Hamlet, 12/07 (?)

[tigger]

Summary: I should have, a: mugged the First Lady (it was New York, after all), and made off with the rest of her stash when I had the chance, then b: been prepared to stash that stash for about five or seven years, 'til the heat was off, and the cigars settled down a bunch. :-P

I've been away since the day after the gathering in Queens, and hadn't had a cigar since then until we got home last night, so I was really looking forward to burning something.

When the Hamlets were so graciously handed out, I flashed on Rafael Gonzalez' advice - smoke it within a month of shipment from Havana, or carefully mature...

Part of me wanted to wait, but I'd never had the chance to smoke something this fresh, so out it came with me to the barely heated smoking space in my garage.

It's great looking cigar:

Nice oily sheen, on its smooth wrapper. It felt a little light in my hand, though proved later to not be underfilled, in its smoking, and by looking at its construction:

The foot had a straightforward tobacco scent, while the wrapper showed hints of tea, pepper and mild nuts.

I cut it, and the cold draw was just shy of perfect in resistance, with a peppery tobacco flavor.

Lit it up, and the first couple of puffs showed great promise - gentle, complex citrus and nut flavors abounding, with strong and varied peppers on the finish:

After the first few, it began to show its youth in a brash and unbridled fashion - blasts of pepper and tingling on the tongue.

I've read somewhere that cigars are usually rolled with the leaf tips pointing toward the foot. As they've been in the sun longer than the portions closer to the stem, they account for the strong introduction that many smokes make. I don't know if it's true, but I hoped that it was as I smoked this cigar, as I really wanted it to tone down a bit, and let the intriguing underlying flavors come through.

The ash was a chalky gray color, and the quality of the cigar's construction showed in the way it held together:

The next few inches were slightly frustrating, as the great nut, citrus and new, earthy vegetal notes kept peeking from behind the pepper, only to hide behind the continuing and considerable strength:

Somewhere around the forth or fifth inch, the strength did recede some, but the underlying flavors became a bit muddled - something to be expected of a cigar this young. This continued for a while, until I let it burn out:

So how was it? Wonderful. Frustrating. There were terrific moments which I hoped would continue, only to have them snatched away from me.

I would love to smoke more of these in a few years, as I suspect they would end up somewhere on my top fifteen (and maybe top five) list. great quality tobacco and top notch construction.

I'm grateful to our hosts for the experience.

[Colt45]

:clap:

[El Presidente]

Great review Tigger

Hamlet is very protective of the quality of tobacco he uses. Once you have achieved the level of cigar fame that he has ....you very much get what you want. There is a richness to his tobacco but it s not overly strong. I like to age his cigars for 3-5 years at which time they are truly works of art but there is also something beautiful about enjoying a fresh cigar less than a few weeks old. You get to assess the cigars potential.

[Ginseng]

Fantastic review, Tim! I'm really looking forward to trying mine...in a few years. :-)

It seems to me that this kind of early performance is a bit rare in production cigars, is that right?

Wilkey

[yossie]

Hi tigger.

I'm really impressed with your review.

Is this cigar only available in Cuba?

[tigger]

»It seems to me that this kind of early performance is a bit rare in »production cigars, is that right?

Wilkey, I'm not sure if the if this question was directed toward me, but someone more knowledgeable than I should answer it.

This is, I'm sure, the youngest cigar I've ever smoked - everything else has ranged from at least a couple of months to many years away from the roller's table - so I can't say whether a quality production cigar at a few weeks of age would perform similarly.

» Is this cigar only available in Cuba?

Yossie -

Thanks for the comment. For the most part, I believe the answer is yes.

Seems that on the rare and wonderful occasions that our Fairy Godmother appears in New York, they can be found there. :-D

[jaylax5]

»

» Seems that on the rare and wonderful occasions that our Fairy Godmother

» appears in New York, they can be found there. :-D

You mean Fairy GodSister...;-)

And I will join Wilkey in waiting a few years before enjoying this magnificent gift.

[yossie]

» » Is this cigar only available in Cuba?

»

» Yossie -

»

» Thanks for the comment. For the most part, I believe the answer is yes.

»

» Seems that on the rare and wonderful occasions that our Fairy Godmother

» appears in New York, they can be found there. :-D

Thanks mate.

It sounds I have to go to Australia or Cuba!