Deep Dive: Partagas Lusitania

[El Presidente]

I promised Charles that we would do a deep dive on the Lusi this weekend 

 

 

Lusitania have been largely missing in action these past 6 months but the 2018 - 2021 that we have seen have been considered by many as some of the best examples in years. 

Let's talk Lusitania this weekend. 

• Do you like Lusi?
• Where does it stand in the ranks of the other existing DC? (Punch/HDM/RAG)
• Have you noticed a blend/flavour/body change over the years? If so, approximately when?
• How long does it take you to smoke a Lusitania?
• Do the poll!

Let's kick around Lusi 

 

[dobbs]

absolutely love the lusi. i usually claim it as my favorite cigar. head and shoulders over the ramon allones and the hoyo, haven't had a punch dc (or an slr for that matter), so partial answer there.

i've only been smoking it since '17, and some boxes smoke different from others, but not sure i could chalk it up to a blend change. maybe sometime i'll try the 109 version, but not holding my breath.

definitely takes me longer than 2 hours to smoke one, but always a pleasure. i usually get sweet and savory spices with some floral notes. sometimes a bit woody or earthy, but not strong or bad. tasting notes i have from an aso mar 17 box (smoked may 2020, sorry, i barely keep notes) are that there were some amaro and cola flavors, which i remember were awesome.

all said, it is a classic for a reason. great poll topic! i'm interested in hearing from others.

-donbs

[Kaptain Karl]

Lusi's are epic! Probably the best bang for your buck CC going right now. Consistently smokes in the 93-96 pointer range (for me and I'm not a particularly easy grader), 

My UEB '19 box was orange, coffee cake, honey, nuts and sweet spices. 

[mprach024]

Lusis are the quintessential habano with that undefinable twang.  It’s not a hyper car like an esplendido, it’s more like a Porsche.  Much easier to drive, still fast AF, and half the cost.  I’m always nervous I don’t have enough of these.  Pillows of rich sweet/spicy/twangy smoke with hints of coffee and croissant.  They always perform.  Of the DCs, its these number 1 with RAGs less than a boat length behind., followed by HDM then Punch.  While I love HDM and Punch DCs they fall way short of consistency and fullness of flavor.  

[Juliano88]

They're fantastic. Definitely a celebratory cigar. They smoke well young and they age well. They have that core Partagas profile but with a nice molasses sweetness. I have two 10 count dress boxes with a NOV 20 and DEC 20 and they are developing a nice fruit note and candy flavor in the final third. I smoke pretty slow to make sure I don't overheat the tobacco so a Lusi will take me about 2 1/2 hours to smoke. But I love them. Always have a box on deck. 

[Chas.Alpha]

I'm not going to reveal what I asked fearless leader in regards to the flavor profile, but I'm interested in what the rest of you find...

Thanks Rob!😀

[Corylax18]

• Yes, Very Very Much.
• The top 3, it depends on what I'm smoking at the time.
• I have noticed cigar to Cigar and box to box changes over the last 12 years, but I cant put my finger on any linear or abrupt blend change. 
• I stretched one out for about 2 hours 15 minutes on the zoom call last weekend. Around 2 hours is typical for me. 

[Nevrknow]

Lusis. My fan favorite. Only a box left and I hang on for dear life. They pop back up and I’m all over some!

[LizardGizmo]

For my money, it doesn't get better than a Lusi out of a 50cab, even with only a year or two of age. I find there to be an incredible variation in smoking experience when they're are stuffed in dress boxes.

I think the 2016-2017 Lusis were some of the weakest, and the young ones now are showing more potential than any I can remember. I have had Lusis as old as '91s, and the 2012-2015 and recent stock are my preferred.

I get through one in about 1hr45min. Alongside Sir Winston and 8-9-8 for my holy triumvirate of 🐐 cubans. 

I can't have enough cabinets in my humidors.

Lusi > RAG > Punch DC > Hoyo DC (tho the Hoyo is quite amazing when it's on - it just hits so infrequently for me - maybe 10% of the time).

[westg]

Probably the most painful cigar for me . Generally I do like them and love the size. I have smoked Lusi from several boxes and thought that they were very good . Given away cigars from those particular boxes and have been told they were the best cigars those people had ever smoked.  Catching up with Clive and Tony Roberto I will take Lusitania 😁

[RDB]

If I had more free time and an indoor smoking place, I’d smoke a lot of Lusis. I figure that the people making them know it’s proper fans smoking these big boys. Value is amazing, quality consistently high.

The transition from really mild at the start to the ass-kicking back third is quite something. I’m on holiday now, with one in my travel box. Hoping for the opportunity…

[Hammer Smokin']

how is leather missing from the description? 

but the flavour description selections show what I generally say. Everyone tastes something different on any cigar. Which is why I love reading tasting note reviews. Some people are so creative....and it all fits. 

[NSXCIGAR]

Lusi is certainly one of Partagas' best. In the last 10 years or so I think does a good job of blending both the standard line with the Serie line. I believe it is the most well-rounded Partagas model. It's like 50% Party Short and 50% PSD4.

Unfortunately, they seem to be trapped in the medium limbo. They vary from barely medium to just under. Rarely do they reach a solid medium or richer. All of the Prominentes have been toned down and Lusi is no exception. 

[Monterey]

#1  Punch DC

#2  Hoyo DC

#3  Luthy

(never had enough RAG to be able to rank)

I love all 3 and stock all 3.  2 hours 15 minutes'ish. 

I recently went thru 2 boxes of 2016, and they were amazing.  Dec/2016.  Have a cab of 2017's before I get to my newer cabs.

The 2016's had a lot of marshmallow flavor to them.  Sort of a toasted marshmallow thing.  I do not care for Partagas, it is my one of my few "I don't get cigars"  but Luthy is the exception.

 

<--My picture here has the 2 boxes of 2016 Luthy I got in Cuba.   Plus 2 boxes of Hoyo DC and a Cab of Punch DC.  Great first trip to Cuba back in 2017.  17 boxes in all.  Had to take a picture of me holding my first haul

[Çnote]

I've tried to try Lusi, but due to stuff, DCs in general have been hard to keep from getting unsmokable damage. Thankfully I'm in a better position now and will be looking to try one soon!

[RedLantern]

My favorite cigar of my limited experience. It's a 2.5+ hour smoke for me!

[Meklown]

wow 59 votes and up at 91%. gotta be one of the highest scoring cigars vs veguero being one of the lowest 

[anacostiakat]

Big fan of DC's in general.  Love to while away the time with one and a nice beverage while listening to some music.  I like pretty much all of them but have not gotten any in a while due to availability.  Got a notification that Lusi's were in the other day.  Went to look and found them upped in price considerable.  Sigh. . .

[Connoisseur Kim]

Lusi is one of my fav CCs and I can tell it's absolutely 3hr flavorful and wonderful 100pts Partagas cigar. I wish I have tons of Lusi boxes, since I'm a huge fan of long CCs such as DC, Lonsdale, and Panetela.

[BrightonCorgi]

Lusi is my least favorite of the in production DC's, but it's still a good cigar.  I "get it", but I doubt I will ever buy a 50 cab of them again.  Just another dress box once my current one is depleted.

[El Hoze]

I am a huge fan of Lusis, a benchmark cigar for me. I have loaded up on 50 cabs over the years.  

I’d call it a tie with Punch DC, depends on my mood. I have always found Hoyo DC completely boring, not good for a DC….interesting as I’d generally say I like Hoyo as a marca and much less so Partagas. Embarrassingly, I have only smoked a handful of RAGs over the years and always found them good but for whatever reason I have never owned a box. 

I find myself noticing the bell pepper thing more in recent years but it could just be more fresh in my nose or more fresh in my brain or maybe just getting better at picking it up. 

I have never timed myself but I am a slow smoker compared to most. Still have not met a cigar I could smoke in under 30 min. 

 

[Sir Diggamus]

I haven't had the experience of acquiring boxes and boxes of Lusis over my years of smoking, primarily because I like to buy what I generally have the time to smoke, and up until COVID lockdowns hit I rarely made a 2-3 hour commitment for a single cigar. That being said, I always liked to have a few around to smoke for a special occasion or if I had the infrequent day where I had the house to myself and nothing on the schedule. I am definitely looking forward to the carts opening again where I can put a few of these, a couple of RAGs, and a couple of RyJ Churhills all on a single order. 

The journey of a Lusitania for me is the best of what I experience in Partagas cigars, dialed back a bit in intensity, but with a long runway for flavors to develop and intermingle. Sweet spice, cream, cocoa, coffee, and bready notes tend to be the most dominant for me. But there are also definitely notes of earth & white pepper always in there. 

[Spaceman Spiff]

The most recent Luisi I had was out of a 50 cab I got last year I think? The date was 19 or 20 I believe and I was taken back at how dessert like the profile was....iirc it was all cream, butterscotch and toffee wrapped up in a consistent medium body.

[karp]

Yep, I get some caramel sweetness too. Also leather, and many flavour transitions over the 2.5 hours it takes to smoke. Favourite cigar overall, and judging by most of the comments generally popular. It would be nice if the same blend was offered in a Corona or Lonsdale but I guess the D4 comes close, sometimes.

Interesting to hear everyones comparisons to the other DCs! 

[Kaptain Karl]

2 hours ago, karp said:

Yep, I get some caramel sweetness too. Also leather, and many flavour transitions over the 2.5 hours it takes to smoke. Favourite cigar overall, and judging by most of the comments generally popular. It would be nice if the same blend was offered in a Corona or Lonsdale but I guess the D4 comes close, sometimes.

Interesting to hear everyones comparisons to the other DCs! 

 Corona Gorda would be spectacular 🤩