Cuban Cigars comes along and over powers all other flavours before it. It’s frustrating but not unexpected.

After establishing that I know cigars more than the average College Kid, the assistant and I talk of tobacco, both Cuban and Non Cuban for a while. I have a number of cigars on my tray and keep seeing more and more I want to take with me. Most of these cigars are less than 6 months old. They will require some time to rest before they are smoked. I want something to smoke today. “My man, have you got anything with a little time on it?” I ask. “Ah, yes sir, step over to the vintage section, everything here is 10 years or older”. There is a shelf filled with vintage and discontinued CC’s. “Not THAT old bud, maybe 5 or so years, I just want a couple of sticks I can smoke today. Nothing too flash, a good solid stick, perhaps a RASS or Edmundo with a couple of years on it?” The assistant nods and says “I’ll just check for you” before going through a door in the humi. I continue to browse, grabbing the odd stick to take with me. The assistant returns with a few cigars on a tray “Here we have an El Rey Del Mundo Choix Supreme, Hoyo De Monterry Epicure #2, and Montecristo Petit Edmundo, 2 of each, sir. All between 5 and 7 years old. They are the same price as regular stock, in case you are wondering. But these are the last of the singles in this size, I have more in boxes but they will need to be purchased as a box and you said you only wanted a, ahem, couple of sticks” I look them over, pick each one up and smelling them. They are all perfect. “I’ll take them, all of them.”

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This cigar has found its feet and it becomes clear that the strong youth that was encountered initially isn’t going anywhere. Its not over powering, but still on the fore front of the profile. There is a floral spice note through the nose that combines with a strong pepper note on the pallet. The finish is creamy but only after it manages to cut through the young note that is dominating the profile of this stick. The draw is still good and the smoke production is solid but the youth of this cigar is the dominating impression of this cigar. It’s very green.

We leave Davidoff Of Geneva. I have a dozen single sticks in my pocket and David has a fresh tin for his pipe. Its time to see the sites. It’s a beautiful European Summers day. It’s cool and sunny and I’m enjoying the feel of cobble stone streets beneath my feet. 5 years have passed since David and I have seen each other, and yet it seems like we only saw each other a week ago. I guess that’s the joy of true friendship. We met up with Davids missus Tenna and his friend Rebecca (Becs), now I have the cobbles under my feet, my best friend at my side and the company of two pretty ladies. Life is pretty good for me right now. We wander around and David points various churches, buildings and pubs that are all older than Australia. He and the girls take a lot of pleasure in reminding me that Australia doesn’t know what history is. That’s a great laugh for them. The sights are nice but the day is warming up, David and I seem to have the same thought cause we look at each other and say “Pub?” and nod in unison. Luckily there is this little Irish place across the square from where we are standing, and I could really go for a Guinness. We settle in out the front, a round of cold beers in front of us. I take out my bag of cigars, It’s time for a smoke. Today is a good day, it is good to be the king. I reach for a cigar that reflects my current mood. I feel like El Rey Del Mundo.

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The final act of this cigar greats me with a spiced bread note. Like gingerbread but more bread than ginger. There is a touch of coffee through the nose and the youth this cigar has shown for its previous two thirds is still present. Thankfully its being drowned out by the spice and coffee. The head of the stick is getting hotter with each puff and what is left of the cap is starting to come loose with each draw. I am a fairly wet smoker at the best of times, so the bad cap may not be the cigars fault. The stick is enjoyable, if still a little green.

The Guinness is flowing, my cigar is wonderful and I’m enjoying the company of my best friend and his ladies in his home town. David, renowned for his bad jokes tells one and I shake my head and make a show of banging my head against the glass window I’m sitting next too, yeah, it was a BAD joke. The girls are laughing and I’m rolling my eyes at the idiot I call my best friend when I hear a knock on the glass that I’ve just demonstrated my displeasure against. I turn to look and am greeted by the sight of this angry looking guy, shaking his fist at me. I shrug my shoulders at him and go back to the conversation. Next thing I know the guy from the window is standing in front of our table, looking very displeased and talking to me in Danish. The girls fire up, and the Danish starts flying. I barely speak English properly, so I just sit there and look this guy in the eyes as he gets more and more aggravated at what the girls are saying. All of a sudden he says ‘Oi, where are you from!?” I reply “Australia, mate” “Where!? Melbourne? Sydney!?” “No Mate, Up North, Darwin”. The girls fire up again in Danish and he walks back inside. “What the hell was that all about?” I ask the girls. Becs replies “he thought you were Danish, he kept talking to you and when you didn’t answer him back he started getting angry, we tried explaining to him that you didn’t speak Danish be he just said, look at him! He’s in Copenhagen and with you guys! Of course he’s Danish!”. I laugh at that “I knew he wasn’t saying anything nice to me so I just stared him down hoping he’d get the message that if he didn’t get lost he’d be in a world of hurt” this gets a laugh from the girls. I take another pull of my cigar and a sip of my Guinness. The laughter starts up and once again, life is good. The guy from before decided he wasn’t satisfied with the last exchange and returns shortly after. The girls go off at him again. He starts his ranting in Danish again and I’ve had just enough Guinness to figure I’m over this guy. Mid-sentence I stand up and look him in the eye, David senses something is about to go down and stands up next to me. At a combined height of over 13 feet it is a pretty imposing sight. I look him in the eye and interrupt his ranting. “Mate, I’d get out of here or something bad is going to happen to you!” This guy looks at me, then looks at Danish and then back to me “I’m serious mate, you’re about to have a real bad day!” He takes the hint and leaves, quietly. Dave sits down and the girls order another round. I sit down and pick up my cigar. I look at it and swear “The bloody thing has gone out!”

The head of my cigar is becoming hot and loose as it winds to a close. The young, green flavours have combined with the tar from the cigar and have given me a hot a bitter final act. I place it down to go out. I am done with it. This was by no means a bad cigar, simply a young cigar. The flavours it offered me were wonderful but unfortunately they were drowned out by the youth of the tobacco. This cigar will be a very enjoyable smoke in 4-5 years. I’m not sold on buying a box just yet, but if they are still available in a couple of years I’ll prob grab them. The cigar extinguishes itself fairly quickly and as it smoulders I’m left to ponder the joys of true friendship. Those people in our lives that never really leave our sides and the times when you see each other after a long absence and pick up where you left off. Such is the magic of the people we hold close and honour them by referring to them as family. Life is long, but the people you share it with make the journey more important than the destination. I take one last look at the El Rey Del Mundo band and think once again of the friends I made in Copenhagen and the adventures we all shared during my stay there, but that’s a story for another time.

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I don't know about you guys but I don't have this much time in the day to read these lengthy reviews. I wish I did but I don't. Can we get a summary at least?

Sure

Construction- good, slightly open draw

Dry Draw- Mild Tobacco and Hay

Opening- Floral notes and light grass

1st third- Youth (green/amonia), floral and coffee note on the pallet, sweet spice through the nose

2nd third- More Youth, more spice and floral notes though the nose and pepper on the pallet

Final third- More youth, spiced bread/cake and coffee through the nose

Final Thoughts- Good cigar but will be great with a couple more years on it

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Fabulous read, loved the story- surprising that the aged 5-7 year stock is same price as regular! I was just about to have one of these today but then it started to rain in my favorite cigar spot :/ I like the sounds of that gingerbread

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  • 4 months later...

Apologies for the necromancy. But I just have to say I love your reviews both for the depth of review and more for the accompanying tales.

Cheers bro

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So don't read them...how do you ever find time to smoke a cigar with such a hectic life?

I didn't read it, why are you so hostile?

That thought had also occured to me...

I have to ration my time in the day and a synopsis is better than not reading, does that make sense?

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I didn't read it, why are you so hostile?

I have to ration my time in the day and a synopsis is better than not reading, does that make sense?

It makes sense mate, time is precious.

But if I may venture an opinion. These reviews and the style their written in would be pointless as a summary. The review style and the accompanying story are what makes them great IMO and if you were going to read any review about the particular cigar sampled it should be this one. They capture not only the base qualities of the smoke but also make a beautiful example of the effect surrounding, atmosphere, etc have on your impression of a cigar and how, in smoking that cigar, you can be transported to another time, place and moment. Plus, no offence intended here, if you've had time to return to this thread to read replies to your comment and then post another I can't imagine reading the original post would've taken longer than that. (I'm really not trying to be a smartarse or anything so please forgive me if it comes through that way)

Cheers mate

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