Saint Luis Rey Double Corona ('06 & '07)

[stever]

It's been awhile since I've posted a review here. So here goes

SLR DC (AEP MAR '07):

Last Tuesday night at 7 pm it was hot and pretty humid with the thermometer registering 90, but really feeling like 100. Our dogs, despite being well hydrated, endured about ten minutes out on the deck with me. I, on the other hand, being too tired after an exhausting day at work running around in the heat and perhaps just a tad too stupefied thanks to nurse maid Margarita, refused to move and instead continued with my plan to smoke and review an SLR DC (AEP MAR 07 and part of Czar's '07 sampler pack). Not really what I would consider to be a warm weather smoke, but I’ve been putting off reviewing and smoking this smoke for too long. The sacrifices one must make for the benefit of the board!

This is a very well constructed cigar with a nice weight in hand and sporting a nice medium brown wrapper with a light sheen. Near the middle section of the cigar the wrapper has small raised and oily smooth bumps the size of hair follicles. Perhaps these are the beginnings of resin nodules that could lead to some nice blooms forming on the wrapper?

The aroma at cold is slightly sweet and slightly spicy, with odors of leather. At the foot, there is more of a sweet barnyard and rich stewed fruit aroma. The draw at cold is medium-firm and tastes of sweet tea-like tobacco, dark fruit and light leather. Upon lighting, the initial draw reveals a myriad of subtle flavors including sweet, high quality tobacco, light leather, some white pepper, lightly toasted nuts, baking spice and a sweet undercurrent that is sharp, not mellow and rounded. It’s almost as though the sweetness is infused with liquor, like Grand Marnier, and definitely contributes, along with the spice and light pepper flavors, to make the SLR DC a rather heady and very aromatic smoke.

At the onset, the flavors are rich and unusual, but lacking depth and longevity IMHO. The flavors are strong on the front of the palette, but somewhat lacking on the finish. While the draw seems adequate, smoke production is at first on the light side.

At the one inch mark, the flavors definitely develop more depth, smoke production increases and, overall, the smoke becomes more “chewy” with better mouth feel and longer lasting flavors. Flavors include sweet leather, lightly toasted nuts, stewed dark fruit, light gingerbread, baking spice, and slightly spicy and peppery tobacco.

By the two inch mark, the smoke has become richer, with stronger leather-like flavors, and a more intense and heady liquor-like sweetness. Smoke production has definitely increased, and the cigar is practically smoking itself with nice wisps of smoke curling up through the back-end long after I take a draw. The first ash is two inches and is dark grey and well striated. The burn is fairly even and razor sharp. The SLR DC is definitely kicking itself up a notch in terms of smokeabilty, flavor and strength.

At the end of the first third, the cigar has increased in body and the flavors are better balanced. There is more of a leather and spice flavor, and a light sharpness that I attribute to the cigar’s youth. By the midway point, the smoke has become heartier with more gingerbread and leather flavors. The heady underlying sweetness that I discovered in the cigar from the onset gradually dissipates by the beginning of the last third, but there continues to be an underlying rich sweetness right through to the end of the smoke.

The smoke lasts two hours and actually turns out not to be that bad of a match for a hot and somewhat humid evening, especially if complemented with a nice cocktail, such as a Margarita or a Pimms Cup, and, of course, some ice-cold water. In terms of the SLR DCs that I’ve smoked, I would rate this one fairly highly, and I believe that it has very good aging potential. This may not be a cigar that appeals to everyone’s palate, but it is, nonetheless, a very good quality and flavorful cigar, that everyone should at least experience a few times, at least. So far, I’ve found that late ‘06 and early ’07 production appears to be very good.

SLR DC (AEP SEP '06):

Smoked an SLR DC (AEP SEP 06) from a Cab that hails from Czar to compare it to the ’07 (AEP MAR 07 and also from Czar) that I smoked last week. Like the ’07, this is a very well constructed cigar with a nice weight in hand, and has a dusky brown wrapper with a slight reddish tinge. The cigar has a nice resiliency to the touch and sports a perfect triple cap.

The aroma at cold is rich and heady with aromas of leather, sweet pepper, baking spice and light barnyard. As with the ’07 sample, at the foot, there is more of a sweet barnyard odor and also an aroma of rich stewed fruit. The draw at cold is medium-firm and tastes more of fermented hay, stewed dark fruit, and some pepper and sweet spice. The cigar leaves a peppery and tangy taste on my lips.

Upon lighting, the initial draw is of strong leather and good quality rich tobacco underpinned with a sweet spiciness reminiscent of what I typically find in a good Partagas Lusitania. Smoke production is at first light, but continues to increase as the smoke progresses. Given the humidity in the air, after a cooling afternoon thunderstorm, I should have perhaps dry-boxed this cigar for another day or two. The burn on the cigar was razor sharp and the first ash was about 1 ½ inches, dark grey in color with a slight yellow tinge, and well-striated. As you can see from the photo, the first ash was a bit of a bender, but subsequent ashes were straight and didn’t have the dirty yellow tinge to them.

Overall, in the first third, this smoke reveals a complexity of flavors including pepper, baking spice, leather, clean tobacco, light cedar and mellow wood, as well as a clove-like, woody flavor that marries well with the tobacco flavor. Like the ’07, there is an underlying heady sweetness to the smoke, but unlike the ’07, it is not as prominent and is more mellow and not as heady. The liquor-infused sharp sweetness that I found in the ’07 is more subtle in the ’06 and eventually evolves into a spicy lip-smacking round sweetness. This cigar is very aromatic, and when exhaled through the nose, has very nice nasal-clearing aspects.

Near the end of the first third, draw and smoke production are exactly where they need to be, and the cigar develops a sweet dessert-like spicy richness with tangy leather and mellow wood flavors. Mouth-feel is lush and chewy, and although the cedar and wood notes mellow out, the smoke definitely picks up in strength.

Halfway through the second third, the tangy leather flavor seems to be enhanced by a sweet, nut-like flavor that is more prominent on the finish. I’d also say that the spicy nasal-clearing aspects of the smoke get kicked up a notch, and the clove-like and baking spice flavors that quickly follow on the heels of the tobacco flavor also become more prominent.

The second third is where this cigar hits its stride and becomes a better smoke IMHO than does the Mar ’07 example. The transition between flavors is definitely apparent and there as is a depth and richness to them that should continue to build with even more aging. In addition, there is more of a sweet peppery spiciness and more leather and mellow wood flavors than in the Mar ’07 example.

In the last third, the smoke continues to build in strength and smoke production, but never becomes bitter or harsh. I had to relight it a few times, but this is not surprising given the ambient humidity and the fact that at this point I had been smoking it for close to 2 hours. The tobacco flavors become more rich and mellow, with more prominent wood notes, but the pepper, baking spice, and light clove flavors have definitely receded into the background. Nonetheless, there is still enough of a nice sweet roundness to the flavors, although without as much spice, to merit smoking the cigar down to last ¾s of an inch.

Both the ’06 and ’07 examples have very good aging potential, but my impression is that the ’06 may have better legs. Regardless, both the AEP SEP ’06 and the AEP MAR ’07 SLR DCs are excellent cigars that currently exhibit some differences between them. My palate, as it currently stands, gives the nod to the ’06, in large measure because of the intriguing combination and balance between the pepper, spice, tobacco, leather and wood flavors, and how these flavors play out against a mellow and round sweet background.

[Guest rob]

Fantastic reviews.

I love the Prominente size.... I only wish I could find regular time to smoke them.

[Colt45]

That's good to hear - in general, the five year group review showed the March '07 to be somewhat on the

bland side. Thanks for the reviews!

[gostgost]

Nice review Stever, sounds like by the weather you on the east coast of the US where I am and must agree it was blazing hot.

I think I'll light up a sig six.

Dave

[Tampa1257]

Stever,

Nice back to back SLR DC reviews! The photos added a nice touch as you could see the differences in the wrapper texture as well as the color of the ash. Nice job!

Tampa

[Sir Diggamus]

Great review stever!

This is not a cigar I have tried but your review makes me want to stash a few away:hungry:

[jdbrown]

Excellent reviews. Very nice to see the comparisons..Trend setter!

[bassman]

Interesting that I have both codes you reviewed. I'm quite pleased with the MAR 07 & think they are the best SLR DCs I've smoked since the fabled 01s. The SEP 06 to me wasn't as strong or intense in flavor, though I must admit I haven't smoked one of these in about 6 months.

[stever]

» Interesting that I have both codes you reviewed. I'm quite pleased with the

» MAR 07 & think they are the best SLR DCs I've smoked since the fabled 01s.

» The SEP 06 to me wasn't as strong or intense in flavor, though I must

» admit I haven't smoked one of these in about 6 months.

Bassman:

I've smoked AEP SEP '06 SLR DCs from two different cabs and there are differences. However, it's been about 6 months since I tried the other cab and I may now have to do so.

Could also be that the Mar '07s I have are not as flavorful as yours.