Arturo Fuente Gran Reserva Flor Fina 8-5-8 Cigar - Box of 25

I thought I would give one of these a go courtesy of the reputation afforded to the maker and the reviews I have seen here and elsewhere. First impressions were of a bit of fragility in construction, especially around the cap, which I found a bit delicate and an attempt at punching failed so I resorted to a follow up cut which still resulted in some peeling. But after a bit of tidying up it turned out OK. First light was pleasant followed by nuts and mellow fruitfulness to coin a phrase. It opened up nicely and developed over the next period. But the final third became a bit dull and monotonous, with just deep smokiness and little else. I got a gentle 1 hour 20 out of it. I was mindful of the strength profile as described, I veer towards the medium end in my preference, if your taste is for the fuller variety then this may be more to your liking. So overall quite decent, happy to try, but I doubt I'll be coming back for more.

Only been smoking cigars for (maybe) 6 months, but this is the best Ive had so far.

A wonderful everyday cigar. I use this as my humidor filler - its a great price, good size (I get an hour out of it) and very well made.

I just smoked this lovely cigar. I’m on a bit of a fuente kick right now and the problem with fuente in they have one of the greatest cigars ever made in the ‘eye of the shark’ (available here for £31.45). So I always measure a fuente on how many sharks I could get for the same price. I can get 2 of these for 1 shark, which is about right. This is a beautiful smoke and one of the best you can get for the price. It reminds me of a top of the line Davidoff. Caramel, hay, nuts. Great on the retrohale and it rewards patience. Don’t smoke it fast. One long draw every 2 mins rewards the palate. Stunning

I enjoyed this while watching The Fuente Family: An American Dream. Its a good documentary, if you get the chance. I found the cigar light to start, with a good draw, slight tang and nice flavour. Second third in, medium and the draw started to get a little tighter. By the third it was almost plugged but nothing a 2 oval couldnt fix at the head. After the fix, it opened up the cigar and the flavour of the tobacco just intensified for a full smoke and taste of leather. A great way to start a Sunday.