RealFreakinCigarReviews

Initial Thoughts 

For the record, not everything I review is from JR Cigars.  The fact is, I purchased these in an auction on the JR site, and paid $45.00 for them, instead of the $59.95 that they typically go for.  My friend Ash (co-dude to this site) introduced me to Upmanns, and cigars in general.  I’m sure my wife will never forgive him for that, but hey… it’s a better vice than a lot of things… crack cocaine, black tar heroin, crystal meth, you get the idea.  No, I’m not judgin’ you if one of your vices is mentioned above, by all means, more power to ya… I’m just sayin’, they’ll likely kill yall quicker than having a stogie.  Of course, my animal rights activist, holier than though teenager would tell you that cigar smoking is disgusting, and that smoking of any kind should be summarily banned; she’d also tell you that she wants to be a vegan… yet quietly scarfs down a steak like nobody’s business.  But, I digress… it’s a little early in the afternoon for a drink, so… this review is accompanied by diet coke; certainly NOT my first choice in terms of things to accompany a decent cigar.

The Smoke

So… this cigar comes in glass tubes.  I’m sure there are purists who would tell ya that ya need to humidfy them.  Sorry, my wife didn’t buy me the 1200 count humidor for Christmas this past year, so, the glass tubed stogies do NOT get humidified at my house.  YES, I’ll buy myself the damned humidor in a few months, at which point, I’ll consider it.  At any rate, I popped the cork on my stogie, and took a look at it.  Very nicely constructed.  It smells nice too.  Clipping the cap was done easily enough, and, as expected, no cracking or breakage.  Lighting the stogie and taking my first puff was met with a very smooth, mild to medium flavor, with a decently complex taste.  A few more puffs, and yes, this is definitely a medium bodied cigar.  I’ll admit, I don’t particularly care for smaller ring guage cigars; I’m not sure why… personal preference I suppose.  As I puffed some more on the cigar, and the flavor gets a little more complex.  I can taste some hints of the natural sweetness of the tobacco.  The stick burns pretty much perfectly.  I’m well past the 2/3rds point now, and there does seem to be a little squishiness, so if you’re one who is used to a firmly rolled cigar that you can roll with your fingers as you’re puffing on it, you’ll need to back off on this one.

Past the 2/3 point, I notice a little bit of uneven burn, but nothing particularly bad.  The flavor is getting a little bit stronger; still definitely in the medium range.  I also notice that the amount of  smoke produced is quite a bit more.  I have to say, thus far, a pretty damned tasty cigar.  The burn has evened out, and sadly, I’ve only got a few puffs left.

This cigar did not disappoint.  I felt it was a little soft in terms of construction, and I’ve smoked medium cigars that had more complex flavor.

The Rating