Puro Desnudo N1 Lonsdale

[JDoughty]

As suggested, I smoked my first one ROTT on the day of arrival. I was not a bit sorry I did, though I can only imagine what it will evolve into over time. Unlit, it smelled delicious enough to take a bite out of. The cold draw was sweet and earthy with some hints of woodsiness. On the first few puffs, it revealed delicate notes of sweet aged cedar and toasted nut. There was a hint of umami and a light savory note with just a whisper of leather. Then some milk chocolate dipped in a light roast espresso came in to tickle my palate. That was the point I emailed the sales guys to see if they could fit some of these ridiculously tasty things into my BR box order. 

Around the end of the first third, some tannic and faintly floral bitterness emerged, reminiscent of black tea. It was slightly drying on the palate but not in a bad way, because it was an excellent balance for the flavors of rich, toasty peanut nougat that were also starting to emerge along with some buttery caramel cookie notes. This was a very "foodie" cigar. In the middle and last third, the savoriness also intensified in elegant lockstep with the culinary bitterness. The exact savory note was difficult to identify; it was more of a general sense of umami, like I was eating a savory and delicious meal accompanied by a tasty black tea and buttery sweet cookies. It was an exercise in self discipline not to puff this one down too fast. Delicious and I eagerly look forward to my date with the second one from this sampler in 30 days. It's already on my calendar. 

I should also record that while the draw was perfect, the burn line even and the smoke overall very enjoyable, it needed a bit of touching up now and then as the price of pufferating while ROTT. Worth it though.  

[JDoughty]

30 day update. Yesterday was my brother in law's birthday, so we went out to a cigar lounge to celebrate. I brought a nice selection of Cuban cigars to gift to him, and for myself, the second Puro Desnudo Lonsdale from my sampler. I did not feel that I was missing out or having the lesser smoking experience.

The cold draw brought toasted brownies with a hint of something savory and delicious. At first light, a potent woodsiness immediately became apparent, accompanied by hints of dark chocolate and espresso. There was some black pepper especially on the retrohale. What struck me immediately was the difference in power and potency that 30 days makes. It was much more full bodied and powerful, though still elegant and balanced. 

As I progressed down the first third, the ash held firm and solid. Notes of raisin crept in, though the sweetness was much less pronounced than it was in the ROTT experience. I got some flavors of lightly salted nuts and an abundance of rich, dark wood along with baker's chocolate and espresso. About at the midpoint, dried cherry melted in with the chocolate to form a very tasty alliance. These flavors continued all the way down to the nub, along with an indefinable savoriness and subtle undertones of sweetness dancing in and out throughout the smoke. 

The burn was excellent, though it did curve a bit and required a slight correction at one point. Smoke volume as well as the body was medium plus to full. Complexity was slightly reduced from the ROTT experience, but the power, intensity and structure had ramped up significantly. I am not actually sure which experience I prefer, since both had very enjoyable qualities. The pastry, nougat and slightly floral black tea finish of the ROTT smoke were mostly absent at the 30 day mark. The trade-off was that beautiful dark chocolate dipped dried cherry backed up by rich woodsy notes with power, structure and fuller body that was missing in the ROTT experience. 

Fortunately I had already ordered a bundle as soon as I tasted the first one, so I lit up another tonight that had been resting for just 20 days while writing my review. Delectable. That one still had the lovely floral black tea finish and warm pastry notes along with chocolate, coffee and savory umami, though not quite as much rich woodsiness or intensity as the one that had rested 30 days. It will be fun to see how these cigars continue to evolve, but these things are definitely not safe from my depredation. I was restraining myself from hitting that bundle in the 30 days between the first and second lonsdales to be able to properly contrast the experience, but now I am all out of restraint and will be snacking on them at a perilous rate. They are currently up there with the lanceros as my favorites of the Fabrica 005 line, though the Ninfas and the Corta Suave certainly deserve honorable mention. When I'm down towards the bottom of the bundle I'll have to mark some aside for longer aging and order another. I love how easy it is to restock on these, unlike Cuban cigars. No fuss, no risk, no tariff, just order and receive a reliably delicious cigar that hits many of the same flavor notes. 

It has been especially enlightening to taste how these cigars progress after enjoying a 2021 lancero courtesy of @Chibearsv. The evolution in both cases was essentially the same: a paring down to pure essence, losing some of the fleeting fresher flavors while gaining considerably in potency and power. Structure and balance can be a difficult thing to define in the sensory experience of a cigar, but it is very much an important component. Both cigars retained and strengthened their basic structure. Smoked fresher, it was in some ways prettier and flashier, with more delightful flavors dancing merrily around its essential core. After a month's rest, even that relatively small amount of age brought a greater maturity and focus, paring down some of the flash and frippery and offering balanced power and elegance. There were a few moments with both cigars (the 30 day lonsdale and the 2021 lancero) where I was reminded of some of the higher end Padron releases, both in flavor profile and the perfectly balanced, elegant and ridiculously smooth structure. The ROTT lonsdale did not have those specific qualities, though it was excellent in its own way and I will probably be ordering some fivers here and there just so I can smoke them nice and fresh. 

This has definitely been a fun and educational experiment and I'm glad to have had the opportunity to participate!