"True" Cameroon wrappers have always been intriguing to me. There's the ideal of where it should come from, where the best come from, and there is talk about how if it's right, it'll taste rich in spice and sweetness alike. But the (my) reality is, I haven't had many good ones. Then comes this Cuesta-Rey No. 95 Cameroon. Rich, sweet, spicy and full of flavors. This was great from first to last draw.
The Alec Bradley Fine & Rare BC-(13)4EV is a winner in my book. The profile showed good depth, balance, and composure. With just the right mix of spice, earth and sweetness, this is one I'd smoke again. And call me crazy, because I actually think the higher premium of $24 per cigar isn't too high, considering the price hike of the average cigar nowadays. Nicely done.
This ACE Prime Luciano The Dreamer Hermoso No. 4 was a deep flavored cigar. Lots of richness in all flavors presented. This may sound weird, but at times, when a cigar is this deep and rich in flavors, when one of the flavors overtakes another, it can then turn the tables of the profile quite swiftly (in this case the leather tannins). But all in all, very enjoyable and will smoke again.
This Luxury Cigar Club Choshi was a pretty spot on AJ blend with a plethora of earthiness in dry dirt, leather tannins and minerals. By no means ever a bad blend, but one that is all too familiar and in some ways, monotonous. If you like AJ, this is a blind buy for you. If you don't, move along.
The Matilde I know makes some of the best fullest flavor and balanced cigars that I've had. So when a new release comes out, I hope they don't deviate from what they do best. In the case of the Matilde Limited Exposure No. 2, they did it again. The flavors of sweet bread, followed by cedar, accented cardboard and wood tannins were tuned just right. Well done.
Being a cigar reviewer, I love experiences like this. An experience in which I don't know anything about the brand, the blender, the cigar factory. I love it even more when the experience turns out great, like in the case of the Fuerte y Libre Sun Country Corona. This was a great Connecticut shade, giving full flavors of all the major spectrums without being overly bitter. Nice!
The Montecristo Espada Signature Limited Edition Valiente was a pleasure to smoke from first draw to the very last draw. Altadis USA made the right decision in going to Plasencia for this blend. A well balanced blend showing sweet and creamy toasted nuts, lots of great earthiness and well mannered minerals. Keep this collaboration coming!
For the Sindicato Artista Robusto, it almost reaches "good" levels. The leather harsh tannins improve as the cigar burns through the second third and onwards, so with that said, it's almost a good cigar. And with the attractive $8 price point, it's that much more appealing. Try a couple.
This is Black Works Studio to the T. Bold flavors and strength to match. But what it (thankfully) isn't is harsh and rustic. The profile has plenty of rustic notes, but also does a great job of delivering enough softer tones to make it a well blended ass kicker. Not many profiles in the industry are like this so this Black Works Studio Intergalactic Corona Larga is a winner in my book.
This La Galera 85th Anniversary Jose “Jochy” Blanco was a well blended cigar showing quite possibly the best balanced profile so far this year. A great array of soft/white notes centered around nuts, toast, sweet pastry creaminess, with nuanced cedar and red/black pepper spice. Not crazy about the price point, but it is what it is. I'll for sure put these through my rotation.
