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I recently received a box of Monte No. 2s from what I believe to be a trusted source. I know our host certainly trusts him very much. I am not completely certain regarding the authenticity of the cigars though. As you can see in the photos below the box Code is OPG AGO 14. The box and labels all appear to be legit. The serial number appears to check out on the Habanos SA website as well. It says: "The product is original from Habanos S.A. HSA: 10.9071.17.0190 Descripcion: MONTECRISTO MONTECRISTO No.2 CB-UW-C/L-12,13-n-25" Now for the doubt. No Gilding on the bands. I know that the Non Gilded Montecristo bands were discontinued in 2012. Yet my box is date AGO 14, UH OH. Add to that, some of the cigars look ROUGH. You can see in the pictures below, spotted/splotchy wrappers, barber polling (not intentional to my knowledge ) some rough feet and overall far inferior in appearance to any Monte No. 2 I've seen in the past. I compared the bands and cigars to two existing batches of No 2.s that are already in my possession and are are certainly authentic. One being from 2011 and the other from MAR 2015. As you can see below the authentic 2011 band and the new band from my 2014 box appear to match. The color, size, raised lettering and layout all appear to be the same. The two proven cigars have much richer and more even wrappers that show much more oily sheen as well. So, help me out here. Fake sticks in a real box? Did they find a couple boxes of the old bands sitting in a factory and decide to use them two years later on a low quality batch? I haven't smoked one yet and I would prefer to hear some feed back from you guys before I do.

It's Friday on this side of the pond, and after an excellent Monte Especial No. 1 yesterday, thanks to Brad (and Werner by proxy), I figured I celebrate with another Montecristo. The wrapper is silky with a slight sheen to it, and almost has a reddish color in the right light. The cold draw was a little on the tight side, but nothing too worrisome. I noticed a hard spot near the shoulder, which was probably the cause. I fired it up anyways and found the draw was not perfect, but copacetic at least. I immediately get a mouthful of heavenly, creamy milk flavors with some chocolate on the finish. There seemed to be just a hint of leather and maybe some spices as well. Perhaps nutmeg? As I progressed into the second third, the taste of coffee appeared, but was still playing second fiddle to the creaminess of the cigar. The coffee really stepped up in the final third, and was joined by the revisiting leather, and maybe - just maybe - some earthiness as well. I was also still tasting the baking spices, which continued to increase alongside the coffee tones. At the end, the cigar did get a bit bitter and harsh, but I was nearly burning my finger anyways, so I wasn't disappointed. The burn stayed spot on and the ash was dense, so besides the slightly tight draw, construction was great. The flavors were classic, delicious Monte, with medium-full body and medium strength. This is a great box and I look forward to seeing how they mature in the next year or two.