TX Duo Review - LFD Litto Gomez Diez Small Batch 2019

[Çnote]

@Capn_Jackson My apologies bud, I know this may take a minute to get on your schedule, but I can't wait any longer. It's midnight on a weekday, let's smoke a 165mmx52 toro extra!

The specs on this are crazy. 2012 vintage estate grown Dominican puro with a pelo de oro wrapper. Thanks, Halfwheel!

The wrapper and cold draw show wet forest floor and decomposing pine needles. The 1st puffs are rich oak furniture and lump charcoal. The descent into madness begins with paprika and salty caramel, touching into chocolate and hazelnuts. I can only hope this lasts a few minutes before mushroom demiglace becomes the primary flavor, so savory and mouthfilling it's sweet rich tobacco. I struggle to only puff hard and often enough to keep this lit. The retro is smooth chocolate and coffee, but the mouth is gravy and Yorkshire pudding. 

At about an inch in, this pivots into a Twix bar. Why not? It was 80 degrees or so at sunset, muggy with an early morning storm coming, but this is smoking like a tank, razor burn line and ash like cement. Cinnamon apple sauce? The retro is silky smooth. It becomes peach pie and hot ash falling adds to my shock. I'm shocked again as this is now oak fired whole hog barbecue, meat sweats and crackling included.

Getting into the 2nd3rd (?!?), this becomes more the classic Dominican puro to me, the best concept of a bundle of burning leaves you can think of. Cigar flavored cigar. The retros are getting a little too rough, the palate loaded with sweet paprika and a hint of veal veloute. If Carlito is the Toymaker, is Litto Willy Wonka? I'm afraid I'll turn into a blueberry...

A minor touchup at about 1/2 way, just to straighten out the burn. The thunder is rolling in fast and the temp has dropped 10 degrees since I started. No man controls the winds.

Getting big and strong, espresso and dark chocolate join in the now spicy red pepper, classic powerhouse NC. Just past halfway. Smooth enough to retro again, now the nose is cumin and mushroom while the palate is bitter cocoa and cafe au lait. Da flippty flop!

The 3rd3rd opens with tres leches cake. Not a hint of salt or savoriness, just sweet cream and soft cake. An IV drip of caramel condensed milk. It's as soft and mellow as anything I can remember smoking. I puff a touch too hard and fast for red pepper laced olive oil and pan grille to become the tone. I slow down and get some Calabrian pepper relish and burrata vibe. It settles into ginger creme cake, a nice combination, as I approach the band. The burn is getting ugly but under control, it's gotten distinctly cool and damp in the last few minutes.

After taking off the band, we're back to platonic cigar, a delightful bunch of burning leaves, rich heady tobacco goodness. The inner band is yellow with aged oil. A touch of earth and leather kick their way in. I'm very upset that my local taco plug has taken lengua off the menu, that would be perfect after this. I wouldn't be surprised if this is the most controversial thought in this review.

About 2 inches to go, and I'm reminded I'm smoking an LFD. A powerful rush of espresso laden earth and leather come to the forefront, backed by lashes of raspberry jam and a hint of dark chocolate. The retro is driftwood. The rain has started and the burn is u.g.l.y. A couple of pinholes in the wrapper show from being shipped as singles and rattling around in storage. (We have too many cigars, Jackson.) Another touchup and we're back on track. 

Getting into the nub, it's decadent ganache with a whisper of Angostura. Over extracted earl grey and cream gone cold. I struggle to keep it cool and lit. Lip tingling long pepper becomes the major vibe, with dense roasted tobacco and hazelnut skins in the background. I'm committed to the fingertip burning zone.

This doesn't disappoint with Reese's cup action and gun-oil soaked leather. The tingle is reminiscent of Sichuan hotpot, not spicy just numbing. The last puffs show some buttered pumpernickel and sweet potato pie to round out a whirlwind.

94 and I'm exhausted. Best NC in forever or so. Lots of Lusi vibes, if not near as elegant. Too bad finding a box would be insane, check those specs.

[loose_axle]

Great review and thank you for it! Have to say based on my most recent experiences LFD is the top NC producer at the moment. 

[Capn_Jackson]

This stick looks like it’ll take me three hours at my pace…here we go! Cold draw is nice medium roast coffee, some hay, a few grassy notes, and cedar. Light-up puff has some pepper in the nose, not spicy but earthy and dry. Fireplace wood. Dark maple syrup on the finish.

Going on, the first third is toasty, oaky, and chewy smoke. Gets a little charred pretty quickly, making me want to purge it but I resist, just to see if it settles. Luckily it does, some. I start to get a nicotine bite pretty early on, probably medium-full. Great draw on this stick, and some sweetness starts to develop. Nutella. Dark cherry reduction. A little earthy green pepper in the background. Eventually some tangy oak wood smoke pokes its head in. Nice balance of flavors in the first third.

Second third is a lot more woody. Some funky damp earth, and a whole lot of coffee. Good, but not it’s not exactly grabbing me by the hand and leading me. I miss the dark cherry. I miss the Nutella. At the rate of smoking this giant stick, I might miss the rest of my 40s. 

At midpoint, things get more floral, a very dark but lovely honey erupts for awhile. Some clove, some baking spice, lots of wood and honey. Traces of moss.

Last third, thankfully some of the sweet and creamy returns. Cardamom or allspice cake, and creamy vibes. Edges of baked Alaska meringue. Around this time, the biggest hailstorm I’ve seen in a while comes down. Some golf ball-sized, mostly ping-pong ball-sized, distracted for a bit, thinking about the windows and cars, it’s that bad. Luckily I’m safe deep on the covered porch. 

Great smoke, but the end just isn’t coming across as rich as the meringue I just tasted. Great stick, overall!  Thanks again, @Çnote!

[Çnote]

We really smoked the same cigar. 'Nutella' at about the same points. Charred wood up front. You seem to have missed all the savory and mushroom vibes. We even smoked these as storms were coming in!

[Capn_Jackson]

1 hour ago, Çnote said:

We really smoked the same cigar. 'Nutella' at about the same points. Charred wood up front. You seem to have missed all the savory and mushroom vibes. We even smoked these as storms were coming in!

Got some oak, damp earth, and even some moss. Wasn’t quite funky enough for me to call it mushroom, though.

Indeed, we both had a storm! 😆

[Capn_Jackson]

On 5/30/2025 at 2:09 AM, Çnote said:

We have too many cigars, Jackson.

Blasphemy!