Robt Burns Clear Havana Panetellaish/Chicoesque Thing

[tigger]

It never stops amazing me how long cigars will hold flavor if they're properly kept.

For those who may not be familiar with the concept of "Clear Havanas," Government meddling in the latter part of the 19th Century made it advantageous to import Cuban tobacco and roll it in the US, and disadvantageous to import rolled cigars.

I was poking around the humidors this morning, and grabbed one of these out of a 5 pack I had purchased at a very reasonable price somewhere in the last ten years.

(Will edit to post the actual "model name" and post a picture of the cigar and packaging when I get home this evening, or some time over the weekend).

It's a beautiful, somewhat chilly early fall day, and a stroll and a smoke at lunchtime seemed like a fine idea.

It surprises me how fragrant these still are after 40 or more years -sweet, floral and slightly earthy.

Wrapper color was "coffee with a generous splash of milk."

Draw at cold not too promising - papery and slightly bitter.

I won't break it down by thirds, but what was remarkable to me, especially for a short smoke such as this, was the change in flavors with each draw. Not so much an evolution, but in each puff a discrete experience.

Some of those experiences were very pleasant - citrus, nuts or pepper - and some not so pleasant - biting, metallic or bitter. Consistent throughout was a tangy topnote. I suspect that some of the unpleasantness is attributable to my not having coddled it enough - I may have drawn too hard, and too often.

It was surprisingly strong for its age.

I'm thinking about a Punch SS1 this evening, which I expect I will enjoy a great deal more, but I like the occasional step into history...

[thechenman]

40 years huh? Pretty interesting. Thanks for sharing the experience tigger.

[jquest63]

Wow, sounds like an incredible unique experience!