Origin: Cuba
Size: 5ins x 48 — Robusto
Smoke time: 1hour
Appearance: Rough skinned, deep brown 'earth' shade wrapper. Slightly oily with blackish veins (quite a lot of them) and a gentle squaring on the top and bottom surfaces, presumably from being box kept.
Construction: Not great. Lighting was easy enough. The initial burn was off-line but not alarmingly so. By the second third the burn had rightened but only for a short while before becoming wayward again. The draw from the beginning was slightly tight, and became tighter although not unmanageable as the smoke progressed. The ash while compact was a little on the scruffy side. The biggest issue however was the light, with the cigar going out once in the second third and twice in the third before reaching the band and by which final occasion I had become totally disenchanted and just couldn't be bothered re-lighting it.
Flavour: The first puff is really good with shades of pepper and fresh grassiness. A puff or two in and the cigar settles into it's Cuban twang mode with light citrus notes combined with something else, not floral more herbacious or leathery. And that is about it! The cigar does become a little deeper with an added 'breadyness' in it's taste around the second half. Best I can put it, the flavour is generally pleasant, but bland and totally lacking in crispness and delivery compared with the Upmann Conni 1.
Overall: Mild enough for beginners although I can't imagine a seasoned smoker choosing one for an after dinner smoke. I'm a relative beginner, and the Choix was too mild and too lacking in flavour definition even for me (the little Demi-Tass has more flavour). The best compliment I can give it is that it's mellow, good maybe for a Summer's afternoon by a river bank, but not worth standing outside freezing during the Winter for.
Size: 5ins x 48 — Robusto
Smoke time: 1hour
Appearance: Rough skinned, deep brown 'earth' shade wrapper. Slightly oily with blackish veins (quite a lot of them) and a gentle squaring on the top and bottom surfaces, presumably from being box kept.
Construction: Not great. Lighting was easy enough. The initial burn was off-line but not alarmingly so. By the second third the burn had rightened but only for a short while before becoming wayward again. The draw from the beginning was slightly tight, and became tighter although not unmanageable as the smoke progressed. The ash while compact was a little on the scruffy side. The biggest issue however was the light, with the cigar going out once in the second third and twice in the third before reaching the band and by which final occasion I had become totally disenchanted and just couldn't be bothered re-lighting it.
Flavour: The first puff is really good with shades of pepper and fresh grassiness. A puff or two in and the cigar settles into it's Cuban twang mode with light citrus notes combined with something else, not floral more herbacious or leathery. And that is about it! The cigar does become a little deeper with an added 'breadyness' in it's taste around the second half. Best I can put it, the flavour is generally pleasant, but bland and totally lacking in crispness and delivery compared with the Upmann Conni 1.
Overall: Mild enough for beginners although I can't imagine a seasoned smoker choosing one for an after dinner smoke. I'm a relative beginner, and the Choix was too mild and too lacking in flavour definition even for me (the little Demi-Tass has more flavour). The best compliment I can give it is that it's mellow, good maybe for a Summer's afternoon by a river bank, but not worth standing outside freezing during the Winter for.
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