“QUICK PUFF” – San Luis Rey Regios
Mar 1, 2010 Cigar, Quick Puff
Tonight’s review is a “Quick Puff” review of the San Luis Rey Regio.
The San Luis Rey is a Cuban brand that flies somewhat under the radar among most smokers. The “Rey” is medium bodied and relatively reasonably priced cuban.
The Regio is a Robusto sized stick that has a slightly dry appearance. It is chocolate brown in color and has a strong barnyard aroma with some coffee at the foot.
The Rey had a slightly tight draw at first. After lighting and taking 6 or 7 puffs, it loosened a bit, but it was still a little too firm for my liking.
The stick had a lot of nice coffee, earth and cocoa flavors. There was also a tinge of saltiness at points.
Overall this was a good smoke minus the difficult draw. The draw was actually a problem on 2 of the 3 sticks I tried over a 2 week period, so it could be indicative of a bigger issue. Other than the draw problems, this was a nice stick at a reasonable price from my cuban source. I’d recommend it for those of you who like Padron cigars, as I get a similar flavor profile of coffee, chocolate and some earth.
Tags: cuban, San Luis Rey
Trinidad Fundadore Habana
Apr 21, 2009 Cigar
Tonight’s review is the Cuban Trinidad Fundadore.
Trinidad is named after the beautiful 16th Century city of La Santísima Trinidad (The Holy Trinity), listed by UNESCO as a historical monument, which is situated on Cuba’s south coast.
Trinidad, as a Habano, dates back to 1969 but for many years, like Cohiba, it was made only for gifts to foreign diplomats. Not until 1998 was it released for general sale and then only in small quantities.
There is only one size of Trinidad, the Fundador or Founder. Although it resembles the Cohiba Lanceros in length and the finish of its cap, it is unique because of two extra ring gauge points added to its girth. It is made at El Laguito, the home of Cohiba, to its own particular recipe of tobaccos selected from the Vuelta Abajo region.
And now, on to the review.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Size: 7.5 x 40 (Lancero)
Origin: Cuba
Wrapper: Cuban
Binder: Cuban
Filler: Cuban
APPEARANCE and CONSTRUCTION -
The Trinidad Fundadore has a light brown wrapper with a triple cap and neat pigtail at the tip. The wrapper is applied well and has an even, clean construction. although only a 40 ring gauge, the cigar feels heartier than that in the hand. The wrapper is smooth and very nice looking. The were a couple of soft spots, but nothing too bad. I expect a little softness on some lanceros due to the way they’re constructed.
SMOKING CHARACTERISTICS –
The wrapper has a fantastic smell of roasted nuts. The roasted nut smell actually intensified after the cigar was lit and it made for a very pleasant experience. I’ve had that roasted nut aroma on other habanos and it’s something I really enjoy. As usual, I punch cut the Fundadore. It has a firm draw. Not plugged or stiff, but a little firmer than I am used to. Luckily it was not a problem during the smoking and it actually loosened up a bit around halfway through. Cold draw had a toasty flavor that had a slight sweetness to it. The cigar lit easily and evenly. It burned well throughout. No major burn issues except for one. As the ash got near 3/4 of an inch, it would dip. Of course the ring gauge play a big part into that, but I don’t recall seeing that recently, even in other lanceros. It would basically curve downward as if ready to collapse under its own weight. It made me ash a little more often than I normally would, but again, not a big deal. The smoke was light and airy.
FLAVOR –
Very, very nice flavors on this Fundadore. It started out early with a toasty quality. That roasted nut aroma carries over to the flavor and it was very pronounced around 1/3 into the cigar. It reminded me of toasted walnuts actually. There were some nice creamy flavors as well. Around the midway point, I started getting some wood notes. A sweet cedary flavor that came and went around the midway point. This is a solid medium bodied cigar. It never even reached medium to full. It is smooth and very well balanced. The flavors were nicely complex and coupled with the medium body, the flavors became even more pronounced.
OVERALL IMPRESSION –
The Fundadore is the quintissential Cuban Lancero. It is medium bodied with full flavor and complexity. It has a toasty and nutty creaminess that I really enjoyed. This stick had about a year of age on it and that may have factored into how well balanced it was. I am curious to try some more that have less age and more age. A very enjoyable smoke that I will look for again.
TOTAL SCORE – 93
Davidoff Dom Perignon (1985)
Apr 1, 2009 Cigar
So for our first cigar review, we really wanted to start off with a bang. As I debated over which cigar to feature in the premiere, the same one kept popping into my head again and again. A little over a year ago, a friend on CigarLive had hit me with an amazing gift. SmokinJ (David) is an avid cigar smoker and collector who’s love of vintage cubans is well known in the forums. David knocked my socks off one afternoon with a gift to top all gifts. He had sent me a 1985 Cuban Davidoff Dom Perignon. The cigar has been rated 100 pts in the past by Cigar Aficionado and is considered one of the best cuban cigars ever made. Certainly a special occasion cigar, the Davi Dom was the clear choice to be our first review here at SmokeScore. I thank SmokinJ with all my heart for his wonderful gift and amazing generosity.
And now, on to the review.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Size: 7 x 47 (Churchill)
Origin: Cuba
Wrapper: Cuban
Binder: Cuban
Filler: Cuban
APPEARANCE and CONSTRUCTION -
The Davi Dom is a 7 x 47 Churchill size cigar. For a cigar almost 25 years old, it is in wonderful condition. The wrapper is a chocolate brown, somewhere between milk chocolate and dark chocolate. There is one noticeable vein that runs along 3/4 of the cigar. The wrapper has lost almost all of its oils, but still has a slight sheen to it. It is blemish free and very attractive. There are no soft spots to be found.
SMOKING CHARACTERISTICS –
The Davi Dom wrapper gives off very little aroma. Due to its age, this is not too surprising. The foot however has a beautiful aroma of old wood and forest floor. It reminded me of antique wood furniture with a musty aroma of aged wood. The cigar cut and lit beautifully and toasted well. The draw was perfect with a slight resistance. Within the first few minutes the burn became slightly uneven but after about 6 or 7 minutes, evened itself out. It remained even until the last third where it needed some touch ups with the lighter.
FLAVOR –
The flavor started out with a mild wood and dried tea flavor. The tea component remained throughout the entire smoke. There was also a slight sweetness that reminded me of a dried fruit flavor almost. Not very sweet, but just sweet enough to make it interesting. At the midpoint, the flavors transitioned into a more traditional aged tobacco flavor with mild hints of walnut. The cigar has a clean and crisp finish that left my palate refreshed.
OVERALL IMPRESSION –
The impression that the Davi Dom left me with was actually two-fold. My initial reaction was that this is a well-balanced cigar with lots of interesting flavors and components. My second reaction was that all of those wonderful characteristics are somewhat subdued by the age. I would have loved to have smoked this cigar 10 or even 5 years ago. While still very good, the 1985 version of the Davi Dom is showing its age. While I cannot concur with the 100 pt score previously given this cigar, it is still a very good smoke and one that I encourage anyone to try. As time progresses, the Cuban Davidoffs will all move past their prime and they will be gone forever. If you have the means and the opportunity to try one, don’t pass it up!
TOTAL SCORE – 93
