Fuente Opux X Belicoso XXX (CSSRW)

[djrey]

I have a small collection of Opus X from 2012-2014 when I was told they are gems for aging. Smoked very few but decided it was time to see if what I was told years ago was correct.

this one is beautifully built. Heavy and dense but a perfect draw. Starts out with mild hay and a touch of earthiness possibly hinting at the age. Almost mushroom like. It’s ok so far but nothing special.

This is a short cigar but man is it burning slow! I will do this in half’s cause it’s much the same.

Cedar like wood notes with some earth is the main drive in this cigar. It’s just touching medium bodied and the flavors for the most part stay the same. It’s overall boring. I’m guess I either aged this way too long or maybe opux X became duds long ago with the hype. Overall pretty eh experience. Points for build quality. Give me a party short any day.

85 pts.

[Enduin]

If it makes you feel better I had a practically identical experience with an Opus XXX Belicoso. I bought it in 2011 and smoked it somewhere around 2015. For mine the draw was a bit tight but the flavors were identical: cedary wood and some earth. I was extremely disappointed at the time and after getting to the end I wondered why I didn't just toss it after the first third... Since I smoked it with fewer years under the belt I don't think your issue was due to excessive aging. Maybe we both got duds but at the price point and with the consistency NCs can usually rely on, I decided to never buy another Opus. I know lots of people love them so that was a head scratcher...

[djrey]

14 minutes ago, Enduin said:

If it makes you feel better I had a practically identical experience with an Opus XXX Belicoso. I bought it in 2011 and smoked it somewhere around 2015. For mine the draw was a bit tight but the flavors were identical: cedary wood and some earth. I was extremely disappointed at the time and after getting to the end I wondered why I didn't just toss it after the first third... Since I smoked it with fewer years under the belt I don't think your issue was due to excessive aging. Maybe we both got duds but at the price point and with the consistency NCs can usually rely on, I decided to never buy another Opus. I know lots of people love them so that was a head scratcher...

Good to know yet concerning you had a similar experience! Sad pet is I probably have 20 more Opux X in different vitolas. Maybe a cigar to look into selling..

[Enduin]

If you already have a bunch of OpusX I would definitely at least smoke another one in a different vitola and see how it goes. And I would suggest you to smoke it as soon as possible so that you can write off other variables like season/weather, your palate changing, etc. If the second one is also disappointing then maybe it's not a bad idea to consider selling/trading the to someone who likes them...

[Lfhard]

Nice review. Before I got into Cubans Opus X 888 was my favorite. I wasn’t that big on the opus Belicoso but the 888 hit the spot. I still have a half a box I bought 3 years ago. I’m hoping they are what I remember. I haven’t had a NC in 3 years so now I want to give it a try see if I still like them. 

[liquid360]

I have a bunch of opus x from 1999… you can see how much it changed in the photo. They are remarkably well!! Awesome cigar!

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[djrey]

On 6/5/2022 at 11:48 AM, Enduin said:

If you already have a bunch of OpusX I would definitely at least smoke another one in a different vitola and see how it goes. And I would suggest you to smoke it as soon as possible so that you can write off other variables like season/weather, your palate changing, etc. If the second one is also disappointing then maybe it's not a bad idea to consider selling/trading the to someone who likes them...

Good idea. I’ll get to some more samples over the next month 

[jaybo41]

What I've always found with Opus is they are for the most part one dimensional.  Most of the NW cigars I enjoy are.  The nuances are there, but they are very, very, very subtle.  Belicoso XXX and 888 are my favorites in that line.  I've found aging them takes the potency out of if, so if you're into the nic-bombs, smoke them young.