What's Your Dog Rocket Cigar List?

[Connoisseur Kim]

PLPC is one of the popular PCs on FOH! Thank you for sharing Davidoff 702 cigars (never had NCs at all)! 

[Islandboy]

Count me in on RASS disappointment, first of 2 boxes were mostly crap, current ETP Feb 16 box is meh so far. No love there. 

Two other contenders are EDT Jun 16 PL Picadores, and SGA Mar 17 ERdM Choix Supreme, both buried as half boxes in my humidor, with high hopes they turn from tasteless pumpkins into something a bit more appealing. 
 

I have to add that Partagas no. 1 EL is one of my favorite EL’s of recent, but they’ve definitely entered a dumb phase after enjoying the first half dozen. Aroma was second to none. 

[Connoisseur Kim]

22 minutes ago, Islandboy said:

Count me in on RASS disappointment, first of 2 boxes were mostly crap, current ETP Feb 16 box is meh so far. No love there. 

Two other contenders are EDT Jun 16 PL Picadores, and SGA Mar 17 ERdM Choix Supreme, both buried as half boxes in my humidor, with high hopes they turn from tasteless pumpkins into something a bit more appealing. 
 

I have to add that Partagas no. 1 EL is one of my favorite EL’s of recent, but they’ve definitely entered a dumb phase after enjoying the first half dozen. Aroma was second to none. 

Surprised that you enjoyed Partagas No. 1 EL! To me, it was bland as hell with plugged and fireproof wrapper. It must be on dumb phase for sure!

[Joeyjojo]

4 hours ago, Connoisseur Kim said:

Wow, I didn't expect RASS can be a victim of being dog rocket by poor construction (I'm big RASS fan)! Even NCs can't avoid from being dog rocket which is surprising!

I am a huge RASS fan too, so was very surprised  indeed as I always considered them to be 'ye old faithful' when it came to Cuban cigars.

Still, even one bad experience hasn't put me off, and I still buy at least 1 box of them a year and smoke them far too quick.

[Connoisseur Kim]

25 minutes ago, Joeyjojo said:

I am a huge RASS fan too, so was very surprised  indeed as I always considered them to be 'ye old faithful' when it came to Cuban cigars.

Still, even one bad experience hasn't put me off, and I still buy at least 1 box of them a year and smoke them far too quick.

TBH, I saw RASS and Reyes with cabbage like greenish wrapper in local B&M. I'll be surprised too when go to cigar goes wrong! The ROTT also contribues negative experience, so I let cigars rest for 30 days at least.

[Kayslay]

The Partagas no. 1 EL was a disappointment, as it was my first EL. Punch Punch has been a disappointment for me as well. 2007 Romeo Churchill Anejados was offensive.

It's funny because RASS is one I see people state and I have loved all of the RASS I have smoked. I think overall Cuban QC is the culprit- not only in construction (usually the issue) but also perhaps in the blending. 

I have had cigars out of the same box show different sides of a coin. Its almost as if I have to give a vitola 5-10 tries before calling it a bust.

Hoyo Epi 2 has been a constant model of inconsistency for me. To be honest, they have been at best average IMO.

[Str8BlkCoffee]

Romeo y Juliet Wide Churchill.

I guess I got a bad box, but it disappointed me so much I never have tried them again. I so much wanted the RyJ experience in this format, but construction issues and overall tasting meh in general. It has really put me off the whole marca to be honest. I know I should be so judgmental but I just find easy excuses to not buy them. 

[Connoisseur Kim]

1 hour ago, Kayslay said:

The Partagas no. 1 EL was a disappointment, as it was my first EL. Punch Punch has been a disappointment for me as well. 2007 Romeo Churchill Anejados was offensive.

It's funny because RASS is one I see people state and I have loved all of the RASS I have smoked. I think overall Cuban QC is the culprit- not only in construction (usually the issue) but also perhaps in the blending. 

I have had cigars out of the same box show different sides of a coin. Its almost as if I have to give a vitola 5-10 tries before calling it a bust.

Hoyo Epi 2 has been a constant model of inconsistency for me. To be honest, they have been at best average IMO.

Partagas Series No. 1 and Anejados are all time dog rockets to me as well. Lucky that I got them for free from old Week Comp Samplers. Cuban QC and local B&Ms' poor storage condition made me huge follower of 24:24 TBH.

41 minutes ago, Str8BlkCoffee said:

Romeo y Juliet Wide Churchill.

I guess I got a bad box, but it disappointed me so much I never have tried them again. I so much wanted the RyJ experience in this format, but construction issues and overall tasting meh in general. It has really put me off the whole marca to be honest. I know I should be so judgmental but I just find easy excuses to not buy them. 

Wow, RyJ WC is one of the fav CCs on FOH, but it can't avoid the QC problem as well.  Never had any RyJ though.

[Puros Y Vino]

My two worst smoking experiences were early on when I started smoking and they were both NC's.

First. Partagas Black Label Robusto.  I remember blindly buying a box of these online. I was just getting into cigars at this point(2009) and thought these looked good.  Up to this point in time,I've smoked a few Hoyo di Nicaraguas',RyJ Churchill and some RyJ PC's.  None of these prepared me for the sheer merde of this cigar.  It had a jet black and oily exterior. The first bad sign was lighting it up. It was relatively easy mind you, put with every puff to get it going I was hacking. Being a novice I chalked it up to that. But, no. Even when I settled in, it was a rough smoke. It was making thick clouds of the darkest cigar smoke I have seen even to this day.  It's flavour profile was asphalt and sulfur.  I endured about 1 inch of it then pitched it. Never lit up another ever.  I slowly gifted/bombed people who wanted to experience the horror for themselves.

Second.  Drew Estates/Rocky Patel Java.  I'm still in the early stages of my cigar journey. Saw an ad for these and thought. Hmm..cigars and coffee together? Under one wrapper? Yes! I will try.  I ordered two "Toros" online. What came back was an almost perfect box press with sharp 90 degree angles. It had a 58RG to boot.  The aroma at cold was splendid.  Very pleasing. Literally the aroma of a nice cigar with a hot cup of coffee with hints of cinnamon.  The smoking experience though?  Wretched.    None of that cold aroma came through once lit. It tasted like hot garbage.  And then I noticed the staining on my fingers.  It wouldn't rub off on it's own. So I lay the cigar down and went inside to wash it off.  That's when I noticed. My lips were stained too!! ARRRRGGGHHHHH!!!  After a thorough cleaning of my affected body parts I went back outside, took the cigar over to the garden and with the heel of my shoe, struck a hole in which to pitch this foul creation into. Once in the hole I used my foot to kick dirt on to it and pressed down to make sure it's journey back to Hell was sealed.

Other than that. My only other "dog rocket" was a 2000 RyJ Cazadores.  It may as well been made of wood. I managed to light it but couldn't draw a molecule of air through it.  It smelled nice while it burned though. 

 

[Bmbroads]

Fonseca KDT- mushrooms are delicious, but filling up your entire mouth with moldy fungi mixed with fertilized soil...not the best.  Very different experience to the no1 and cosacos- both of which I enjoy.

 

[Connoisseur Kim]

51 minutes ago, bundwallah said:

My two worst smoking experiences were early on when I started smoking and they were both NC's.

First. Partagas Black Label Robusto.  I remember blindly buying a box of these online. I was just getting into cigars at this point(2009) and thought these looked good.  Up to this point in time,I've smoked a few Hoyo di Nicaraguas',RyJ Churchill and some RyJ PC's.  None of these prepared me for the sheer merde of this cigar.  It had a jet black and oily exterior. The first bad sign was lighting it up. It was relatively easy mind you, put with every puff to get it going I was hacking. Being a novice I chalked it up to that. But, no. Even when I settled in, it was a rough smoke. It was making thick clouds of the darkest cigar smoke I have seen even to this day.  It's flavour profile was asphalt and sulfur.  I endured about 1 inch of it then pitched it. Never lit up another ever.  I slowly gifted/bombed people who wanted to experience the horror for themselves.

Second.  Drew Estates/Rocky Patel Java.  I'm still in the early stages of my cigar journey. Saw an ad for these and thought. Hmm..cigars and coffee together? Under one wrapper? Yes! I will try.  I ordered two "Toros" online. What came back was an almost perfect box press with sharp 90 degree angles. It had a 58RG to boot.  The aroma at cold was splendid.  Very pleasing. Literally the aroma of a nice cigar with a hot cup of coffee with hints of cinnamon.  The smoking experience though?  Wretched.    None of that cold aroma came through once lit. It tasted like hot garbage.  And then I noticed the staining on my fingers.  It wouldn't rub off on it's own. So I lay the cigar down and went inside to wash it off.  That's when I noticed. My lips were stained too!! ARRRRGGGHHHHH!!!  After a thorough cleaning of my affected body parts I went back outside, took the cigar over to the garden and with the heel of my shoe, struck a hole in which to pitch this foul creation into. Once in the hole I used my foot to kick dirt on to it and pressed down to make sure it's journey back to Hell was sealed.

Other than that. My only other "dog rocket" was a 2000 RyJ Cazadores.  It may as well been made of wood. I managed to light it but couldn't draw a molecule of air through it.  It smelled nice while it burned though. 

The nicotine harshness overload is the main thing I afraid from NCs ?. This is the reason why I stick with CCs except Nudies (the only NC which I'll review in the future) ?. Thank you for sharing the NC dog rockets to me! RyJ Cazzies are popular CCs on FOH though.
 

50 minutes ago, Bmbroads said:

Fonseca KDT- mushrooms are delicious, but filling up your entire mouth with moldy fungi mixed with fertilized soil...not the best.  Very different experience to the no1 and cosacos- both of which I enjoy.

No. 1 is the most popular one in Fonseca, while others aren't being mentioned at all mostly. I'm interested in No. 1 for Fonseca.

[GavLew79]

If you leave this thread up long enough you are likely to hit every vitola from every marca. 

Conversely, if you out up a parallel thread of "what are your best cigars" you'll see the same names appearing on both lists. 

These are handmade products, by many different rollers, using different bundles of tobacco, in different factories, made in their thousands,... using leaves from different vintages from different parts of the island, grown in different conditions year to year. 

The fact that people expect consistency is what I can't fathom. 

Don't judge a cigar based on one of anything; one cigar, one box, one factory or one year. The next time you have one it will be different. 

[Connoisseur Kim]

1 minute ago, GavLew79 said:

If you leave this thread up long enough you are likely to hit every vitola from every marca. 

Conversely, if you out up a parallel thread of "what are your best cigars" you'll see the same names appearing on both lists. 

These are handmade products, by many different rollers, using different bundles of tobacco, in different factories, made in their thousands,... using leaves from different vintages from different parts of the island, grown in different conditions year to year. 

The fact that people expect consistency is what I can't fathom. 

Don't judge a cigar based on one of anything; one cigar, one box, one factory or one year. The next time you have one it will be different. 

I agree that cigars can vary, as they are handmade products except cigarillos. This is the reason why I'm planning to get more boxes as soon as I get Coolidor.

[jazzboypro]

2 hours ago, bundwallah said:

My two worst smoking experiences were early on when I started smoking and they were both NC's.

First. Partagas Black Label Robusto.  I remember blindly buying a box of these online. I was just getting into cigars at this point(2009) and thought these looked good.  Up to this point in time,I've smoked a few Hoyo di Nicaraguas',RyJ Churchill and some RyJ PC's.  None of these prepared me for the sheer merde of this cigar.  It had a jet black and oily exterior. The first bad sign was lighting it up. It was relatively easy mind you, put with every puff to get it going I was hacking. Being a novice I chalked it up to that. But, no. Even when I settled in, it was a rough smoke. It was making thick clouds of the darkest cigar smoke I have seen even to this day.  It's flavour profile was asphalt and sulfur.  I endured about 1 inch of it then pitched it. Never lit up another ever.  I slowly gifted/bombed people who wanted to experience the horror for themselves.

Second.  Drew Estates/Rocky Patel Java.  I'm still in the early stages of my cigar journey. Saw an ad for these and thought. Hmm..cigars and coffee together? Under one wrapper? Yes! I will try.  I ordered two "Toros" online. What came back was an almost perfect box press with sharp 90 degree angles. It had a 58RG to boot.  The aroma at cold was splendid.  Very pleasing. Literally the aroma of a nice cigar with a hot cup of coffee with hints of cinnamon.  The smoking experience though?  Wretched.    None of that cold aroma came through once lit. It tasted like hot garbage.  And then I noticed the staining on my fingers.  It wouldn't rub off on it's own. So I lay the cigar down and went inside to wash it off.  That's when I noticed. My lips were stained too!! ARRRRGGGHHHHH!!!  After a thorough cleaning of my affected body parts I went back outside, took the cigar over to the garden and with the heel of my shoe, struck a hole in which to pitch this foul creation into. Once in the hole I used my foot to kick dirt on to it and pressed down to make sure it's journey back to Hell was sealed.

Other than that. My only other "dog rocket" was a 2000 RyJ Cazadores.  It may as well been made of wood. I managed to light it but couldn't draw a molecule of air through it.  It smelled nice while it burned though. 

 

I went thru several boxes of Partagas Black Label Magnifico and i enjoyed all of them, never had the robusto though

[lovethehaze]

22 hours ago, SmokyFontaine said:

a box of Punch Punch that I think are really just wooden dowels with a wrapper around them are a close second

I have it's sister/brother box reg sep 18, hands down the worst box of unsmokable cigars ever produced... totally turned me off from punch punch. Close second would be almost anything scdlh like smoking wet cardboard.

 

[SmokyFontaine]

14 minutes ago, lovethehaze said:

I have it's sister/brother box reg sep 18, hands down the worst box of unsmokable cigars ever produced... totally turned me off from punch punch. Close second would be almost anything scdlh like smoking wet cardboard.

 

That is the exact date and box code I'm battling. I'm really hoping for some happy surprises with the bottom row from that box. Unbelievable. I haven't even considered buying another Punch as a result. You couldn't drybox these things into smoke-able if you left them in the desert for a month!

[BeerPimp]

8 hours ago, GavLew79 said:

If you leave this thread up long enough you are likely to hit every vitola from every marca. 

Conversely, if you out up a parallel thread of "what are your best cigars" you'll see the same names appearing on both lists. 

These are handmade products, by many different rollers, using different bundles of tobacco, in different factories, made in their thousands,... using leaves from different vintages from different parts of the island, grown in different conditions year to year. 

The fact that people expect consistency is what I can't fathom. 

Don't judge a cigar based on one of anything; one cigar, one box, one factory or one year. The next time you have one it will be different. 

The part in red is the reason if I want to try a new cigar I try to grab a 1/4 box.

My dog rocket cigar is Rome y Julieta Coronitas en Cedro.   I purchased a box when I first got into CC as some short smokes.   Even though I got the box with at least 2 years on it everyone was super strong and had an acrid flavor to them.   I did smoke one late last year that was amazing with a ton of honey but I doubt they have turned the corner I am guessing it was just and outlier.  I guess it is that time again to smoke one and be disappointed. ?

[MMarbs]

Jose Piedra. Cheap, but definitely not cheerful. While watching the FOH review of the Petite Cazadores, I stood up and applauded Ken's roasting of the vitola. I had one in my early years  of getting into cigars; I've never had one since.

When it comes to relatively recent smoking experience, I had a Partagas Series D No. 4. for the first time (it was not from FOH, let it be noted). It was just bitter and sour (not of the good sourdough bread variety). Granted, if you got a look at the stick's wrapper leaf you would understand why. Pale and sickly looking. I bought it from a cigar shop in my city and they had only a few of the D4 left, so I chose the best looking of the batch - which wasn't saying much. I won't write off the D4 because the particular stick I had was clearly not representative of a quality D4.  

[Reuben]

14 hours ago, Str8BlkCoffee said:

Romeo y Juliet Wide Churchill.

I guess I got a bad box, but it disappointed me so much I never have tried them again. I so much wanted the RyJ experience in this format, but construction issues and overall tasting meh in general. It has really put me off the whole marca to be honest. I know I should be so judgmental but I just find easy excuses to not buy them. 

This is so very interesting.  I have a cab of 50 RASS that is to die for.  Ive tried other RASS from other boxes i own that are so so.  I must have gotten lucky with the R&J wide churchhills.  My box is unbelievable and i will not let one stick out to anyone.  I guard those final 19 sticks in the box.  A buddy of mine also has a phenomenal box of R&J Wide Churchhills.  It must be QC of blending that is the culprit with all this.  

I have a box of Juan Lopez #1 that i have smoked 2 sticks from.  The first stick was spectacular!  The second one i smoked last Sunday night was no so great and a bit harsh.  I have a very high quality cigar cabinet so the cigars are in perfect condition and have relaxed for a considerable amount of time.  The sticks can each be a little different for some reason.  I rather enjoy the variance and find it interesting.  Perhaps my choice of beverage plays a roll in this too.

[Astar20]

My dog rockets would be 

HU Connie 1

RYJ cedros

[Monterey]

Partagas.  All.  Maybe an exception for the luthy. No construction issues, just don't care for the Partagas taste.  The D4 takes the cake for worst flavor of a cigar.  Age doesn't help it at all.  Something in that blend that just doesn't work for my palate.

[Connoisseur Kim]

3 hours ago, BeerPimp said:

The part in red is the reason if I want to try a new cigar I try to grab a 1/4 box.

My dog rocket cigar is Rome y Julieta Coronitas en Cedro.   I purchased a box when I first got into CC as some short smokes.   Even though I got the box with at least 2 years on it everyone was super strong and had an acrid flavor to them.   I did smoke one late last year that was amazing with a ton of honey but I doubt they have turned the corner I am guessing it was just and outlier.  I guess it is that time again to smoke one and be disappointed. ?

Yeah, I really like the idea of 1/4 box. I can figure it out which cigar do I really like ?. There aren't many RyJ Coronitas en Cedro reviews on FOH, so thank you for sharing your experience! 

2 hours ago, MMarbs said:

Jose Piedra. Cheap, but definitely not cheerful. While watching the FOH review of the Petite Cazadores, I stood up and applauded Ken's roasting of the vitola. I had one in my early years  of getting into cigars; I've never had one since.

When it comes to relatively recent smoking experience, I had a Partagas Series D No. 4. for the first time (it was not from FOH, let it be noted). It was just bitter and sour (not of the good sourdough bread variety). Granted, if you got a look at the stick's wrapper leaf you would understand why. Pale and sickly looking. I bought it from a cigar shop in my city and they had only a few of the D4 left, so I chose the best looking of the batch - which wasn't saying much. I won't write off the D4 because the particular stick I had was clearly not representative of a quality D4.  

Never had JLP, but there are many better cigars out there like PLPC than JLP. D4 seems to be one of the inconsistent hell of ride CCs.

2 hours ago, Astar20 said:

My dog rockets would be 

HU Connie 1

RYJ cedros

Was Connie 1 having construction issue?

28 minutes ago, Monterey said:

Partagas.  All.  Maybe an exception for the luthy. No construction issues, just don't care for the Partagas taste.  The D4 takes the cake for worst flavor of a cigar.  Age doesn't help it at all.  Something in that blend that just doesn't work for my palate.

I like Lusitania and Short for Partagas though. The only Partagas I really detest is Series No. 1.

[Astar20]

No just the Connie one I got just didn't do much for me tasted like burnt cardboard very uninteresting and one dimension 

[Connoisseur Kim]

12 minutes ago, Astar20 said:

No just the Connie one I got just didn't do much for me tasted like burnt cardboard very uninteresting and one dimension 

Sad to see dud Connie 1 report. Connie 1 is one of my wishlist cigar by the way.

[GavLew79]

3 hours ago, Connoisseur Kim said:

 ? The only Partagas I really detest is Series No. 1.

But how many have you tried?