RA Club Allones: ROM-SEP-15 (MM&SRW)

[StogieSteve23]

RA Club Allones: ROM-SEP-15 (MM&SRW)

Opening Remarks: Got some good news with a raise and more responsibility at work yesterday.  Left the office early and shot an enjoyable round of golf. Post round, picked up a carnitas burrito and carne asada taco from our favorite Mexican takeout place. My lady was out with some girls for dinner, so I had time to myself to sit back and enjoy a good smoke with some rum I’ve become fond of.  Turned out to be a great Friday.

The Club Allones is a stick I enjoy very much.  I’ve always had good luck with it and due to the day’s events, I went for something a little better than normal (for me).  Paired it with Brugal Anejo with a big cube.

The cigar felt perfectly rolled with no soft spots. Beautiful typical dark EL wrapper. 

Typical straight cut of the cap. Cold draw had a perfect restriction and yielded notes of plums, raisins and a sweet tobacco note.

First Third: Right off the bat I’m hit with a delicious flavor of freshly baked chocolate fudge. The fudge only lasted for a few puffs, then makes way for apricot and an interesting pine note. The smoke production and combustion are somewhat lacking at this time which I don’t quite enjoy, but it worked. The combination of the rum and cigar left a delicious flat vanilla flavor, much like cream soda.  Halfway through the first third, the burn starts to get wonky as hell.  I wanted to power through it and see if it worked itself out. The retrohale leaves my senses with a clean lavender note.  The smoke smelled like a fresh cup of Swiss Miss hot chocolate.  

Second Third: Lots of leather in the second third.  I didn’t have many notes here, because this was the main thing I noticed for this entire part of the cigar.  The burn worked itself out, although still nowhere near perfect. By this time, I noted that the car was certainly improperly bunched, therefore causing the aforementioned burn issues and an almost wind tunnel effect. Roasted chestnuts, black licorice and dark chocolate make an appearance, while leather remains dominant.

Final Third: The burn kept fixing itself and turned out to be much better toward the final third.  Cinnamon swirl and Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal are what I notice.  I think its partially the rum, but its making for an enjoyable ending to the stick.  The last few puffs are reminiscent of the fresh baked cream puffs made by a family friend of ours.  Faint sweetness with an airy pastry like finish.  

Closing Remarks: Despite the burn issues in the beginning, the cigar worked itself out without me ever having to touch it up.  There was a subtle progression of sweetness, although not overpowering. I know people thing that because its an EL, they should all be perfect.  They’re not.  Not that this one was bad, but I’ve had better.  The Brugal was a delicious pairing of sweetness and smoke which caused me to overindulge a little bit.  An early tee time this morning left me paying a bit..

Burn: 3/5 (Decent burn – canoed early for the first inch and a half then worked it self out)

Construction: 2/5 (Deceiving – no soft spots to the touch, but visual signs of poor bunching during the canoe)  

Flavor: 3/5 (Satisfying but not overly complex – fudge, vanilla, leather, cinnamon, cream puff finish)

Smell: 5/5 (Yummy – cup of hot chocolate)

Wrapper: 5/5 (Beautiful dark EL wrapper – minimal veins but smooth)

Overall Score: 18/25

[griller]

Again, you're crushing these reviews!!! The 'stache is epic!!!

[Bri Fi]

Congrats on the job raise! 

[Bagman]

I want to say, who cares about that cigar.  It's that burrito on the bottom right that has my mouth watering.  Recently moved from So.Cal and man I miss good Mexican food.

[Connoisseur Kim]

Great review @StogieSteve23! Yer stache looks same and epic as mine buddy 😀.

[StogieSteve23]

14 hours ago, Bri Fi said:

Congrats on the job raise! 

Thank you! Knew it was coming but didnt know when.  It was a nice surprise. 

10 hours ago, Monterey said:

I want to say, who cares about that cigar.  It's that burrito on the bottom right that has my mouth watering.  Recently moved from So.Cal and man I miss good Mexican food.

HAHA! The burrito made it all worth it.  Ended up saving half for the next day, but got hungry later in the night so I popped it in the toaster oven and it was just as good if not better than when fresh.  All those flavors and ingredients joined together.  Just like a cigar, better with age?? 😂.  There is some good Mexican food here but you need to search for it.  Lots of great Cuban spots in south Florida (obviously).

6 hours ago, Connoisseur Kim said:

Great review @StogieSteve23! Yer stache looks same and epic as mine buddy 😀.

Thanks Kimster, it keeps things interesting haha. 

[Connoisseur Kim]

1 hour ago, StogieSteve23 said:

Thanks Kimster, it keeps things interesting haha. 

Much agreed buddy! Hope that you keep this epic stache buddy 😄