Akela3rd

The trick is not to catch anything for an hour or so. A fish can seriously impede the smoking experience Sent by spooky action at a distance

As is traditional on such occasions... That's what she said! My work here is done, I thank you. Sent from my SM-A515F using Tapatalk

The first couple I'd had out of this box recently were both absolutely stellar so I went into this with high hopes, and was not disappointed. Beautiful oily wrapper, nicely constructed and well packed to the point of feeling slightly too well packed. Fruity on the cold draw. The draw was firm but not unpleasantly so and on lighting the smoke output was fine. Lemon cake was my first impression and this soon developed into a more stone fruit sort of vibe. A little zing was there but overall a rounded dark fruit feel, like a damson jelly with grated lemon over it. This general rich fruit combination dominated the first third of the cigar and then into the second third a slight coffee note appeared. The cigar was smoking slowly with the firm draw and I didn't have a problem with that at all. A lighter draw would have made it overpowering. It tasted strong and had a real depth to it - black coffee and expensive 90% dark chocolate under the rich fruit. Into the final third I massaged the wrapper a little and the draw opened out and a sweet licorice started to make an appearance. The way the flavours swam around over the time this took to smoke was quite mesmerising - a basic theme of dark fruit and dark coffee but constantly changing in emphasis and hints of lemon oil coming and going. A beautiful cigar and I'm already looking forward to getting through these sooner rather than later. It might just be that giving these the time for the different aspects to meld together could be the undoing of an excellent and interesting box. Surprisingly strong for an RA and beautifully rich. 8.5/10 arbitrarily. Sent from 47171 Lempo

Flor Fina? Delicate flower. Arturo Fuente have Flor Fina cigars if that helps... Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

A little shout out to the underdog with this review. I've always liked them and they get little attention which I is why I was able to pick up this '17 box recently with no premium for the extra years. Well made, smooth wrapper and no lumps or bumps to be seen. The cold draw is perfect and tastes mainly of slightly sweet tobacco (obvious I know, but there you are). First third starts ever so slightly bitter, which I don't dislike, but there's a dark sweetness in there and a strong line of leather through it too. The smoke is thick and smooth. Strength is a touch over medium. Second third remains heavy on the leather, slightly floral in places. Burn has been good throughout and into the final stretch the floral becomes sweeter. It's a nice combination with the tart edge this has. Hints of pepper, as ever, in the final knockings. Lovely little cigar and a nice smoke for a slightly chilly early autumn evening coming in at just over forty minutes. Not sophisticated, but solid and remarkably good for the price point. 8/10 all day long. Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

New Napalm Death album 'Throes of Joy in the Jaws of Defeatism' Very good indeed. (if you like this kind of thing, obviously[emoji16]) Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

HdM du Prince TOR JUN 16 Dug this out of the darkest recesses as I haven't had one for a while... Still very good [emoji106] Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

This one is a FoH prize cigar that hasn't quite had a month in the humi. However, my other Monte 2s are in the hold for a couple of years yet and are strictly out of bounds. Firm draw, but good for a long slow smoke. Perfect construction, lovely dark wrapper with an oily sheen. Cedar cold but smells of dark choc. Quite mild to start, but savoury and meaty almost. A couple of minutes in and it's definitely Montecristo of the dark chocolate variety. Maybe my tastebuds are being influenced by the wrapper that looks like a 70% cocoa bar of the good stuff. Hints of lemon on the tongue. I'm five minutes into this and it's glorious. Lost track of time a bit but there's ginger biscuit and a sharper lemon coming through into the second third. Works beautifully with the dark chocolate. Burn is impeccable - I thought it might be problematic due to the lack of time to settle but it's behaving perfectly. Over an hour in and reaching the final third. Lemon still floating in and out, sometimes dominating. The core of biscuity dark chocolate overlaid with that beautiful slightly sharp citrus has been, as stated earlier, glorious. I'm presuming this cigar is from 2019 and hope my sleeping box will emulate this one. Solid 9/10, couldn't have hoped for a better smoke for a peaceful evening by the fire. Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

Probably not allowed to show them in case it encourages the yoot to take up smoking. Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

In honour of the Regalias I thought I'd review the other, now long gone, Upmann PC. This one's got a slightly rough wrapper but still has that velvety feel to it that I associate with HUPC. Cold draw is ever so slightly sweet with a hint of barnyard. On lighting the first taste is marshmallow spiced with nutmeg, absolutely lovely. Slightly wobbly burn but nothing to worry about. Nice and smooth as expected. Going into the second third and the wobble has turned potentially ugly so is corrected. An upturn in the spice element though still just a mild, sweet tingle over the continuing marshmallow reminder. Cedar coming through too now with milk chocolate involved occasionally. Finally finished the paperwork I was doing and I can now enjoy the last of the sunshine and the last third of the cigar. The strength of this cigar has been steadily below medium matching the subtle flavours and allowing them to shine, but comes up slightly towards the band. The marshmallow fades and the cedar and milk choc comes to the fore. The spice that I'd associated with nutmeg turns to a more sharp cinnamon or mild white pepper. All in all an excellent cigar to be savoured slowly. Gentle and satisfying, shame they got rid of them... Still have a few left though. In comparison to the Regalias? More refined definitely, generally milder but depends on the individual stick. A bit more sweetness and less cedar than the sibling. As they're another PC that's bitten the dust the Regalia has to carry the Upmann torch. Let's hope they sell enough not to be axed too. HUPC 9/10[emoji106] Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

I had a 2009 Ex3 at JJFox early last year and it was a beautiful smoke. They'd dug a box out of the vaults and by the time I was there again a couple of months later they were gone, never to be seen again. Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

Big field for this one. Congratulations! Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

Having thoroughly enjoyed both the Edmundo and Petit Edmundo it's time to break out the Double...Longer obviously, but curiously of a smaller rg than it's siblings. Oaty smell on cold draw which is firm but perfectly usable. Feels a little tight below the band but will leave it for now. 1st 3rd - Slightly bitter. Quite subdued, not a lot of anything distinctive TBH, but it opens up after half an inch and settles nicely. Biscuit, hay, hint of cocoa. Cooking spice of some sort - cinnamon/nutmeg giving a slight tingle. It's surprisingly not very Monte but it's nice enough. Then a change - a bit of sugary chocolate sweetness, smoke output increased, draw excellent now. Solid medium in strength 2nd 3rd - First ash fall. The cocoa's really coming through now. Biscuit dusted with chocolate powder. Turning smoother and decidedly creamy. 3rd 3rd - Burn still straight as you like throughout to the end. Spice turns to black pepper as I finish what turned out to be a rather good cigar, but one that needed another few months I'd say. I'll return to the box in the New Year and report back, should we all make it to then. Total smoking time 1½ hrs. Score 7/10 with high expectations for the next one. Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

Party Shorts baby, Party Shorts. Nuff said... Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7

(With apologies to e.e. cummings) HdM EE Cold Damp Evening fire to warm the cockles and a cigar of great repute. S m o o o t h to the eye, dark to the touch, promising much. The fire takes the cigar AndCream AndHazelnut ...and ...and Milky coffee, (like your grandmother used to make) ...and ...and Mint (just a suggestion of) you understand So it goes for a happy and calm hour or more ? ...and it ends peace full y. Sent from Cosmos Redshift 7