Monte No. 4 - Unknown Box Code (MRW2)

[Thatsze]

Purchased this as a sixer on 24:24. Other 5 varied from mediocre to good. I smoked these far faster than I would have liked, it appears Montecristo is my favorite marca. Lets take a look at this cigar. 

Construction is perfect, right amount of firmness. Band slipped right off. Wrapper has a beautiful sheen and milk chocolate color, very toothy as well. A few light specs tarnish an otherwise perfect cigar.

 

First few draws reveal spice, wood, and coffee. Coffee quickly comes to dominate the profile. Less than half an inch in and cocoa starts to come into play. Pleasant mocha flavors, strength is medium with a mellow woody aftertaste. Retrohale is spicy, but retains the mellow cocoa and coffee notes. Burn line has self corrected. Looks like I saved the best for last.

Coming into the second third I purge the cigar. Wood notes return with the purge, intermingling with rich chocolate notes and a vague hint of spice. Sublime, like hot chocolate on a christmas morning. Notes remain largely the same for the rest of this third, with coffee notes returning towards the end. Another purge reveals toasted tobacco. 

 

Coming into the final third is an interplay between coffee, cocoa, and toasted notes. The closer to the end the burn becomes, the spicier the smoke gets.

 

I've enjoyed these very much, but the consistency is lacking. Some were exceptional, others were less than stellar, however I never felt like putting one down before its time. This was the best of the lot, I'd give it an A-. Great cigar, did everything well. Only real complaints are a lack of complexity, with this vitola that's to be expected. Really throughout the smoke there were four notes, much of the change throughout the cigar was based upon which note was dominant. With that said, the interplay between these four notes was exceptional, I'd come back to these regularly, and I think I will, I'm sure to pick a box of these up when the time comes. I highly recommend any new smoker try these and the No. 2. 

 

A-. Solid cigar; good, not great.