2025 FOH International Blind Tasting Competition Review Thread.

[ayedfy]

Cigar 1. Opens sweet, dessert cream and berry sweetness. Midpoint the sweetness develops, bringing fresh figs and orange marmalade. Touches of aniseed and peppermint. Ends with a damp woodiness, toasted sourdough, and sugarcane juice. Very tight draw throughout the entire thing. 90 point, would be higher on flavour alone if the draw/construction didn’t annoy me.

[El Presidente]

No idea 😁

[vvvendo1969]

Cigar #1

< Before lighting a fire >

Length 124mm

RG 50

Box pressed, it seemed to me.

Almost no smell

Quite rough construction. A part of head wrapper is slightly broken.

Color is between Colorado and Colorado maduro.

I stored this cigar with 69% BOVEDA in ziplock in my wine cellar 14 degrees Celsius.

 < 1st 3rd >

Pairing with Coke.

The first puff.

Yes, I have smoked this cigar many times. I am sure.

Very decent sweetness with a bit fruitiness and cedar.

Draw is very good and a relatively loose.

Not so even burn.

Very tasty and very good cigar for me.

Creamy and soft.

The body is light to medium.

 < 2nd 3rd >

Pairing with hot lemon tea with sugar.

More cedar and more fruit.

Decent sweetness is same as 1st 3rd.

A bit orange nuance.

Ash is mottled pattern, black and gray.

Ash is not so hard but this is apparently a long filler cigar, IMO.

 < Final 3rd >

Pairing with Ardbeg CORRYVRECKAN.

Same flavor as 2nd 3rd but deeper and more complex.

Again I feel this is a very good cigar and I love it.

Now I am happy! Very happy indeed.

 < Conclusion >

Judging from my personal experience, I think Cigar No.1 is RASS or ELDM Choix Supreme or SLR Regios.

My conclusion is that this is RASS because Choix Supreme has stronger body and Regios has a sense of some oriental herb, I think.

Last but not least, I express my deepest thanks to El Presidente and his team for giving me this very precious and interesting opportunity.

I also would like to cheer for the other participants of this blind tasting.

Thank you very much.

[Bijan]

On 5/24/2025 at 8:00 PM, LordAnubis said:

I’ll be the first to post my guesses so here they are. I’m as sure as a Bitcoin bro promoting the new shitcoin that has just 20x-ed. 
 

Cigar 1 - Partagas D4

Cigar 2 - Bolivar RC

Cigar 3 - Hoyo Epicure 2

Cigar 4 - RyJ wide churchill

Cigar 5 - SLR Regios

As promised I'll have a go:

1. VR famosos (cast my vote)

2. Epi 2

3. Connie 1

4. RyJ ex. 4

5. Boli PC

We'll see how many I get right this time...

[DaBoot]

Cigar 2-

Not the best flavor profile. Very light, below medium, and no flavor, maybe a wooden pin. Stayed this way till the halfway point, then pitched it. Great looking wrapper though!!! Had high hopes, didn’t deliver. Not much to go off of here. Reminds me of a bad box of RyJ short from 2018.

Guess: RyJ Short Churchill 

[Montezüma]

CIGAR 2

Cigar 2 is a much lighter-bodied smoke compared to Cigar 1, with contrasting characteristics. Its a refined, nuanced, balanced smoke with a rather loose draw, producing plenty of smoke. There is a pronounced nuttyness to this cigar with modest strength.

Epicure No 2? Short de Punch?

I have decided to stop pondering and just enjoy this beautiful cigar. Thanks again FOH for sending!

[DrCaffeinated]

I realized I never posted my review of Cigar 1, so forgive a double-review here. Also forgot to take a photo of the first cigar. Oh well.

CIGAR 1

Cold draw: stewed fruit, cocoa powder, and hay.

First 3rd: wisps of smoke emerge from what feels like an over-packed cigar. Barnyard, prune, and chocolate on the palate. Very funky. I’ve had this cigar many times before. I know the flavors, the odd burn, and the resistant draw. Too bad my memory sucks these days. I’m sure my brain of 10 or 20 years ago would already have this pegged. Baking chocolate and dark stewed fruits round out the first third.

Second 3rd: youth is showing. Chocolate, hay, and the prune note is returning, but everything seems out of balance. It’s like when my kids were first helping me in the kitchen: they used the right ingredients, but couldn’t measure a level teaspoon for the life of ‘em. We ate the finished products anyway. A blast of sweetness and a perfume of plum catches me off guard at the halfway point making me second guess, well, everything. S**t.

Final 3rd: I’m sure I’ve never dipped a plum in chocolate before, but that’s what I’m getting here. There’s also a bit of funk that my mind can’t seem to articulate as anything but  “Cuban.” Not helpful, brain. -10 points for Gryffendor. Plum turns to cherry for a few puffs, the bitterness and strength begin to crescendo.

Concluding thoughts: This cigar is like a movie that wants you to think Person A is the killer, but at some point along the way you begin to suspect Person B. When it turns out it was actually Person C the whole theater groans. Cigar 1 wants me to think it’s a RASS, but the plum and funk have me thinking VR Famosos. I’m going with Person C and ready to groan when it turns out that this movie didn’t have a twist ending after all. 

Of note: what I want this to be doesn’t align with the ring gauge when I measured it. Maybe my ruler is wrong. Cue Phoebe Buffay: Maybe ALL the rulers are wrong.

 

CIGAR 2

Beautifully constructed, perfectly applied cap, no soft spots or bumps. Seems to be the prettiest of the five.

Cold draw: perfect resistance, but I’m not getting any particular flavors of note. That’s no help.

 

First 3rd: cream, wood, and a hint of cherries. This is going to be a Blake cigar (oh yeah, hi. I’m Blake). An inch in and I’m getting coffee, cream, and shortbread cookie. Burn is perfect. I want to take my time with this. Coffee continues with a hint of citrus just flirting in the background. Yeah, I know what this is. 

I’ve almost never describe a cigar’s flavor as “mild” (strength? Sure). More often than not, what one person calls “mild” I just consider subtle. Those are often the cigars I find most satisfying and interesting, so tossing off something like that as “mild” feels a bit incomplete to me - like calling a Brahms quartet “simple” because it’s not very loud (that sentence hurts my brain). At any rate, I wouldn’t call this cigar “mild.”

Second 3rd: lady fingers dipped in medium roast coffee. There’s a hint of walnut and orange peel in the background. Beautiful. I almost hope this isn’t what I think it is; it would be fun to have a new favorite! Creamy smoke texture and flavors reminiscent of cappuccino close out the second third.

Final 3rd: coffee, cream, cocoa powder, and the lightest hint of orange peel. Cigar 1 was a mess. Cigar 2 is a cracker. 

[El Presidente]

Tick Tock good people. Get them in 

[Boxer31]

Lit up 3-5 this weekend. Thought I knew what #3 was before lighting, but then after while smoking not even close and then it did not seem like a robusto, has to be 48. #4 a little plugged but think seemed familiar. #5 guessing it was a 48, don’t think I have had it before so complete guess.

[Grimlock]

Cigar 1

Rustic and veiny wrapper with no sheen. Very tightly packed. Some of the filler has a rosado hue. Sweet floral notes on the foot like chamomile tea or honeysuckle. Wrapper blemish at the top near the cap. Tried 3 small cuts. No draw at all. The loosely applied caps all came off. Hopefully it does not unravel when I go at it with the perfecdraw. 

1/3: Initial notes are very light with floral undertones. A pronounced cinnamon note appears. Ash is holding on at an inch. A little flaky but not like a short filler. 

2/3 Faint floral notes remain. Cinnamon is there but dialed back. Does not smoke like a very young cigar, smooth delivery. Ash finally falls in my lap at roughly 2" long. Cigar is rock hard from the cap down an inch. Draw is beginning to tighten. A little more work with the perfecdraw. Smoke is creamy, leaving an oily coating in my mouth. Cinnamon is back in full force and strength is picking up. Paring this with sparkling water. 

3/3 Floral notes have faded a bit. Mostly cream, cinnamon and toast and touch of leather in the last inch. Faint floral notes at the nub with anise. Smoke time roughly 65 min. 

[11BNMR]

Cigar 1 Condensed Notes:

49/64 inch x 124.3 mm (Robusto)

Pairing: Old Fashioned (Four Roses Single Barrel)

Music: Sonny Clark - Cool Struttin'

A@C: Funky barnyard

CD: Leather and toasty tobacco - Draw is a little tight but the cigar is not overly packed

Appearance: Box pressed / Rustic wrapper on the darker side / Decent cap construction / Veiny wrapper leaf

1/3 - Excellent combustion / flavor is very light in body / salt and some light baking spice / Ash is very white with a touch of gray

2/3 - Lemon and citrus notes / Baking spice / Leather / Ash holds up well with nice burn cone after first break / Earthiness / Gravel

3/3 - Leather / Gravel / Cigar becomes harsh towards the last inch

I think I know what it is. Good luck to everyone and thank you FOH team for putting this competition on!!!

[Montezüma]

10 hours ago, DrCaffeinated said:

Cue Phoebe Buffay: Maybe ALL the rulers are wrong.

Nice review! If only the cigar was as vintage as the quote 😂😂

[GavLew79]

On 5/29/2025 at 9:03 AM, SUP8333 said:

Cigar #1. I hate it. I'll never buy it 

Try not to make this judgement on one example, of one box code, of one year. Seriously, they vary so much, the one I had was superb, and you can see all spectrum of answers on here, from dog s**t, to gold.

Try another one, when the answer is revealed. 

[garifo]

Cold Draw: Tangy, with notes of citrus peel and salinity. Hints of pepper linger in the back of the throat. The lips pick up a buttery, oily texture from a thick wrapper.

First Third: The cigar opens with a continuation of tangy citrus and hints of salt. Smoke output is light. Pepper remains subtle, sitting in the background. The buttery, oily texture on the lips continues.

Second Third: Woody and earthy notes begin to emerge. Pepper builds slightly, now present on the back of the throat. The profile remains creamy and smooth, with the citrus still lingering. The burn required a few touch-ups and was less than ideal.

Final Third: Pepper becomes more pronounced, lingering noticeably in the throat. Woody and earthy notes, while the citrus has faded out. The buttery texture stays consistent, and the smoke remains smooth throughout.

I had trouble with the burn and had to touch it up multiple times, though the cigar never went out. I’ll attribute the issue to the humid weather during the smoke. 

[Matai]

Well cigar number one-cold draw was nice and smooth, so I started off with lighting but then I don’t think the cigar gods enjoyed watching me and blew the cigar out of my hand, a tear fell from my face as I watched it slam into the ground. I picked it up ignoring the large gash and relit. Felt as if I was smoking a cigar with a giant hole. I cut back a bit and tried again, same thing. Unfortunately cigar 1 was a dud for me 😭

[El Presidente]

3 hours ago, Matai said:

Well cigar number one-cold draw was nice and smooth, so I started off with lighting but then I don’t think the cigar gods enjoyed watching me and blew the cigar out of my hand, a tear fell from my face as I watched it slam into the ground. I picked it up ignoring the large gash and relit. Felt as if I was smoking a cigar with a giant hole. I cut back a bit and tried again, same thing. Unfortunately cigar 1 was a dud for me 😭

Two points come to mind.

 

1. Get your pick in. Looking at the results...you have about as much chance of getting it right as the punter who delved into a full review. 

2. Where in the world do you live that a wind can blow your cigar out of your hand? 

[MagicalBikeRide]

I typically blame the wind when I’m outdoors and just drop a cigar - helps me feel better about myself.😅

[SUP8333]

On 6/2/2025 at 7:22 PM, GavLew79 said:

Try not to make this judgement on one example, of one box code, of one year. Seriously, they vary so much, the one I had was superb, and you can see all spectrum of answers on here, from dog s**t, to gold.

Try another one, when the answer is revealed. 

Agreed, I narrowed it down to 2 guesses but one I particularly hate over 3 different box codes and year so I put that one 🤣

[El Presidente]

I hope you have all put your selections in for Cigar 1. I or Lisa will post up the results in the am.