Ramon Allones Estupendos TEB OCT07

[soltino]

This cigar was on my wish list for a long while before I eventually took the plunge. I had read mixed reviews – some people complained that it was flavourless, others that it exemplified the Ramon Allones profile. I took advantage of one of the recent Czar sales (thanks Rob!) and decided to pick up a box.

Once the box arrived I opened it up and was greeted with what is commonly described as ‘barnyard funk’ – grass, hay, and warm summer days all rolled into an aroma. Delightful. Feeling incredibly pleased with my purchase I put the box aside and vowed to wait the required 30 days before sampling one…

Well that was 30 days ago now, so I delved into the humidor and chose the most raggedy looking example from the edge of the bundle. It not only had a sizeable wrapper rip near the foot but also had a good bend in it too:

I pressed the stick to my nose and took a deep long breath… huh? Nothing. Very little aroma at all... where had that glorious funk gone? I clipped the cigar and took a long draw. There was some sweetness, some mild tobacco, but nothing in comparison to the promise hinted at a month ago.

Unperturbed I pressed on and lit up. The draw was a little on the loose side, but not enough to be worried about. The amount of smoke was a little on the wispy side, but still not enough to really worry too much about. What was a little worrying though was the complete lack of flavour. Very different to the RASCC I reviewed a week ago – the opening of that cigar was like wumph! The opening of this cigar was more like a… well… like a…. like a sigh I guess.

I had fun smoking the first third of this cigar though - the wrapper split was causing a bit of havoc, but I came up with a way of handling that:

A little awkward to smoke but gave the missus some entertainment.

Into the second third and still no real signs of improvement. Still suffering from a low smoke volume, and it was very difficult to discern any real flavours. A touch of sweetness, a little cream, but nothing really stood out.

I was still hoping for some change when the final third encroached, and for a moment there was an inkling of something a little more medium bodied coming in, a little fruitier perhaps. A couple of drags later though and we were back to the same empty mild tobacco. I persevered to the last inch or so… more out of stubbornness than pleasure… but still wasn’t rewarded.

Overall I would say that this was not a great cigar – of course it could just be that I picked the runt from the litter. Lacking in flavour, no real complexity, and it certainly wasn’t a very good example of the Ramon Allones marque. However, this is a young cigar, being a re-release of the 2006’s, and it had only been in the humidor for 30 days, so I don’t think I should be too critical just yet. I still have another 24 to get through before I can really make an informed decision

[Colt45]

Tight draws and wispy smoke volume have been the bane of a box I have from SEP 06.

I have a box with the same code as yours I have yet to try, but am hoping to soon.

[aavkk]

hmm... thats really a shame because the few that I have had from my SEP 06 box have been absolutely fantastic. I didnt get into them until about 2 months ago so maybe just let them be for a year or two Soltino.

[Sandman]

hmm... thats really a shame because the few that I have had from my SEP 06 box have been absolutely fantastic. I didnt get into them until about 2 months ago so maybe just let them be for a year or two Soltino.

Nice review. Tight draws can really affect the experience.

[anacostiakat]

Tight draws and wispy smoke volume have been the bane of a box I have from SEP 06.

I have a box with the same code as yours I have yet to try, but am hoping to soon.

The two I have tried from my SEP06 box resulted in one very good and one with a tight draw. I think maybe I will try another in a year or so...

[El Presidente]

Runt of the litter indeed

I would strongly suggest dryboxing the next for a few days. The lack of "barnyard funk" intrigues given it was prevalent in the box prior. I am a believer that "the nose knows". Look forward to a follow up review in the weeks to come.

[anacostiakat]

Runt of the litter indeed

I would strongly suggest dryboxing the next for a few days. The lack of "barnyard funk" inrigues given it was prevalent in the box prior. I am a believer that "the nose knows". Look forwars to a follow up review in the weeks to come.

I also find that sometimes a month rest is not enough. Sadly...

[josie67]

I bought a 50 Cab of these, and I must say that so far I am completely underwhelmed. They are by far the worst regional I have smoked so far, with all of them either plugged or so tightly rolled that they were unsmokable. Will just have to see how the do, but I am not hpeful.

[cvm4]

Ya'll are making me scared to try one from my box.

[Fatshotbud]

I have smoked only a couple from a sampler - so don't know box code.

As I am not a big Ramon Allones fan to begin with, I approached them with biased expectation.

Suprisingly, to me they proved to be very enjoyable and I would consider them my favorite Ramone Allones.

Of course this is just my humble oppinion

[soltino]

I would strongly suggest dryboxing the next for a few days. The lack of "barnyard funk" intrigues given it was prevalent in the box prior. I am a believer that "the nose knows". Look forward to a follow up review in the weeks to come.

I'll try another one in a few months then, see if that helps, and report back

As I say, I don't think it fair to really assess this cigar on one smoke after it has really only had the minimum rest period. I'm also hoping that after a bit more rest the funk will be back!

[soltino]

Well its been a couple of months since my initial review, and the recent sale on ELs and Regionals prompted me to reach for another one of these 07 Estupendos. I dry boxed at 50% RH for 2 days prior to this smoke.

Cigar appearance is fantastic. A real looker - but again, no real aroma at cold. Clipped the cap and took a few draws from cold and again, nothing really coming through. Draw is okay, just no really obvious flavour, just mild tobacco. Things do not look promising

To cut a one and a half hour story short, this smoke was identical to the last one. Very little smoke volume, no flavour to speak of whatsoever, very disappointing, especially given their price point. So 4 months in the humidor haven't done much to help this along at all

[maalouly]

I bought a 50 Cab of these, and I must say that so far I am completely underwhelmed. They are by far the worst regional I have smoked so far, with all of them either plugged or so tightly rolled that they were unsmokable. Will just have to see how the do, but I am not hpeful.

In regards to tight draw, I did buy a box of Partagas SD 4 (I know it's not the same cigar) but the first 5 cigars I smoked from it were all tight. I put them in my humidor that has 60% humidity for few weeks and moved them back into the one that is 70% and I have not had one tight stick since.

I am not saying that might be the case here but wouldn't hurt to try.

Good luck.

Regards,

Elie.

[Lanthor]

That stinks. I have that same code and the cigars produce a ton of smoke and damn near knock you over with the RA profile.

[sounddust]

In regards to tight draw, I did buy a box of Partagas SD 4 (I know it's not the same cigar) but the first 5 cigars I smoked from it were all tight. I put them in my humidor that has 60% humidity for few weeks and moved them back into the one that is 70% and I have not had one tight stick since.

I am not saying that might be the case here but wouldn't hurt to try.

Good luck.

Regards,

Elie.

I agree, the vast majority of the tight draw problems I have had were due to excessive moisture in the cigars. I feel that pinching the cigar throughout as well as checking the foot are good ways to determine if bunching and construction problems are to blame.

[El Presidente]

That stinks. I have that same code and the cigars produce a ton of smoke and damn near knock you over with the RA profile.

Agreed.

Soltino I also wonder where in hell that "Barnyard Funk" aroma went from your cigars?

If next cigar doesn't strike a cord lets swap 20. I will shoot you 20 of my own stock for 20 of yours.

[soltino]

Soltino I also wonder where in hell that "Barnyard Funk" aroma went from your cigars?

The box itself still retains that original promising aroma, but individual cigars don't have any scent at all. Bit strange, but there we go. I did wonder if perhaps my humidor was not maintaining the RH properly, so the cigars had dried out, as the air here in Beijing is very dry. So I recalibrated my hygrometers and found that it was a little on the low side, roughly steady around 62%, but nothing that would seriously impact the cigars over such a short period of time.

Since then I have bought a new humidor (similar to a wine cooler) which is keeping a steady 68% RH so maybe if the box has a few months in there the smokes could 'revive'...?

If next cigar doesn't strike a cord lets swap 20. I will shoot you 20 of my own stock for 20 of yours.

Thanks for the generous offer El Pres Let's give it another couple of months and see if the new humidor makes any difference. If not, I will gladly shoot a few across to you for your perusal.

Chris