45-60 Min Smoke


Rustyman

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Thanks Danmalia and Professor Twain, I will add these to my list of "Cheap and Cheerfuls" to try.

Just a brief update.  I had another RyJ No.2 Turbo from a couple of 5 packs my in-laws bought me while I am waiting for a 20 count sampler from our host.  Some cigars just don't hit the spot for me.

Nothing to do with the marca or vitola.  In fact the RyJ No.2 turbo is the perfect vitola for me.  Just on an hour's smoke to recover from a week's wage labour.  Nothing to do with the quality of the smoke either.  Each of the 4 examples I have tried to date have been of good construction, great draw, good output, good burn, ash.  It is just the flavour is boring tobacco flavours with no development for my admittedly underdeveloped pallete.

Nothing to do with the marca either.  I have had 3 RyJ petit robusto's, every one has been a little flavour bomb.  I think my first box from Rob are going to be these.  I have a 3 pack of RyJ Churchills that I cannot wait to try.  It is just these tubos that do nothing for me.

Even for cheap and cheerfuls, the 3 Partagas Super Partagas I have had have been a good experience.  Spicy little devils but there is something there which just hits the sweet spot.

Have any of you had that experience where certain cigars just don't hit the sweet spot for you?

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

I know that an RyJ Petit Churchill does not really fall into the realm of "Cheap & Cheerful" but what does it meet the sweet spot for a 45-60 minute smoke.  Had one today while walking the dog.  Sun's out, nice autumn day and the world is good made all the better by a great smoke.

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Can anyone suggest a PC or smaller that has similar flavour profile to a Juan Lopez S2 or even S1? The flavours in both of those are just perfect for me but as far as I know JL don't have a smaller regular production vitola.

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Rehabit, I'm just starting out and don't think I have ever had a Juan Lopez but the guys here have been pretty helpful so I expect someone will be along shortly with the advice you are looking for.

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@rehabit

JLPC is either on a production hiatus, or discontinued (you can verify on CCW).

Young JL I get leather, cocoa, coffee, pepper with cashew and marmalade with a hint of citrus.  Tad bit of roasted nuttiness mid to late depending on how young.  Hard to replicate that my friend.

Strength wise tons of young stuff to be had, but that citrus nuance will be hard to locate without age, IMO in a PC. You may need to broaden your horizons a little.

@Rustyman

Yes, little small variances do exist. On a cheap and cheerful platform I've found RyJ MF much more like HdM than a Coronitas en Cedro.  One more creamy the other way more edgy and upfront.  One thing I find is RyJ has a ton of cedar young (if you really think about it, the cherry everyone always calls out is a flavor extension of cedar - stretch the thought in your mind and see if you can imagine over time it changing from one to the other).  I think the blend is slightly different, richer and rounder and thus you find it more enjoyable, accessible.

I'd say pursue them if you enjoy them.  El principe might be a nice option that fits the budget and relatively approachable very young.  If you manage to try some PLMC lmk what ya think.  I personally feel like you'll feel similarly to the RyJ #2.  RASSC, HUHC, PLP might be good investments you can try in a year or so to find out how you like them.  Patience is hard, but it's worth it to see what you like before investing in boxes.

Good luck!  I'm sure other FOH'ers with more insight will chime in soon.  

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1 hour ago, miurajus said:

 

@Rustyman

Yes, little small variances do exist. On a cheap and cheerful platform I've found RyJ MF much more like HdM than a Coronitas en Cedro.  One more creamy the other way more edgy and upfront.  One thing I find is RyJ has a ton of cedar young (if you really think about it, the cherry everyone always calls out is a flavor extension of cedar - stretch the thought in your mind and see if you can imagine over time it changing from one to the other).  I think the blend is slightly different, richer and rounder and thus you find it more enjoyable, accessible.

I'd say pursue them if you enjoy them.  El principe might be a nice option that fits the budget and relatively approachable very young.  If you manage to try some PLMC lmk what ya think.  I personally feel like you'll feel similarly to the RyJ #2.  RASSC, HUHC, PLP might be good investments you can try in a year or so to find out how you like them.  Patience is hard, but it's worth it to see what you like before investing in boxes.

Good luck!  I'm sure other FOH'ers with more insight will chime in soon.  

Thanks for that.  Had another of the RyJ #2 this afternoon while walking the dog as I cannot reconcile the big difference (for me) between this and the petit churchill.  I am a bit hesitant with the PLMC's as the consensus opinion seems to be that these should be put away for a couple of years before smoking.

Understand what you say with the cherry just being an extension of the cedar as during my smoke today, there were a couple of occasions where I just got a hint of that before disappearing to the woody cedar flavours which are not my favourite.

I think I might get a 5 pack of the El Principe's as this seems to be well received at the moment.  I also do like the HUHC but like I mentioned earlier, it is just to short a smoke for my purposes.

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  • 2 weeks later...
On 4/30/2017 at 2:57 AM, rehabit said:

Can anyone suggest a PC or smaller that has similar flavour profile to a Juan Lopez S2 or even S1? The flavours in both of those are just perfect for me but as far as I know JL don't have a smaller regular production vitola.

No such cigar. The JL S1/S2 are very strong and brash cigars young, and there is very little, if anything else, like them right now in the entire Habanos catalog. I also don't think the JLPC is close to the S1/S2 in terms of power. The PC is much more herbal, woody and mellow. Also, as @miurajus pointed out JLPC, while not officially discontinued, hasn't been seen since 14 and the reviews on 14 production were less than stellar, including a video review from Rob & Ken.

The only cigar that is stronger and can maybe hold a candle to it is the Boli Tubos No. 3. It is a very small cigar of the Placeras vitola, but they are little firecrackers and really, really good cigars. 

As for RyJ, I think the Belvederes are smoking very well right now and is the epitome of a cheap & cheerful. I would also recommend trying the PL Panetelas. Much cheaper than the PLMC and IMO much better with less than 2 years on them. After 2 years, the PLMC starts to pull ahead a bit.

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On 5/14/2017 at 5:34 PM, NSXCIGAR said:

No such cigar. The JL S1/S2 are very strong and brash cigars young, and there is very little, if anything else, like them right now in the entire Habanos catalog. I also don't think the JLPC is close to the S1/S2 in terms of power. The PC is much more herbal, woody and mellow. Also, as @miurajus pointed out JLPC, while not officially discontinued, hasn't been seen since 14 and the reviews on 14 production were less than stellar, including a video review from Rob & Ken.

The only cigar that is stronger and can maybe hold a candle to it is the Boli Tubos No. 3. It is a very small cigar of the Placeras vitola, but they are little firecrackers and really, really good cigars. 

As for RyJ, I think the Belvederes are smoking very well right now and is the epitome of a cheap & cheerful. I would also recommend trying the PL Panetelas. Much cheaper than the PLMC and IMO much better with less than 2 years on them. After 2 years, the PLMC starts to pull ahead a bit.

Just had my first (and likely only) JLPC this week as a single from a LCDH.  While it does have JL DNA, I found it too mellow and disappointing.  I was hoping for a mini JL2. Usually smaller ring gauges are more flavorful but not in this case.

Wouldn't be surprised if JLPC gets officially discontinued next year. 

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1 hour ago, bman75 said:

Just had my first (and likely only) JLPC this week as a single from a LCDH.  While it does have JL DNA, I found it too mellow and disappointing.  I was hoping for a mini JL2. Usually smaller ring gauges are more flavorful but not in this case.

Wouldn't be surprised if JLPC gets officially discontinued next year. 

I had been hearing good things about JLPC in 2014-2015 so I foolishly purchased a box blind and got a 2012 box. It was good but not great. Rated the box about an 88-89 overall.  Apparently 2014 production was even worse. I think the only good year for these was 2013 and that's what I was hearing about. There's still quite a bit of 2014 stock still out there, seemingly all UME code. I'd steer clear.

The JLPC had been fairly similar to the S1/S2 until about 3 or 4 years ago when it appears the strength of the S1/S2 picked up enormously and black coffee and citrus notes really came to the fore. The JLPC never really had any of that going on. And I do agree, the JLPC has its head squarely on the chopping block and could very well be on the 2018 cut list. How the HUPC gets cut before the JLPC, I'll never know.

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No such cigar. The JL S1/S2 are very strong and brash cigars young, and there is very little, if anything else, like them right now in the entire Habanos catalog. I also don't think the JLPC is close to the S1/S2 in terms of power. The PC is much more herbal, woody and mellow. Also, as @miurajus pointed out JLPC, while not officially discontinued, hasn't been seen since 14 and the reviews on 14 production were less than stellar, including a
.

 

The only cigar that is stronger and can maybe hold a candle to it is the Boli Tubos No. 3. It is a very small cigar of the Placeras vitola, but they are little firecrackers and really, really good cigars. 

 

As for RyJ, I think the Belvederes are smoking very well right now and is the epitome of a cheap & cheerful. I would also recommend trying the PL Panetelas. Much cheaper than the PLMC and IMO much better with less than 2 years on them. After 2 years, the PLMC starts to pull ahead a bit.

 

Thank you for your thoughtful and detailed reply. I will certainly take your thoughts on board.

 

It's funny but regarding the strength of the JL2, I find that after settling in for a couple of months they are a very smooth smoke. Generally and in my limited experience, I find Bolivar to be quite strong and with a mongrel factor that takes a long period to settle down. The JLs however are nicely settled after a few short months, but what they offer in terms of mouth filling flavour is quite exceptional. Kind of like a mouth full of the most incredible perfumed fragrance which I have not found in any other cigars, possibly excepting one regios I smoked about six months ago.

 

The journey continues :)

 

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In the quest for a good 45-60 minute smoke, let me briefly explain my ranking of cigars.

Special Occasion - Large Vitola premium smokes like RyJ Churchill, Monte 2, Partagas Lusi's

Premium Smokes - Good quality robusto's like PSD4, BRC, RASS, HdM Epi2 and other vitolas like Ep2, Partagas Series E, No.2, etc

Regular Rotation - Monte 4, Quintero Favouritos, RyJ Petit Churchill, MdO No4, Partagas Super Partagas

Yard Gars/ Dog Walkers - ???

Dog Rockets - Anything which is I will refrain from smoking for at least 6 months e.g. RyJ No.2

In this thread, I am looking for value for money in the Yard Gar and Regular Rotation categories.  With a family and school aged kids, as much as I would like, I cannot always smoke the Premium Smokes.

Tonight I had a Quintero Favouritos which I got as part of a sampler from our host. It surprised me.  It was 60 minutes of good wholesome tobacco flavours.  It lacked the complexity of the premium smokes like the PSD4 I had a few days back, but it was highly enjoyable in its own right.  A good cigar for the regular rotation ROTT.  Although not a PC sized smoke (which I prefer for a shorter smoke), it met the criteria for an enjoyable, unpretentious everyday kind of smoke.  

 As per the recommendations in this thread, I have the RASCC, Party Shorts, El Principe's, BPC, BCJ, smaller vitola RG's, Mille Fleurs and similar smokes on my ToDo list.  So as you can see, my experience has been limited but having picked up cigar smoking relatively recently, I want to be able to smoke regularly without blowing my smoking budget.

The suggestions in this thread have been great so please keep them coming.

EDIT.  Just moved the Partagas Super Partagas to the Regular Rotation as they have a certain charm and get better with  a little downtime.

 

 

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