Cigar Fight Club Round Two: HdM Epi 1 vs. Punch Punch

[PapaDisco]

(sorry for the crappy pics! I can never make the iPhone camera work for me in low light!)

Saigon

March 11, 2014

Tasting Notes: Hoyo De Monterrey Epicure No. 1, corona gorda

Box Code: MUS MAY 13

SLB of 25, stored at 65%rH and ziplocked. No additional home freezing.

Location: Sunset, rooftop bar of the Rex Hotel in Saigon. Light breeze 90F 40% humidity. Clear. Time from light to finish: 1h 20min

Colorado Maduro wrapper; elegant, fine veining; very detailed, slight tapering cap. Nice sheen to the wrapper. Punch cut the cap.

Cold aromas: sweet, dark chocolate from the wrapper, well composted barnyard from the foot. Draw is slightly loose of medium.

First Third: A bit sharp at light up. Mellowed to a faint, dark chocolate, bread dough, light notes of damp hay and a buttery follow. Copious volumes of smoke, a slight spiciness that goes to harsh if over puffed. Dark grey ash holds well to the end of the first third. Burn likes to get a bit crooked but then magically self-corrects. The scent of the smoke off this cigar is just spectacular: clean hay, new, dry, lightly aromatic cedar predominate. You could happily sit next to this thing burning in the ash tray all day. The most enlightening of incense.

Second Third: Bread dough matures into freshly baked bread; light, white pepper is now making itself known. The stick is burning hotter now and the ash falls off every ¾”. The aroma of the smoke has moved to cedar overlaid with sandalwood. Despite the pepper flavors, the harshness has left and can’t be drawn out of the cigar despite it running hot. Trailing flavors of leather and walnuts. Minor burn touchup done, but perhaps not really needed.

Final Third: Halfway through the final third hints of the original sharpness started to show again, but it was manageable. Baked bread flavors were joined by tones of dried hardwood and toasted black walnuts. White pepper moved to black. Cedar scents in the smoke disappear leaving only sandalwood and dry hemlock. Cigar got a bit hot to comfortably nub, but the smoke stayed full, billowy and not too harsh through to the end.

I am very much looking forward to these as they mature. To me it was a medium strength smoke, but I’m something of a lightweight when it comes to cigars so maybe the rest of you would call this light to medium. This cigar was the first of this SLB that I sampled and it performed better than the first stick out of a similarly dated H Upmann Conni 1 SLB that I tried last night.

Saigon

March 11, 2014

Tasting Notes: Punch Punch, corona gorda

Box Code: ERO JUL ‘09

Box of 10 Tubos, ROTT from Duty Free HKG, Storage conditions unknown in the warehouse (formerly was unhumidified) but the walk-in humidor is now conditioned.

Location: Evening, rooftop bar of the Rex Hotel in Saigon. Light breeze (8mph) 82F 48% humidity. Clear. Time from light to finish: 1h 10min

Colorado Maduro wrapper; excellent construction with light veins; very detailed, blunt cap. High, oily sheen to the wrapper. Punch cut the cap.

Cold aromas: Massive, dry hay bale and bitter, dark chocolate from the wrapper, sweet, dark honey and molasses from the foot. Cold draw was medium with a bitter chocolate and coffee flavor. Despite wetting the cap, the wrapper below the cap evidenced a fine crack with even slight pressure from the punch, evidence of the dreaded Punch bad construction? Or excessively dry storage? Unknown. The cigar did not sound dry.

First Third: On lighting, the wrapper at the foot also split and flaked. Oh oh. Is this stick not even going to get out of the corner for this bout?? Thankfully the first draw was all dark clover honey, walnuts and hay. Not even a hint of harshness and huge volumes of cool, creamy smoke right from the start. Man no matter how hard I puff on this stick I can’t drive it to any kind of a bite. Let’s see if it can keep this up to the final round.

The ash is a pretty, dark grey but doesn’t hang on the cigar long, dropping unaided after the first inch as the stick sits on the ashtray rim. Still, the burn is perfectly straight even in the breeze. The aroma of the smoke is pleasant, but can’t match the Hoyo. It is reminiscent of sandalwood in scent and feel, but just not as strong as the Hoyo.

Second Third: The honey flavors fade a bit and bread dough starts to appear. The light walnut flavor holds and a back taste of hay finishes each draw. The aroma of the smoke has matured to a lovely wood and dry leather, although the volume has eased from the massive amounts in the first third. The draw has tightened just a bit and it feels like the punch cut is wrong for this smoke; concentrating the draw too much and adding a tinge of harsh. I apply a guillotine of Saigon street steel to the cap and now all is right with the world again: smooth draw and an easy, creamy distribution of smoke on the palate; but the wrapper threatens to unravel. We’ll see if it holds on to the end or comes apart and gives the Hoyo a TKO.

Final Third: The Punch Punch doesn’t just evolve in the final third, it literally transforms into a completely different set of tastes. While still smoking cool, the ash is hanging longer now, like a proper Cuban. The honey flavor is completely gone and replaced with a thick cream and pepper combination that is surreal. The draw is still medium with a serious weight to the feel, almost like warm steel on the palate. The light walnut hints have given way to roasted chestnut and the smoke smells like a delightful pile of dry redwood sawdust. Crazy, just totally crazy. The wrapper continues to threaten a catastrophic failure at the cap, but judicious placement of thumb and index finger holds the danger at bay. The bright, spicy pepper on the draw goes deeper now, all the way to the back of the throat, but never harsh. It makes me want to call this stick medium full, but no, it’s solid medium. The burn was absolutely perfect from start to finish, requiring no relights or touchups. That rarely happens on this breezy deck. The wrapper held on (assisted by me leaving the band on!) to the end, but it was touch and go.

In this bout, the Punch Punch wins on points owing to its flavor complexity tour de force, and in spite of the thrilling performance of its dark, oily (but flaking) wrapper. It’s absolutely surprising how much cooler this corona gorda smoked compared to the Hoyo, and I smoked it somewhat faster. No doubt the Punch Punch was assisted by its age, but then I suspect it’s also had something of a hard life. Looking forward to a rematch when the Hoyo gets a few more years on it.

Saigon

March 11, 2014

[Stanislaw]

HAHA LOVE IT!! nice review and thanks! how much time did you have between smokes? Did you feel you needed to cleanse your palette before lighting the Punch Punch?

[PapaDisco]

I ran an errand (about 1 hour) in between, but really could have just rolled right in to the second stogie. Both sticks were grand but different. I would recommend them both. Was drinking a Capiroska (lime, ice, sugar, vodka) with both mostly because of the heat. I think either stick would do better with a scotch or armagnac. Fun place, nice time.

[Knilas]

What an entertaining slant on a cigar review! Thoroughly enjoyed it. You have a way with words, for sure! Thanks!

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