An unfortunate event

[Colt45]

» I don’t wish to be overly critical of your customers but this just reeks of

» inexperience… and perhaps a bit of arrogance.

Piggy, I'd tend to agree on the arrogance, but If I were a betting man, less so on the

inexperience.

Purely for the sake of conversation - I have no desire to cast disparagement on

any member - I'd have to think someone relatively new to Havanas (or cigars in

general) would be eager to light one up after receipt.

Whereas perhaps someone with more experience might feel they can make that

determination by sight and feel alone.

Imagine a person making that claim via a photo as Professor Twain has posted?!

Anyway, my comments are strictly for the topic at hand, and not aimed at any

particular individual.

Good to see you around Piggy :-)

[Cam]

Dont know if its been mentioned I couldnt be bothered looking but its been rated cigar of the year by CA

[El Presidente]

I arrived back from Havana and all was peacefull in the House of Czar. Lisa and Smithy were taking every opportunity to showcase their independence (read...they don't need me) while embarking a barrage or practical jokes and general derision. I will get them back Thursday (payday) ;-)

One unfortunate event that occured was the return of a box of Bolivar Royal Corona which a cient believed did not pass muster. It is a rare occurence and one that Lisa, Smithy and I take personally because I know we pride ourselves in the way we select cigars and handle issues which arise. In any event this box of BRC was returned unsmoked on the basis that they were plugged (too tight) and alas it was on my list of urgent actions to assess the cigars. We do make mistakes, I have...we all have and it is no big deal. It is how we handle mistakes which matters.

The purpose if this review is to enighten.

The box of BRC looked gorgeous. Nice farmyard smell. All 25 cigars were intact, none had been smoked.

There were some hard packed cigars across the top layer. I called in Smithy to assess. We selected the hardest packed cigar of the top layer. It was certainly firm/hard to the touch but I held little fears as the weight in the hand was right. This is hard to explain, but you can tell after a few years and a few thousand boxes of cigars what the correct weight of a cigar should be in the hand. While fully bunched, hard to the feel, this cigar ....felt right. The foot showed a good bunching of tobacco. I would give it a 85% chance of being a good draw.

I clipped the end....and thankfuly a perfect draw. Sometimes....we can fall into the habit of expecting all Cuban cigars to have a spring to the touch. I am finding that the better cigars of 2006 are firmer to the roll...no different to Padron or Fuente. If rolled correctly they should be firm to the touch and the firmness should have no influence on the draw.

I lit the cigar with my morning coffee. Bolivar RC mid body earthiness galore. Still not as complex as the early 06's (this was June 06 from memory) but an immensely enjoyable earth, leather, shortbread note.

There is little complexity to this cigar. It retained its core profile and poise throughout. The burn was excellent, its behaviour impeccable. It built to a fuller body mid cigar and introduced some chicory notes but never really strayed from its opening position.

I nubbed the cigar, found it to be an excellent way to start the day and continually telephoned Lisa downstairs to say that I was working :-)

Moral of the story.....a cigar is never plugged unless you try one. Everyone makes mistakes...including Lisa and Smithy ;-) ....but this was not one of those times.

[shortsqueeze]

» I arrived back from Havana and all was peacefull in the House of Czar. Lisa

» and Smithy were taking every opportunity to showcase their independence

» (read...they don't need me) while embarking a barrage or practical jokes

» and general derision. I will get them back Thursday (payday) ;-)

»

» One unfortunate event that occured was the return of a box of Bolivar

» Royal Corona which a cient believed did not pass muster. It is a rare

» occurence and one that Lisa, Smithy and I take personally because I know

» we pride ourselves in the way we select cigars and handle issues which

» arise. In any event this box of BRC was returned unsmoked on the basis

» that they were plugged (too tight) and alas it was on my list of urgent

» actions to assess the cigars. We do make mistakes, I have...we all have

» and it is no big deal. It is how we handle mistakes which matters.

»

» The purpose if this review is to enighten.

»

»

»

»

»

»

»

» The box of BRC looked gorgeous. Nice farmyard smell. All 25 cigars were

» intact, none had been smoked.

»

» There were some hard packed cigars across the top layer. I called in

» Smithy to assess. We selected the hardest packed cigar of the top layer.

» It was certainly firm/hard to the touch but I held little fears as the

» weight in the hand was right. This is hard to explain, but you can tell

» after a few years and a few thousand boxes of cigars what the correct

» weight of a cigar should be in the hand. While fully bunched, hard to the

» feel, this cigar ....felt right. The foot showed a good bunching of

» tobacco. I would give it a 85% chance of being a good draw.

»

» I clipped the end....and thankfuly a perfect draw. Sometimes....we can

» fall into the habit of expecting all Cuban cigars to have a spring to the

» touch. I am finding that the better cigars of 2006 are firmer to the

» roll...no different to Padron or Fuente. If rolled correctly they should

» be firm to the touch and the firmness should have no influence on the

» draw.

»

» I lit the cigar with my morning coffee. Bolivar RC mid body earthiness

» galore. Still not as complex as the early 06's (this was June 06 from

» memory) but an immensely enjoyable earth, leather, shortbread note.

»

»

»

» There is little complexity to this cigar. It retained its core profile and

» poise throughout. The burn was excellent, its behaviour impeccable. It

» built to a fuller body mid cigar and introduced some chicory notes but

» never really strayed from its opening position.

»

»

»

» I nubbed the cigar, found it to be an excellent way to start the day and

» continually telephoned Lisa downstairs to say that I was working :-)

»

» Moral of the story.....a cigar is never plugged unless you try one.

» Everyone makes mistakes...including Lisa and Smithy ;-) ....but this was

» not one of those times.

"If rolled correctly they should be firm to the touch and the firmness should have no influence on the draw"

You are on the money Rob! Rookie mistake. The rolling in hand does work superb after some experience.