Partagas Shorts RSB FEB 06

[zuma]

Lovely spring afternoon... 21C slightly overcast. Glad that the financial end of the world did not eventuate (thanks to Henry and Ben), I dry-boxed this runt for a day... its siblings are resting heedlessly.

Unremarkable looking cigar with a slight box-press, quite firm to touch with a slightly soft spot about 1/3 of its length from its foot. Faint hint of oils on the light brown wrapper, it had a a greenish patch about 1/2 inch above the foot. At cold, it had a very faint scent of cinnamon and honey.

Upon clipping the cap, I found the draw to be a couple of notches on the loose side of perfect, leaving a taste of hay on the palate and lips.

After gently toasting its foot, it opened with a core of hay sprinkled with cayenne and black pepper. The texture was like dry hay, leaving a faintly sweet and spicy taste lingering on the tongue after each draw.

The core became nuttier in texture, after 1/2 inch, while the cayenne pepper has slowly stepped up its presence. Interestingly, a faintly sweet element in the cayenne flavour emerges only after puffing the smoke out.

One inch into the game, the cayenne pepper raid waned a little allowing savoury hints of allspice and dry oatmeal to appear. Again, a sugary and spicy taste lingers on after puffing the smoke out.

Beginning the second half first half, the strong spicy taste faded significantly. The core was coffee-like with a sprinkle of sugar and pepper, and hints of fennel and anise that came and went. The texture became leathery... thicker and fuller. Sweet paprika on the lips.

With less than an inch to go, the spice surged until the end... sweet allspice and cayenne that seared my lips, gums and tongue. It had a scrumptiously smooth leather texture. Nubbed it!

It left a long sweet spicy leather finish (that I am still savouring as I write this)

In spite of the soft spot mentioned above, the burn was near perfect. it went slightly ragged near the beginning of the last third but corrected itself quite soon. Ash was light gray, not really ribbed but solid.

Very enjoyable near hour and fifteen mins...

92/100

[Tampa1257]

» Very enjoyable near hour and fifteen mins...

»

» 92/100

You really nursed that Short! They typically only last me around 45 minutes, yet you sound as if you really enjoyed it, and that is what counts!:-D

[bassman]

Nice cigars for a 1/2 hour smoke. Guess I smoke faster than you guys. The best I ever smoked were from 01 but they are sadly gone. My current cab is ABR 05 & the cigars seem to keep getting better with each one smoked. Medium to strong, nice & peppery.

[zuma]

Hmmm... a smoke normally takes me about twice as long when I sit to review, possibly because I hold the smoke longer to savour each draw, and allow the finish to become defined after each puff. Since at such slow pace the smoke is less likely to overheat, I also find that most good cigars tend to taste even better, allowing me to perceive more nuanced flavours. Some mediocre cigars can be worse when reviewed... nothing worse than wasting peaceful time with insipid, bitter or ammoniac-laden cigars.

Note: Since I am a relative noob, I mostly do my revs in zen-like style to learn, to document what I like, and how the cigars in my small collection are progressing... though it may seem that I only post relatively good reviews, I do have plenty of half-jotted reviews of disappointing cigars (some that have gotten relatively good mentions and reviews here).

[El Presidente]

Excellent review Zuma!

Early 06 was cracker period. Mid 06 saw some construction problems with the shorts. Third quarter 06 the flavour was more muted than early 06. Sill, that is based only on what I had sampled and seen.

When "on" they are a fantastic short smoke.