Partagas Serie P No. 2

[mkz]

Oh the humanity!! That crack was awful!!! :-(

Good review. Makes me wanna buy som P2´s.

[SmokinAl]

Gday MaltPointer, very nice review.

I've smoked about 30 of these in the last 2 months or so and I agree with your high rating of the Party P2. I haven't had any probs with the wrapeer on any of them so I'd have to guess you lucked out!. Dont give up on these beauties!

[stever]

Great review!

What was the weather like outside while you were smoking? Dry, cold, or maybe very low humidity? I've found that such conditions can exacerbate a cigar's wrapper faults.

[MaltPointer]

» Great review!

»

» What was the weather like outside while you were smoking? Dry, cold, or

» maybe very low humidity? I've found that such conditions can exacerbate a

» cigar's wrapper faults.

The weather was fairly mild . . . 60 degrees F when I started, around 50 when I finished. The air was fairly dry, though.

I suspect it was a combination of the weather, the fact that this cigar changed homes in the last couple of months, and the luck of the draw.

Cheers,

Charles

[Colt45]

Sometimes, once a wrapper is cracked, it will continue to get worse, especially if it is a thin wrapper -

it looks like the P2 had a fairly thin wrapper.

As has been shown by our humble host's wrapper exchange experiments, the wrapper does indeed

play an important part in the flavor of a cigar - I imagine that "delamination" could cause the

flavor changes you described.

[MaltPointer]

» Sometimes, once a wrapper is cracked, it will continue to get worse,

» especially if it is a thin wrapper -

» it looks like the P2 had a fairly thin wrapper.

» As has been shown by our humble host's wrapper exchange experiments, the

» wrapper does indeed

» play an important part in the flavor of a cigar - I imagine that

» "delamination" could cause the

» flavor changes you described.

Thanks, Colt, for your note.

You know, it's funny . . . I was just reading through Rob's posts yesterday morning on wrapper exchange. Great great stuff. I'd love to know more about just how Yasmel does that without wetting down the wrappers. Seems like magic.

And I did note the exceptionally thin nature of the wrapper on the P2. Is that fairly common with these cigars? This is my first one, so I have zero points of comparison.

Charles

[Colt45]

» And I did note the exceptionally thin nature of the wrapper on the P2. Is

» that fairly common with these cigars?

I've smoked them with wrappers of various shades, and though none were really "thick", the

wrappers of a lighter shade were relatively thin.

I've found the RA Estupendos to have a very thin and fragile wrapper. This made itself quite

obvious as I gently kneaded a tight draw.

[Don Candido]

» » And I did note the exceptionally thin nature of the wrapper on the P2.

» Is

» » that fairly common with these cigars?

»

» I've smoked them with wrappers of various shades, and though none were

» really "thick", the

» wrappers of a lighter shade were relatively thin.

» I've found the RA Estupendos to have a very thin and fragile wrapper. This

» made itself quite

» obvious as I gently kneaded a tight draw.

I hate thin wrappers! They can happen on any smoke when the time is right (or wrong is probably the better way to word that). I also have noticed this to be a problem on light shade wrappers more often (much more often). I always try to get somewhere between Colorado and Colorado Maduro wrapper shade, leaning to the darker of that range.

I have one box of PS2's I got recently. I had not tried this smoke. My box has great wrappers but the smokes are just not ready for prime-time yet.

The whole wrapper question of importance is so nice to have vetted out on this site.

From day one, which for me was in 1995, I have always thought the wrapper played a large roll in the smoke and the smoker's enjoyment of it. I used to laugh when I would read literature which claimed the wrapper was no more than 10% of the flavor profile. But a decade ago, that was the party line...

Cheers,

DC

[jeht]

The P2 is one of my favorites with some down time. I'm not sure about the "boot polish" or "peanut butter and jelly" thou:-P

[MaltPointer]

» The P2 is one of my favorites with some down time. I'm not sure about the

» "boot polish" or "peanut butter and jelly" thou:-P

yeah, well, I'll concede that the boot polish might have been a reach. :-D

and to get the PB&J effect, you have to toss back some Bushmill's 16-year old. Pretty sure you wouldn't get the same effect with any other drink.

Either that or I AM a fanciful idiot . . .

[greenpimp]

Nice review.

Two of my boxes of P2s are from the initial release, and are actually sequential warranty seals. Their wrapper shades, however, are as different as I have seen on Cuban cigars. Like very light colorado and maduro.

I have smoked a number from each box already, and find the light shaded wrappered cigars better. Stronger, more robust and complex.

[aavkk]

That is promising GP since I have two 10 boxes taking a cat nap. I say cat nap cause now I have to try em.

[jadawin]

Very nice review! ive smoked quite a few of these, went through a box of 10 last year and loved each one of them! My box had a very rosado shade to the wrapper. As far as the splitting goes, i would put it down to the dry weather. ive been having alot of issues with that myself this winter. Having a hell of a time keeping my humidity in my humidor above 62% even with the beads, but thats the midwest over winter for you...

[Don Candido]

» Very nice review! ive smoked quite a few of these, went through a box of 10

» last year and loved each one of them! My box had a very rosado shade to the

» wrapper. As far as the splitting goes, i would put it down to the dry

» weather. ive been having alot of issues with that myself this winter.

» Having a hell of a time keeping my humidity in my humidor above 62% even

» with the beads, but thats the midwest over winter for you...

I have not had a big problem with splitting wrappers but this discussion makes me think of Ginseng;'s comments about this. Ginseng how do you wet smokes prior to smoking them? Inquiring minds want to know...

Cheers,

DC

[greenpimp]

» I suspect it was a combination of the weather, the fact that this cigar

» changed homes in the last couple of months, and the luck of the draw.

In my limited experience/opinion, where I have seen this happen is usually a result of the filler having a different moisture content level than the wrapper-binder. One expands at a different rate than the other during combustion and causes the cracking. My Dad had one almost literally explode on him. The cigars were wet, he had dry boxed them for not long enough (wet filler, dry wrapper.)

I think you're right in that it can be storage and/or environment, but I think storage is usually the stronger culprit.

Of course I am neither a scientist or a cigar expert, so take it for what it's worth.

[MaltPointer]

» I think you're right in that it can be storage and/or environment, but I

» think storage is usually the stronger culprit.

I'll buy that. I've had this cigar since mid-December, and I'm new enough to this game that it probably took my humidor a while to get up to speed.

I will say that this particular cigar had been in the same humidor for at least a month and a half, at a pretty consistent 65-68% rh. I think what I'm learning is that time moves slowly in this hobby, and what seems like a long time to me is probably the merest tick of a clock to a cigar.

Thanks for the note!

[Chicago]

Nice review, man. I think it pretty well sums up the flavors in this cee gar. Despite the storage/wrapper issues, I did notice what looked like some nice plume on that wrapper, congrats, you must be doing something right in the storage area.

You'll just have to go out and get a box of the P2's, and a larger humidor, and then try a box of MC 2's...:-)

[CIGARHead]

Very nice! I love the P2's. I have some of the original release in the 10 ct. boxes that are superb. I also have bought a box of 25 that have almost a candela wrapper and a very rough papery appearance. These are not that great and I aint touching them for a long long time.

Another great review Charles!

[MaltPointer]

» You'll just have to go out and get a box of the P2's, and a larger

» humidor, and then try a box of MC 2's...:-)

Well, as a kindness to the board, I should probably go ahead and do that . . . since, the moment I receive the order, Lisa will announce another sale.:-)

[ehdg]

Nice review there. I too smoked a P2 this past Thursday night and found it very enjoyable smooth peppery/earthy smoke. These are going to be awesome in a few more years and will give Monti 2's a real run for their money!

[MaltPointer]

One of the things that has so impressed me about this hobby is the generosity and spirit of fellow brothers of the leaf. When I first mentioned to my buddy Mike (Chicago on this board) that I was interested in exploring the world of Cuban cigars, his immediate response was to send me a small humidor, along with about five or six sticks.

One of these was a Partagas Serie P No. 2, and I've been dying to put the fire to it. Tonight was the night, and as the sun was getting low on the horizon, I took it out of the humidor, and hit the backyard.

The wrapper is a pleasing cocoa color, with some definite tooth showing. The aroma at cold is of clean tobacco with a slight bran cereal note.

Took a look at the foot . . . and then took a slightly blurry picture of it (one of these days I'll get this shot right). I note a slight tear of the wrapper, but decide not to worry about it. Stay tuned on that one.

Clip it with the Xikar, and test the pre-light draw. Just right for me, with a taste of slight grass/tobacco, and not much more. Toasted the foot, and put the flame to it.

First third

• Starts off with that basic bran cereal taste

• Clean tobacco in spades . . . medium bodied

• Nice steady burn to start

• Ash seems a bit “loose.” Not sure what’s going on with that.

• Cocoa shows up as a flavor, followed by leather. Shoe leather and boot polish.

• Pepper thru the nose (of course).

• I’m picking up a faint bitterness on the lips. Seems early for tar to be showing up, and I’m very consciously pacing myself after that RyJ I smoked last week that had my head spinning for a good hour. I'm learning how to "sip," and it strikes me that a piramide is a great cigar to practice this on.

Second third (split wrapper!)

• There’s a first time for everything, and this is a first for me. As the picture above shows, at this point, just as I’m rounding the turn into the second third, the wrapper splits. Yikes!

• I head inside and pour myself a quick splash of Bushmill’s 16-year old Irish Whiskey. Yum!

• After my panic subsides, with the help of the Bushmill’s, I decide to plunge on and see if the problem worsens or if the cigar can rally.

• Flavors are still strong and enjoyable—chocolate, leather, and some light melba toast notes.

• The cigar is developing more body, and the smoke is developing more of a mouthfeel.

• The bitterness fades away completely, and a new flavor shows up . . . toasted pecans.

• All of this adds up to a pleasing, lush mouthfeel, full of flavor and goodness. And, at the risk of sounding like a fanciful idiot, at a couple of points the combination of the Bushmill’s (which spends some of its aging time in Oloroso Sherry casks, and is finished in Port pipes) and the toasted nut taste reminds me of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. On toasted bread, of course.

• As I head into the final third, the wrapper starts giving me problems again. I tried to capture part of what was going on with this shot.

• When I worked at a Grumman plant during my summers as a student at Georgia Tech, we used to call this “de-laminating,” i.e., a separation of the various layers. What I’m observing during this phase is that the wrapper seems to be separating in some spots from the binder. The ash starts looking messy, and the flavor starts to be quite spotty.

Final third

• From this point on, the flavors I’ve been enjoying so much are still around, but inconsistently.

• Another crack develops.

• The bitterness returns, and I purge once, then again.

• The bitterness fades, and shoe leather, cocoa, toasted nuts all return as flavors for cameos . . . alternating with tastes of not much at all.

• I hate to put this cigar down--we've been through so much together--but the uneven-ness is distracting, and I bid this cigar a farewell.

With this smoke, I feel like I got a very solid glimpse into the soul of a great cigar. For the first two-thirds, this cigar was an absolute joy, even with the heart attack of the cracked wrapper.

I'd be very curious to hear from some of the veterans around here if the wrapper pulling away from the binder would explain the spottiness down the home stretch. It was almost as if when the wrapper was in solid contact with the binder, it was on point . . . and when it was de-laminating I was smoking a different cigar.

On balance, I'd give this cigar a 92/100 for the good parts. Thanks, Mike, for the gift of a wonderful smoke!