Date Added: Tuesday 07 June, 2016
by Staff
£25.99
Reviewed by Al Obregon (February 2001)
I had the pleasure of taste testing 3 Romeo y Julieta Cedros Deluxe No 3. The following notes are my observations on each cigar.
Cigar #1: PRE-LIGHT:
Appearance: A very nice dark Colorado wrapper with a little bit of tooth and a touch of plume to boot. Solid perfect construction with an even foot and solid cap. The aroma was a very nice and gentle flowery bouquet with a hint of honey...very delightful. This was a solid cigar with no soft spots. A little firm, but not overly so.
Lighting: The cut was perfect. Upon lighting the cigar, the subsequent smoke was a full of honeyed aromas with great quantity. The burn was slow to medium although it was a tad bit uneven but not enough to affect the smoke. The smoke itself consisted of thick curls of cool deep clouds. The resulting ash was pewter gray in color with streaks of white, a very nice solid, even ash.
Taste: Captures the mouth with hints of cedar and honey mixed with a touch of pepper. Starts fast but then settles down during the first third of the cigar. A very nice lingering finish that does not bite or leave an acrid taste. Settles down to feel like your favorite pair of loafers, sweater or smoking jacket. Some earthy notes begin to develop through the middle of the first third....intriguing. My thoughts go back to my early childhood when I would read the stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and the best detective in the world, Sherlock Holmes. My scene right now is early reminiscent of when Holmes would sit in his smoking chair with his favorite pipe and relay to his faithful Dr. Watson on how if you eliminated all of the impossible, only the possible, no matter how strange, remained. It is these stolen moments away from work that make smoking a Havana such as this all the more pleasurable. The location for this smoke was at the J.R. Tabaco store on Wall Street in NY City . Outside, a Nor'Easter with howling winds and lots of snow is hammering New York City. There is nothing better than curling up with a nice Havana while the world rushes by in its harried pace.
Cigar #2:
Pre-Light: Same as #1
Lighting: Even burn, but tight draw. Flavor was a little more intense with same types. Hint of spice on the finish. Burn a little more uneven than the first. Same amount of smoke.
Enjoyed at J.R cigars again, in the midst of work. Had a glass of Belgium ale made by Trappist monks. Chimay Ale is the name of my drink. The beer seems to clear my palate and makes my next puff just as intense as my previous.....a nice combination. Uneven burn seems to lead to more of a cedary aftertaste from the smoke. The ash is lighter than my first smoke, around the silver-gray range. More flaky also.
Aroma: Still very pleasant, and very Cuban. The smoke itself is not as heavy and thick, not in the same quantity either. 2nd Third settles down just like the first cigar. Am wrestling with the cigar now to get a good amount of smoke out. Between the tight roll and uneven burn, its becoming a challenge. This cigar is like the stock market, difficult to figure out...and I have to tend to it just as closely. The ash at the end of the middle third reveals a hole at the base of the ash....interesting, haven't encountered this before. Less smoke now for every draw. This cigar had a medium burn.....about a 45 to 60 minute smoke with this corona. My thoughts today are about how the stock market has been going through the floor. Everyone here in New York has worry and anxiety in their faces like splashes of mud from a passing vehicle. St. Patrick's Day is not far away and I expect a raucous time as revelers will want to drink their troubles away.
Cigar #3:
Pre-Light: This is a tale of a tragic cigar. I had put this last cigar in the inner pocket of my suit for my journey home. Alas, when I arrived home and opened the plastic bag in which I was carrying it, I had apparently leaned to heavily against a rail or something as the cigar was quite mashed......extremely box pressed would be a better description for this cigar. The wrapper was torn in several places and the foot was quite beaten up and shredded. The shame of it all........needless to say I was very disappointed but not totally forsaken. I decided that the only thing to do for this good Cuban cigar was to light it, and at the very least enjoy the pleasant aroma. So back to the Montecristo lounge I traipsed and settled in to a nice comfortable leather chair. As I lit the maimed cigar, it produced quite a flame as the wrapper was quite loose and broken. I made sure I attained a good light of what remained of the foot and decided to actually take a couple of puffs. To my surprise, it was drawing quite well, and the flavors were every bit as good as the first two cigars I had tried, if not better. As I closely monitored the burn and ash of my cigar, the flavors become more earthy, which I really enjoy. Because of the condition of the cigar, this one burned just a little faster than the previous two. Again, the flavor settled down in the 2nd third and I was surprisingly drawing a good amount of smoke. As I started the last third however, the smoke began to turn hot....again, probably due to its damage. This cigar however was the best one of the three. The flavor was full and rich with a hint of spice. All three cigars were beautifully constructed and wrapped in their cedar coverings. I had not expected to obtain such flavor and robustness from a corona sized cigar but then again, this is a Havana. An exceptional cigar which I am sure most of you will enjoy.
