SCDLH El Principe LGR DIC 17 (PSRW)

[djrey]

Any weather above 40 F with some sun means it's a cigar day. I reach for my third stick from what is shaping into a  really nice box of EP's. 

We start off with a blast of woodiness. It seems to be a bit darker than your regular cedar notes typically experienced with CC. Construction and draw are perfect as the woodiness builds with toasty creamy flavors. 

Second third takes the same core flavors and adds even deeper notes. There is a distinct malt flavor and a touch of chocolate. The sweetness is there but not so much maple syrup that these are famous for. Think more along the line of molasses. 

90 pts. 

Drink pairing: Nespresso Napoli run on the Lungo setting with a splash of whole milk. This creamy dark roast really held up well to the darker and fairly intense flavors of the EP. 

Why will this be a 2021 star? From what I have read EP's seem to do well young. This being my first box I do not have much experience with aging them. This cigar however shows many signs of continuing to build with some time. There is some tannic bite from the woodiness, a solid medium body and I think that those deep molasses sweet notes will begin to unwind and evolve. 

[NSXCIGAR]

4 hours ago, djrey said:

It seems to be a bit darker than your regular cedar notes typically experienced with CC

LGR El Principes had a lot of this. More tannic and rustic. I wasn't a fan.

Luckily, RAT codes are returning to normal.

[djrey]

3 hours ago, NSXCIGAR said:

LGR El Principes had a lot of this. More tannic and rustic. I wasn't a fan.

Luckily, RAT codes are returning to normal.

It’s funny because I actually really enjoy it! 

[NSXCIGAR]

1 minute ago, djrey said:

It’s funny because I actually really enjoy it! 

It was the bitterness that got me. I'd never had El Principe with that in it before the 18-19 LGR codes. I don't mind ammonia so much as the bitterness. There's a touch of ammonia in some RAT JUL 20 La Fuerzas I just got and it's not a problem for me and will certainly disappear by summer. But they aren't bitter. 

I tend to find the same thing in RyJ Cazadores which is why I don't like them. I get a lot of bitterness. Had a bad run of RASCC in late 13-early 14 that were awfully bitter. 

[djrey]

13 hours ago, NSXCIGAR said:

I tend to find the same thing in RyJ Cazadores

This is actually one on my list. I would have to imagine the bitterness would die out with some age. Maybe just tannins in the leaf. I have found some decent bitterness in NC brands such as Tatuaje that after 5 years it seems to meld into the blend pretty well. But then again, maybe my palate just isn't very sensitive to it. 

[PuroDan]

21 hours ago, djrey said:

Any weather above 40 F with some sun means it's a cigar day. I reach for my third stick from what is shaping into a  really nice box of EP's. 

We start off with a blast of woodiness. It seems to be a bit darker than your regular cedar notes typically experienced with CC. Construction and draw are perfect as the woodiness builds with toasty creamy flavors. 

Second third takes the same core flavors and adds even deeper notes. There is a distinct malt flavor and a touch of chocolate. The sweetness is there but not so much maple syrup that these are famous for. Think more along the line of molasses. 

90 pts. 

Drink pairing: Nespresso Napoli run on the Lungo setting with a splash of whole milk. This creamy dark roast really held up well to the darker and fairly intense flavors of the EP. 

Why will this be a 2021 star? From what I have read EP's seem to do well young. This being my first box I do not have much experience with aging them. This cigar however shows many signs of continuing to build with some time. There is some tannic bite from the woodiness, a solid medium body and I think that those deep molasses sweet notes will begin to unwind and evolve. 

I have a box LGR NOV 17 and they smoke as you describe minus the bitterness. Very distinct malt flavor. It seems as though they are not as sweet in 17-18 as before and even now with the 19 i have smoked. I actually like these 17's the best out of all the most recent principes i have smoked. The sweetness is muted in these but may increase with age. The malt flavor is what i enjoy most. Very good cigar

[djrey]

1 minute ago, PuroDan said:

I have a box LGR NOV 17 and they smoke as you describe minus the bitterness. Very distinct malt flavor. It seems as though they are not as sweet in 17-18 as before and even now with the 19 i have smoked. I actually like these 17's the best out of all the most recent principes i have smoked. The sweetness is muted in these but may increase with age. The malt flavor is what i enjoy most. Very good cigar

Haven't had an EP other than these 17's but I agree. Great sticks that I would imagine will only improve. 

[NSXCIGAR]

7 hours ago, djrey said:

I would have to imagine the bitterness would die out with some age.

In my experience, since 2000, it really doesn't go away. I suppose it's possible, as a lot can change with age, but when I encounter bitterness I've come to believe it's an issue with the leaf. Either lower-tier leaf or problems in fermentation or processing of the leaf. Typically, the bitterness is uncharacteristic of the cigar and is very limited (either a box or a month or two). In rare cases like the LGR El Principe it can last for a year or more. Another notable example would be late 13-early 14 RASCC and late 18 HU Connie 1. Clearly, this appears to be an issue with a particular batch of leaf which would lead me to believe there was a processing issue. 

The only cigar that baffles me is the Cazadores. They've always been bitter to me. Obviously, the issue isn't in the processing. It tastes to ME that they use lower-quality leaf in them. But the lovers of the Cazadores would obviously push back hard on that. Nonetheless, I think the Cazadores are one step up from JLP. So personally, my belief is that it's likely they aren't using the best leaf. I could be wrong, but that's the only conclusion I can draw based on 20 years of sampling them.

[djrey]

50 minutes ago, NSXCIGAR said:

In my experience, since 2000, it really doesn't go away. I suppose it's possible, as a lot can change with age, but when I encounter bitterness I've come to believe it's an issue with the leaf. Either lower-tier leaf or problems in fermentation or processing of the leaf. Typically, the bitterness is uncharacteristic of the cigar and is very limited (either a box or a month or two). In rare cases like the LGR El Principe it can last for a year or more. Another notable example would be late 13-early 14 RASCC and late 18 HU Connie 1. Clearly, this appears to be an issue with a particular batch of leaf which would lead me to believe there was a processing issue. 

The only cigar that baffles me is the Cazadores. They've always been bitter to me. Obviously, the issue isn't in the processing. It tastes to ME that they use lower-quality leaf in them. But the lovers of the Cazadores would obviously push back hard on that. Nonetheless, I think the Cazadores are one step up from JLP. So personally, my belief is that it's likely they aren't using the best leaf. I could be wrong, but that's the only conclusion I can draw based on 20 years of sampling them.

Thanks for the thoughts on this. These EP no doubt have some power to be laid down. I have two boxes with the same code and wrapper. I’ll continue to sample and report my findings to see what happens!