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As usual, a quick apology for the shocking picture quality, I merely had the mobile phone to hand and it had to suffice. Unsurprisingly my mind was on thing other than taking pictures at the time. I will grab some pictures from the web to also use so you might stand a chance actually see some detail.
I had a smoke with Ajay at Teddington last night, a small group of around five people. A charming evening with good conversation and cigars. I do love the smaller gatherings. Partly due to the relaxed group Ajay let me join him in sampling two cigars he JUST received. I have been waiting with great anticipation for both of them and feared they may never materialise.
The first was the new Lebanese regional edition from Ram?n Allones. Many of you will have read about the Phoenicios, the previous Lebanese RE from the same cigar house. This is one of my all time great cigars but I could certainly see the attraction in a shorter version. The new one, the Beritus, is an Edmundo size (Robusto, 52x135) which is significantly smaller than the Sublime size (Double Robusto, 54x164) of the previous cigar.
The Phoenicios was a rich and powerful cigar. I had one as a breakfast cigar after an ?eventful? night out once and made it last over four heavenly hours, savouring every moment. This is one of the few cigars I deeply wish I could have purchased as an entire box but as it came in boxes of thirty this was not an option. I have smoked five or six now and loved every one, except the first which was utterly unremarkable, but maybe I got a duff one or it was still overly ?green?. When I learnt that a new RE from RA for the same market was coming I knew I had to try it. It has taken a good while to have the opportunity but finally it came. Oh what a let down! I know it was wrong to be looking for more of the same thrill as I had with the earlier cigar, the new one is a different cigar after all, but it is not in the same league as the Phoenicios. I did enjoy it, a little more than medium in body with some richness to it but nothing remarkable or note worthy. A good solid smoke, little more. Very ?flat? in comparison to the Phoenicios, which maybe the main reason I was disappointed, I was looking for more of the same in a smaller package and that was wrong of me. If I had come to this cigar with no expectations then maybe it would have stood a better chance in impressing me but it singularly failed to do so. The company I was with and that smoked the same cigar felt similarly.
Some people did not care for the Phoenicios because they expected something nearer to a ?typical? Ram?n Allones and it is nothing of the sort. I came to it with no expectations and was blown away; sadly nothing could be further from the truth when it came to the Beritus.
The second cigar was the Punch for the Indian market, the Platino. This is a Prominentes (Double Corona 49x194) that comes in a star embossed silver foil sleeve, a little like a giant Bolivar Gold Medal.
The cigar in the freshly opened box smelt sweet but Ajay was convinced he smelt ammonia which eluded my less educated palette. I have always loved the double corona size and this was an example that came with extra bells and whistles. I had tried the Punch RE for Italy recently, the Diademas Extra and enjoyed less than the last half of the cigar, a long build up of a cigar if ever there was one, as a result I was not overly enamoured with it. I had also recently tried the Punch for the Swiss market, the Poderosos, a sublime size cigar and fallen instantly in love with it. As a result of these recent hits and misses from Punch I did not know what to expect from the Platino. Well it turned out to be a bloody good but not quit great cigar. It was rich, medium-full, a little sweet with chocolate hints. This cigar did not bore, I enjoyed it thoroughly but it did not make me want to beg for more. Definitely worth a try but not something to kill yourself looking for. The presentation of the cigar was clearly made to be overly ?showy? to appeal to the ?new money? in India but it still managed to be a cigar with ?taste?.
I will forgo regaling you with details of the conversation of the evening; it was mainly arguments about the merits and crimes of shows like big brother, the apprentice junior, the iPad and the hypocrisy of Steve Jobs. Some cigars also got talked about, LOL.
Cheers all.
T.
I had a smoke with Ajay at Teddington last night, a small group of around five people. A charming evening with good conversation and cigars. I do love the smaller gatherings. Partly due to the relaxed group Ajay let me join him in sampling two cigars he JUST received. I have been waiting with great anticipation for both of them and feared they may never materialise.
The first was the new Lebanese regional edition from Ram?n Allones. Many of you will have read about the Phoenicios, the previous Lebanese RE from the same cigar house. This is one of my all time great cigars but I could certainly see the attraction in a shorter version. The new one, the Beritus, is an Edmundo size (Robusto, 52x135) which is significantly smaller than the Sublime size (Double Robusto, 54x164) of the previous cigar.
The Phoenicios was a rich and powerful cigar. I had one as a breakfast cigar after an ?eventful? night out once and made it last over four heavenly hours, savouring every moment. This is one of the few cigars I deeply wish I could have purchased as an entire box but as it came in boxes of thirty this was not an option. I have smoked five or six now and loved every one, except the first which was utterly unremarkable, but maybe I got a duff one or it was still overly ?green?. When I learnt that a new RE from RA for the same market was coming I knew I had to try it. It has taken a good while to have the opportunity but finally it came. Oh what a let down! I know it was wrong to be looking for more of the same thrill as I had with the earlier cigar, the new one is a different cigar after all, but it is not in the same league as the Phoenicios. I did enjoy it, a little more than medium in body with some richness to it but nothing remarkable or note worthy. A good solid smoke, little more. Very ?flat? in comparison to the Phoenicios, which maybe the main reason I was disappointed, I was looking for more of the same in a smaller package and that was wrong of me. If I had come to this cigar with no expectations then maybe it would have stood a better chance in impressing me but it singularly failed to do so. The company I was with and that smoked the same cigar felt similarly.
Some people did not care for the Phoenicios because they expected something nearer to a ?typical? Ram?n Allones and it is nothing of the sort. I came to it with no expectations and was blown away; sadly nothing could be further from the truth when it came to the Beritus.
The second cigar was the Punch for the Indian market, the Platino. This is a Prominentes (Double Corona 49x194) that comes in a star embossed silver foil sleeve, a little like a giant Bolivar Gold Medal.
The cigar in the freshly opened box smelt sweet but Ajay was convinced he smelt ammonia which eluded my less educated palette. I have always loved the double corona size and this was an example that came with extra bells and whistles. I had tried the Punch RE for Italy recently, the Diademas Extra and enjoyed less than the last half of the cigar, a long build up of a cigar if ever there was one, as a result I was not overly enamoured with it. I had also recently tried the Punch for the Swiss market, the Poderosos, a sublime size cigar and fallen instantly in love with it. As a result of these recent hits and misses from Punch I did not know what to expect from the Platino. Well it turned out to be a bloody good but not quit great cigar. It was rich, medium-full, a little sweet with chocolate hints. This cigar did not bore, I enjoyed it thoroughly but it did not make me want to beg for more. Definitely worth a try but not something to kill yourself looking for. The presentation of the cigar was clearly made to be overly ?showy? to appeal to the ?new money? in India but it still managed to be a cigar with ?taste?.
I will forgo regaling you with details of the conversation of the evening; it was mainly arguments about the merits and crimes of shows like big brother, the apprentice junior, the iPad and the hypocrisy of Steve Jobs. Some cigars also got talked about, LOL.
Cheers all.
T.
one day one day!
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