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Gurkha is one of the most talked about cigars on the Non-Cuban cigar market. Particularly because of the company founder's claim that it is the "Rolls Royce of cigars" and because of its over-the-top packaging and often over-the-top prices. CohibaIV and I picked up a Gurkha Status to compare how it stands up to other cigars. My review is based on 100 point scale, but keep in mind that it is not the same 100 point scale that Cigar Aficionado uses. I have broken my scale down to 70 possible points for taste, 20 possible points for burn, 5 possible points for appearance and 5 possible points for aroma. With this in mind it is also important to note that while I can confidently compare Non-Cuban cigars as a result of having smoked many brands and types I am still very new and uneducated with Cuban cigars. For this reason, CohibaIV's comparison, which will be added to this thread shortly, is more focused on those of you who generally smoke Cuban cigars.
To begin, the Gurkha Status, a $13.00 cigar, comes packaged in a glass tube. The tube, which is a little to effeminate for my taste
, is a frosted glass tube that has "Gurkha" etched on it in a whispy font and is capped at both ends with large, ornate metal caps. Definitely something that I would be embarrassed to pull out of my pocket at a pub gentlemen. I think it is meant to be more appealing to the female cigar smoker? 
The cigar is a long churchill-sized cigar with a light wrapper. It's score on appearance alone is a full 5 out of 5. Everything about its construction, color and scent is appealing.
I sparked this cigar up with a Chivas Regal 12 year scotch. It began with a very mild taste and a nice even burn. The cigar is not very complex in flavors. Mostly there is a light wood taste and a hint of pecans but that is noted few and far between throughout the lengthy cigar. Quite often a metallic taste is noted. At one point, however, the cigar did reach a point that could be considered its "sweet spot" where the cigar was very nice tasting, but that lasted for only two puffs and was gone. In the taste category this cigar only scored a 60 out of a possible 70.
The burn was very even, which is hard to get out of such a large cigar. from beginning to end the burn was actually perfect as far as steady, even burns go. That is, until it went out near the label. After relighting the cigar the burn continued very nicely. As a result of the cigar going out the Status lost points in this category and received 18 out of 20 points.
Finally the aroma was noted for a score of 3 out of a possible 5 points. Many cigars produce a pleasant aroma that does not offend even some non-smokers, but this cigar would definitely not fit in that category. The aroma from this cigar is actually less appealing than its mild taste and at times smelled like a cigarette or a cheap cigar. With that said, I considered how I would feel showing off a Rolls Royce in public; confident and proud. For something that is to be considered the Rolls Royce of cigars, I would find it more embarrassing than anything else to have this smell associated with me in public.
So the Gurkha Status scores an 86 on my 100 point scale. This means that it scored very good, but for $13.00 I would definitely gravitate to another more satisfying cigar.
Your thoughts Cohibs?
(I apologize for the poor quality picture, but I thought some of you might want to get a blurry idea of the tube for this cigar. This is what it looks like after a few scotches.)
To begin, the Gurkha Status, a $13.00 cigar, comes packaged in a glass tube. The tube, which is a little to effeminate for my taste
, is a frosted glass tube that has "Gurkha" etched on it in a whispy font and is capped at both ends with large, ornate metal caps. Definitely something that I would be embarrassed to pull out of my pocket at a pub gentlemen. I think it is meant to be more appealing to the female cigar smoker? The cigar is a long churchill-sized cigar with a light wrapper. It's score on appearance alone is a full 5 out of 5. Everything about its construction, color and scent is appealing.
I sparked this cigar up with a Chivas Regal 12 year scotch. It began with a very mild taste and a nice even burn. The cigar is not very complex in flavors. Mostly there is a light wood taste and a hint of pecans but that is noted few and far between throughout the lengthy cigar. Quite often a metallic taste is noted. At one point, however, the cigar did reach a point that could be considered its "sweet spot" where the cigar was very nice tasting, but that lasted for only two puffs and was gone. In the taste category this cigar only scored a 60 out of a possible 70.
The burn was very even, which is hard to get out of such a large cigar. from beginning to end the burn was actually perfect as far as steady, even burns go. That is, until it went out near the label. After relighting the cigar the burn continued very nicely. As a result of the cigar going out the Status lost points in this category and received 18 out of 20 points.
Finally the aroma was noted for a score of 3 out of a possible 5 points. Many cigars produce a pleasant aroma that does not offend even some non-smokers, but this cigar would definitely not fit in that category. The aroma from this cigar is actually less appealing than its mild taste and at times smelled like a cigarette or a cheap cigar. With that said, I considered how I would feel showing off a Rolls Royce in public; confident and proud. For something that is to be considered the Rolls Royce of cigars, I would find it more embarrassing than anything else to have this smell associated with me in public.
So the Gurkha Status scores an 86 on my 100 point scale. This means that it scored very good, but for $13.00 I would definitely gravitate to another more satisfying cigar.
Your thoughts Cohibs?
(I apologize for the poor quality picture, but I thought some of you might want to get a blurry idea of the tube for this cigar. This is what it looks like after a few scotches.)
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