greenpimp Posted December 14, 2007 Posted December 14, 2007 Smoked this in my backyard last Sunday. Interesting and unique smoke. Plus I'm overdue to share. I have the boxcode, but these boxes are buried and I'm too tired for Tetris right now. If you want I can find. Wrapper was greyish, light brown with a hint of green to it. Not overtly attractive, but it makes me think of Corojo and that I like. Little scent cold, cedar and light tobacco. Draw firm but acceptable. Pre light tasted slightly nutty, a bit musty. Opening mild, almost disappointingly so. Light leather, toasted flavors. Pleasant but had me thinking the cigar had expired already. An inch or two in, flavors started to creep in and richness increased. Perfect burn, good smoke output, great draw for a corona. Some olive, musty tobacco flavor, and some black currants made it lively and flavorful. At halfway the earthiness of the cigar expanded. It was tasting like an aged Upmann, clean power and class and complexity. And it was verging on great. Then the earthiness turned to dirt. Now I love earthy qualities in a cigar. But this bore no resemblance to the black truffle earthiness of an aged Bolivar, for example. This was dirt, and the cigar was now a powerhouse. I hung on, because the corona was otherwise quite evocative. Tangy and smooth, with Kalamata olive and currants and leather and even dashes of cream. Along with a good spanking of power. Plus those who know me recognize I love a good roll in the mud now and then. It occured to me in the last couple inches, where the dirtiness finally gave way to the root cellar purity of Upmann earth, that this cigar was still young. Years too young. And when it matures, they will be fantastic. I would score it an 89, due to the unbalanced earth characteristic in the middle third. In a few years, however, I can imagine it being mid nineties or higher. A very interesting smoke in any regard. -Matt
El Presidente Posted December 14, 2007 Posted December 14, 2007 Great review Matt! Your review matches my experience of this vintage. Corona and petit corona are much the same. They look shite...like anemic dog dung. The draw is often firmer than you would like.They start rather pathetically with all the power of an 80 year old on a respirator. I have made the mistake of pitching one or two in the early days not getting to the first inch mark on the premise that if it looks like a dud and starts like a dud ....it is a dud. What a mistake. From the first inch they really do build in flavour and then explode in flavour to the point that it is hard to reconcile "The Hulk" in the final third to "Pee Wee Sherman" in the opening inch.
shrink Posted December 14, 2007 Posted December 14, 2007 Excellent review, Matt. It needs three more years.
anacostiakat Posted December 14, 2007 Posted December 14, 2007 Yes a nice review Matt. While I love Upmanns I have always felt that they require more ageing than a lot of folks can stand. :-D
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now