Trinidad Reyes Cigar - Cabinet of 12

I love Trinidad cigars! Maybe it's because I'm a graphic designer? But visually these things are really aesthitcally pleasing! And what makes me happy is they deliver on their flavours and quality of smoke! The Reyes, although small, is a real kick ass little unit! A little more fuller bodied than the coloniales I'd say which was a surprise. As always, they're presented beautifully! And I have never had a cigar so consistently rolled in the Trinidad range.

Received a pack of these as a birthday present very recently and I must say, out of all the cigars of its size and from its region I have experienced, this stick is by far the best. Started of with plenty of cream and a tinge of orange zest (just a tinge!) and then the cream got so overpowering I felt as if I was swishing milk around in my mouth (which was much more enjoyable than it sounds) Towards the last third I experienced a lot of wood and leather which was just what was needed after all the cream at the start. Finished the first of the pack with such enjoyment that I am unsure if they will last to the end of the month! Brilliant service from the Cgars team, as always!

Absolutely wonderful cigar! Vanilla, nutty flavour. A lovely long, mild smoke with fantastic looking ash and a great slow burn. A really delightful smoke enjoyed in the park on a lovely day. I shall be buying more of these great cigars.

Reviewed by Rob Sluss (June 2004) I wanted to extend my utmost thanks for the pleasurable experience I had when purchasing some of the new Trinidads from your establishment. The service was friendly and fast. In return, I am submitting the review of the first one I smoked, a Reyes: After a tip from a good friend, I purchased a few boxes of the new Trinidads in various sizes. I really enjoy PC and TPC sized smokes, so I drew out a Reyes first (4 3/8" x 40). It was Christmas day 2003, and my lovely wife and I just returned from a good friends house where we had a gut busting dinner. We walked around the neighborhood to work off some of the food and spirits once we arrived at the house, and then we settled in. I retired to the lanai, where it was very comfortable, around 75 degrees with no humidity. I glued my ass to the lounge chair with a bomber snifter of Jamaican Rum and went to work. The Reyes, upon pre-light inspection was a work of art for a TPC. Flawless roll, deep semisweet chocolate wrapper color that was as soft as well worn leather, no large veining and not hard spots. I clipped with a guillotine cutter and the pre-light draw was perfect without plugs. The aroma of the pre-lit cigar was deep with and earthy spice, and heavy on sweet tobacco. The light took place without a hitch, typical pre-draw roast and several medium draws to prevent a head rush. The first few puffs were insane, very strong but not in a bad way. Like drinking stout for the first time, your kinda excited, kinda scared. It quickly leveled out and the definitive spice "pepper" note turned to crisp heat, very similar to what you experience when you eat wasabi. There was no lingering heat or burnt feeling on the tongue, just a long lasting semi-sweet tobacco flavor with faint wisps of macaroons and coffee. This TPC help on longer than the norm, it was like Willy Wonka rolled it. Midway through this lil' cigar poured on flavors of cafe cream with the consistency of maple syrup, the flavor lasted far after the smoke was gone. The ash was dense, medium gray and help on like a cliff hanger. It never went out even with 3-5 minute pauses in puffing. I nubbed it, or course, and my fingers still look like hell. But, the last 1/3rd of this beauty really poured it on. A slight sugary smell started to present itself after each puff, as if the natural sugars in the tobacco condensed into the last of the cigar, and reminded me of the smell in a candy makers kitchen. My tongue went numb, the Rum kicked in, and to this day my wife really did not know what the heck I was saying when I went to bed that night. In conclusion, these are a must have. The Reyes are ready to smoke now, but will only age well over a long rest. These are the perfect aging cigar, in my mind. I have not had a chance to smoke the Colonials or the Robusto Extras yet, but will report on them soon. The Fundadores are also being produced with the new bands and packaging, but I don't know if they are the old blend, or this "possibly new" blend. Will have to get some and do a comparison smoke-a-thon for the two. A bit wordy. Nice description of the environment. Excellent description of appearance and construction characteristics. Willy Wonka? Maple Syrup? No, Semi-sweet and spicy flavors Yes Score: 8/10 Judged by Chuck Ultimately the key to a great review for me is how willing am I to buy the smoke afterwards and this review did it for me, more so for curiosity than anything else. I would have appreciated some comparisons of this cigar to other benchmark smokes just to serve as a standard of comparison but at any rate, this was nothing less than a wonderful review that covered all of the aspects of this cigar in a captivating way Score: 9/10 Judged by Lamar Good description of setting. The cigars construction, taste and flavour are explained brilliantly. The phrase ' like Willy Wonka rolled it' is genius. Clear and to the point - excellent review. Score: 9 ½ / 10 Judged by Jamie Johnston An excellent review. The writer enticed all of my senses; sight, feel & taste. The correct use of metaphor and analogy only added to and did not distract from his prose. I finished the review with a definite desire to smoke this cigar. Well done. Score: 8/10 Judged by Elliot Blum OVERALL SCORE: 34.5/40

Reviewed by Tim Mezick (June 2004) After arriving at the ski resort only to find the conditions quite poor we still decided to put on or boots and headed over to the lift, crunch, crunch, crunch as we made our way over the ice covered snow. As we got on the lift chair I had remembered I stashed a Trinidad Reyes that my brother had given me earlier into my jacket pocket, being concerned that it may get crushed I took it and was about to put it into my Fannie pack when the lift came to a complete halt. As I sat 50 feet or so in the air with my feet dangling, I decided that fearing that the cigar in my hand may not survive the day in my pack I may as well under the circumstances enjoy it now. Knowing this cigar was a recent release I was going to let it age and didn't expect much from it at this time. I noticed the cigar while of good construction was not as smooth and vein free as other Trinidad's I have had, this had a rougher look to it, however it seemed well rolled none the less. The pre light draw was good and as I lit the cigar I immediately smelled and tasted woodiness with a ever so slight herbal or grassy flavor. This as I sat legs dangling still motionless was all I got from this cigar for the first third. Thinking to myself what a waste of a day and also how this cigar was just too young to be smoked, the cigar became fuller richer with a very strong wood and earthy flavor, it was at the half way point starting to turn into a power house loosing its sweetness. Towards the last third this cigar I started to feel that the chair was again moving; however it was not the chair, this seemingly small innocent looking cigar was making me quite dizzy. I realized this unlike other Trinidad's was not a light smoke to be had in the morning. I could barely finish this one off as the lift did start to move again my happiness to start skiing turning to fear of being able to make it down the hill. I believe this cigar has great ageing potential; it is reminiscent of the old style Cuban cigars being very full flavored and with tremendous strength. I would recommend picking these up and laying them down for awhile, but be forewarned not to smoke these for breakfast. Fuller & Richer strong wood and earth flavors, Yes Reminiscent of Old Style Cuban Flavors, Yes Nice description of setting. I agree with the review! Score 9/10 Judged by Chuck I thoroughly understood the power and finesse of this wonderful cigar after reading this review. A wonderful appeal to all of my senses in that after reading it I could all but see the cigar in my hand having both heard and felt the crunch of the snow. When a review takes me on a virtual smoke, it has done its job. Score 10/10 Judged by Lamar Not too keen on this tasting - bit too much of a story at the start and a bit of a poor ending. Although, good description of the cigars strength. Interesting place to smoke a cigar! Score: 6/10 Judged by Jamie Johnston Reviewing a cigar, especially one coming from the Trinidad line deserves a little more respect than an off the cuff evaluation on a ski-lift. Although the writer gives his opinion of the cigar I was too busy wondering if he was going to blow chunks before or after he gets off the lift. I was also left with the following question. How can you enjoy any cigar while on the slopes? Après-ski in the lodge, that I can understand. Score: 3/10 Judged by Elliot Blum OVERALL SCORE: 28/40