Lonsdale Archives - Page 2 of 4 - Developing Palates - Cigar, Beer and Spirit Reviews and Ratings

Team Cigar Review: La Riqueza SE 2024

I am a fan of the Cazadores vitola, and have always enjoyed the Brown Label offering, but the La Riqueza SE 2024 did not impress. I felt the flavors lacking and one dimensional. The Broadleaf was not dominant enough, and you need a quality wrapper with a vitola of this nature. The popcorn flavors were some of the most dominant popcorn flavors I have experienced on a cigar, but there needed to be more. Draw and burn aside, this is not a cigar I would come back to and try.

Seth Geise, March 26, 2025

Team Cigar Review: Tatuaje Broadleaf Reserva Limited Lonsdale Edition

The Tatuaje Broadleaf Reserva Limited Lonsdale Edition was pleasant to smoke overall, but was linear in the flavor delivery and never established any complex flavor combinations that grabbed my attention. While the price point on these is quite reasonable for the 2024 market, Tatuaje has a very long list of excellent limited and regular production cigars to choose from. I would reach for something else from their vast portfolio over this.

John McTavish, December 2, 2024

Team Cigar Review: J. London Telephone Booth Series Teal

This J. London Telephone Booth Series Teal is a good bundle cigar, and I am interested in trying the other offerings. I am sure there will be some that are not as great, but this was good. A nice Mexican offering as well. I loved the vitola offering. You don't get too many Lonsdales, and the ones you do get tend to be put together by individuals who truly love the vitola and want to make a good cigar. Solid flavor profile.

Seth Geise, September 18, 2024

Team Cigar Review: Illusione Allegria Lonsdale

The Illusione Allegria Lonsdale had a nice flavor profile through the first two thirds and then dropped a level in the final third as the balance got off a bit. I think this cigar is a good fit under the OneOff umbrella as I enjoyed it similarly to those releases. This carries a bit of a lower price point than those offerings, and I'd be interested in trying some of the other vitolas in this line. If you're an Illusione fan, I'd suggest giving this one a try.

Aaron Loomis, January 2, 2023

Team Cigar Review: Freud SuperEgo Lonsdale

The Freud SuperEgo Lonsdale had an elegant and nuanced flavor profile throughout, with consistently balanced and lighter flavor combinations. The SuperEgo Lonsdale is a cigar you have to pay attention to, and even at times dig to grasp the flavor nuance. With all of that said, I was impressed and will happily smoke another of these when I have an opportunity.

John McTavish, December 19, 2022

Team Cigar Review: Joya de Nicaragua Antaño CT Lonsdale

After smoking several sizes, you really can't go wrong with any Antaño CT. All will give you those nice white/soft notes that we all love in a Connecticut Shade. The bitterness may come, but it's never entirely off-putting. I'd recommend getting a sampler pack of various Antanos and find out if the Joya de Nicaragua Antaño CT Lonsdale is your favorite.

Jiunn Liu, November 21, 2022

Team Cigar Review: Cuesta-Rey No. 95 Cameroon

"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.

Jiunn Liu, October 5, 2022

Team Cigar Review: La Sirena Mexican Mermaid Lancero

The La Sirena Mexican Mermaid Lancero showcases some of the best things from Mexican San Andres wrapper. No doubt having it as a binder has only amplified the flavor combinations here, and yet nothing seemed overpowering until the earth in the last third.

John McTavish, July 27, 2022

Team Cigar Review: Aganorsa Leaf Guardian of the Farm Cerberus Lonsdale

Not quite the Aganorsa corojo experience I was looking for. The profile starts off muted, eventually being sharp in pepper and minerals. This Aganorsa Leaf Guardian of the Farm Cerberus Lonsdale further confirms my overall feelings about recent Aganorsa offerings; i.e. they've deteriorated. The cigars either taste rushed and/or highly unbalanced. I'll still hold onto hope because I know how good Aganorsa tobaccos can be.

Jiunn Liu, June 22, 2022

Personal Cigar Review: VegaFina 1998 Vintage 1 VF 42L

The VegaFina 1998 Vintage 1 VF 42L was an average experience throughout as it was a bit dry based on the flavor components. With this being a non-U.S. release, I can see how the flavor/strength combination was setup, but it just wasn't all that exciting. This cigar definitely showed better than the VF 50 that was a U.S. release and we reviewed previously, but it's still not something I'd really see myself coming back to.

Aaron Loomis, April 22, 2022