2019 SoS Blind Pass Reviews

[Dran]

We're not pros like @Bostoneo, and @irratebass, this is for fun and NOT to be taken seriously! You can break it down as much as you want to, giving notes on construction, prelight, and each third as you go, or, just give your overall thoughts on the stick, if you would, wouldn't stock this cigar. Be sure to post a guess, again as detailed as you wish, growing regions, maker, particular line/stick, or if you're drawing a comets blank. I don't think anyone is going to send an outright dog rocket, and will probably make it a point to send things that either they personally enjoy, or think you would enjoy, so, if you dont enjoy a particular stick, state so and leave it at that! No need to destroy it, and risk offending someone. Please post at minimum a before pic, and a pic of the reveal. Enjoy gents!
@fisherclive @Red neck_toy
@gurgalunas @admartinct
@WNYTony @Sweemzander
@Dran @Tyler86


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[admartinct]

 

[admartinct]

Going to channel my inner KohnHed for this one (sorry Steve @GoBISON )

#3
Construction:
Robusto - Triple cap, firm roll, nice draw, oily wrapper
Cut: first cap taken off.



First 3rd

First draw: a little spice tingle on the tongue, bready, butter - maybe walnuts?

Half inch in - faint sweetness joins the party.

Cracked a Coke, full disclosure.

An inch in, spice picks up. Can’t put my finger on a specific spice profile, I’m no chef. Butter in the background & retro, sweetness on the tongue and lips. Burn like stays steady.
At this point, I’m thinking Nicaraguan.

Starting to get a bit of the sour tinge on the back of the tongue like I get with some warped sticks. Not a terrible taste, I can never quite figure out what it is though.

Second third

Butters back, sour tinge has faded - I tapped the ash so maybe that made a difference. Sweetness comes to the front, like the browned bottom of a molasses cookie (That ones for you @Opie ). Wood also at the forefront.
I like this, not a big fan of robustos but in PC it would be great.

Transition to brown sugar and burnt toast. Wood’s still there. Malty.

The ash holds nicely, I do a quick tap into the last third



Last third

As I pass onto the last third, I finish up Uncanny X-Men #110, and can’t help but think - “What would Wolverine smoke?” Probably not Cubans.

Profile doesn’t change much from the second except for a little more spice/heat on the retro. Like Montreal Steak Seasoning.
Brown sugar, wood, burnt toast falls back.
Burn is still nice, I’ve only had to touch it up once.
At this point, I’m still thinking Nicaraguan. But unsure.

Hour and 20 minutes in.

Wood and sweetness are dominant with tartness starting to show itself. Like back as a kid chewing on a flavor- stained popsicle stick long after the popsicle is gone.

My girlfriend made dinner and the dog is staring at me through the slider door, time to call it.



Overall this was a great smoke, thanks Craig!

The reveal:



Ah! Knew it was Nicaraguan. Reminded me of Warped GOTF a bit.
I’ve never had anything from Aganorsa Leaf besides the GOT. I really enjoyed this. Thanks again Craig, and Joe, this was fun. @gurgalunas @Dran

 

[Dran]

@Tyler86 Here goes #2... Err.... #1.... That's to say its the 1st stick I'm reviewing, but its stick #2. Despite my overwhelming desire to smoke them 1-6.... The draw of a box press torpedo was too much to overcome. Pairing this guy with some cool tap water.

Appearance: ~5" box torpedo, velvety wrapper that's mostly smooth, except for 1 large vein that seems meticulously close to being in line the entire length of the stick! Firm to the touch and a well crafted stick all around.

PreLight and cold draw:
Earthy and barnyard!

1st:

The barnyard and earth are quite prevelant on the initial light up, and there's also an irony metallic taste coming up. Liking this one so far... But its already looking like that vein is gonna cause some problems. At this point, my impression is that it has some Nica baccy in there somewhere, and I'm thinking a habano wrapper. Take a break, I'll see you in the second 3rd.

2nd:

The ash was holding strong at 1/2" and probably would still be on there, if it hadn't slipped outta my hand and dropped into the slot. Flavors are now just a general mineral taste, with mild pepper and just a touch of unidentifiable sweetness... A few puffs have yielded a slight musty flavor that i associate with Nica Estelli tobacco, I'm also thinking that Habano wrapper is Ecuadorian in vintage! I'm gonna keep smoking, and get back to y'all in the 3rd!

3rd:

The cap has been flirting with coming unwrapped the whole way, but just a quick rubdown and it goes back in place. The sweetness, mineral, and pepper have all kinda blended into one flavor that reminds me of warm marbled rye toast. Only thing missing is that creamy taste of melty Kerry Gold irish butter! The vein hasnt effected the burn as much as i thought it would, and though not a dead even burn, hasnt required any touchups along the way! Coming down to the wire, so I'll finish up, before giving my final thoughts and reveal!

Summary:
Gonna have to stick with my thoughts of being an Ecuadorian habano wrapper, with Nicaraguan Estelli in the mix. Well constructed stick all around, that I could see keeping on hand! I have no idea of a maker, but something in about it makes me think its from a small-medium boutique brand.

The reveal:

Diesel Rage! Another new smoke for me. Definately not one i would've reached for with the band on, though not necessarily because of the brand. I can't explain it, but for some reason, i have an aversion to white bands. 2 of the 3 sticks I've had from Diesel have been great, the other not bad... Damn band bias!! Though I failed to identify the maker, I nailed the blend!!

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[Redneck_toy]

Very nice reviews so far.
I smoked #5 of the smokes @fisherclive sent a couple mornings ago. Did not take pics, other than this one before i lit up. Flavor was good, kinda earthy with a flavor i could not pin down. Nutmeg maybe?? I was sure it was something ive smoked in the past. Burn was consistent, and other than a slight bitter peppery blast on initial light, it was a very enjoyable smoke.


Turned out to be a Flores Y Rodriguez Tamboril.
Never had one before, but will definitely be on the lookout for some in the future. Thanks, Clive!!!

I'll do a better review of the remaining 4 blind smokes.

 

[gurgalunas]

Taking a break from garden work and enjoying a shady spot with a nice breeze. Close my eyes and pull #5 from the bag. Dark wrapper, some prominent veins. Looks to be 5.5" x 54ish sizing. Use a v cut and draw seems to be perfect.

Turn on Johnny Lee Hooker on the bluetooth speaker I bring to the garden and fire it up. Initially, pretty tart, and that hangs in there for a bit. As I progress into the first third, it settles into a nice leathery, woody (charred oak) med full profile. No flakes, but the nice, light ash falls at 3/4".

As I near the 2/3, the burn line gets a little wavy, but I think it will work itself out. Spice is very subtle. The oak remains, but it's a sweeter flavor, not so much char. Getting a coffee flavor, but not dark expresso, more of a breakfast blend, lighter note.
Entering the final third, the burn line fixed itself nicely. Coffee gets a little fuller, spice still subtle but building a touch. I'm thinking this has a Nicaraguan component, but think it's a blended filler. If I had to guess, something like a La Gloria Cubano comes to mind. Connecticut Maduro wrapped, and Nic/Dominican binder, filler. Enjoyable, I'd definitely smoke another, and wouldnt mind having a few in the humidor. Finish up as the last song ends, good timing...
I'll finish up the last little bit of drip irrigation and head back for the reveal.
Interesting. At one point, I thought Oliva but it didnt have much spice. Thanks @Redneck_toy. That was fun!

 

[Redneck_toy]

Taking a break from garden work and enjoying a shady spot with a nice breeze. Close my eyes and pull #5 from the bag. Dark wrapper, some prominent veins. Looks to be 5.5" x 54ish sizing. Use a v cut and draw seems to be perfect.
View attachment 4077
Turn on Johnny Lee Hooker on the bluetooth speaker I bring to the garden and fire it up. Initially, pretty tart, and that hangs in there for a bit. As I progress into the first third, it settles into a nice leathery, woody (charred oak) med full profile. No flakes, but the nice, light ash falls at 3/4".

As I near the 2/3, the burn line gets a little wavy, but I think it will work itself out. Spice is very subtle. The oak remains, but it's a sweeter flavor, not so much char. Getting a coffee flavor, but not dark expresso, more of a breakfast blend, lighter note. View attachment 4078
Entering the final third, the burn line fixed itself nicely. Coffee gets a little fuller, spice still subtle but building a touch. I'm thinking this has a Nicaraguan component, but think it's a blended filler. If I had to guess, something like a La Gloria Cubano comes to mind. Connecticut Maduro wrapped, and Nic/Dominican binder, filler. Enjoyable, I'd definitely smoke another, and wouldnt mind having a few in the humidor. Finish up as the last song ends, good timing... View attachment 4081
I'll finish up the last little bit of drip irrigation and head back for the reveal.View attachment 4084
Interesting. At one point, I thought Oliva but it didnt have much spice. Thanks @Redneck_toy. That was fun!

These were a great surprise to me. Bought ten never having tried one. Was not disappointed. Think i will keep several on hand from now on.
Glad you enjoyed

 

[WNYTony]

Tonight I pulled #1 in the package from @admartinct It appears to be approx 6 x 40 and a barber pole wrapped traditional round cigar.

The first thing I noticed is some sort of sweet tip on this stick. Something I'm not a huge fan of. Reminds me of the DE Dirt.

Construction is great and it is smoking along, but that sweetness from the tip is still there and no amount of ice water is taking that away. I'm not able to detect anything beyond that but I will say the construction makes me thing this is a premium cigar, perhaps a limited edition or a store exclusive of some sort.

I'm close to the end and I have no real idea of what this is. I'm racking my brain and the 2 brands that come to mind are Asylum and Isabela and only because I know that both make a barber pole and match a brand that would have this level of rolling. After checking the interwebs I can tell it's not an Orge and Isabela doesn't list one in this size and their barber poles are more equal parts dark and light than this looks to be. So I'm clueless.

Damn. I didn't see any Shape Shifter on the Isabela site so maybe it's an older one. My records show I smoked a corona before and didn't like it and a Firecracker more recently and that was great. Maybe the corona also had the sweetened tip ?
Thanks for the opportunity Adam. It's not my thing, but it actually smoked great all the way thru with no touchups necessary.

 

[gurgalunas]

Time to smoke the second blind cigar from @Redneck_toy

Wife and kids went to bed. I grab #1, guessing just shy of 6ishx48. Some veins, tight seams, triple cap cut with a V. Draw seems appropriate.



I hate reporting the nose, as they all smell like varying degrees of barnyard to me- a personal weakness. Cold draw is vegetal, not just hay, reminds me of food plots, brassicss in the fall. Turnip greens, etc.

Light up, and first impressions are medium body, nutty flavor. Wood. First guess, Fuente. I've not had but a handful, but I like the profile. Ash is white, burn perfect. Easily get to an inch before I get nervous and knock off the ash, no flakes. Very little spice to me.

Sitting in the screened porch, such a beautiful night. 60s, low humidity, treefrogs mix with a chorus of bullfrogs. Dogs bark on neighbors acreage, owls "who cooks for you?", fish splash. Can it really be June in MO? Seems like April...



Entering the 2/3, sweet wood adds a little char. Still nutty, cashew. Owls getting wound up, laughing. Must be a territorial dispute... Turkeys should be gobbling in response, but it's not April... Profile staying pretty consistent, but I like it.

Moving through to 3/3, stays very much the same. A little more char. Sticking with the Fuente guess, likely a 858 variant. I like it, pleasant. Might not be an everyday smoke, but enjoyable to me. Possible to be Cuban of some sort, but I've smoked a total of 3, so havent experienced the full spectrum. I like having a few of these medium smokes in the humi for those simple, easy, no fuss cigars when you are not looking for an "experience", but just enjoying a pleasant smoke.

Reveal...



Yeah, I was afraid of that... WTF. My first and only laranja was during a flyfishing trip, and I probably smoked it too fast while concentrating on the drift of the fly. Seemed harsh. Much respect for this cigar now, will definitely revisit instead of bombing the rest from the humi.

Thanks @Redneck_toy. Opened my eyes to one I'd written off...

 

[gurgalunas]

Ok, I've read several reviews of the Laranja, and I'm convinced my palate is on strike. Not sure how I could miss the pepper consistently attributed to this cigar, which I also found on the previous experience. True, I'm not as experienced a smoker as most here, but I'm not usually that far off. This was very solidly medium to me... Hell, I even went back and checked the band and envelope to make sure I didn't screw it up myself... I'm baffled.

 

[Dran]

@gurgalunas , I've only had 1 so far, with several others to go from the carpet bombing, but i didnt get much pepper from it either.

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[Dran]

Stick #1 from @Tyler86!

Construction: its somewhat soft, looks to be book rolled, found some paper towel or a floor fuzzy type of thing in the cap when I cut it. Panicked as my initial thought was "Plume", but it all came out in 1 piece.

The Smoke:
Tastes very Cuban, thats about all I'm getting from it, that twang...

The twang is gone and replaced with that familiar musky Nicaraguan flavor I love! Its a very flaky ash, which makes me think either short or mixed filler , its a very tasty stick all around and I'm gonna call it out early, as a Nica puro!

Im really pretty clueless, but could see these making a pretty good yard gar!! It stayed pretty consistent with the minerally barnyard Nica flavors! Kid da hard to stretch this one out, as it was just a really good 1 trick pony without many transitions or variances.

The reveal:

Caldwell Yellowcake!! That explains the fuzzy!! It is the worlds best floor sweeping cigar!! Although, a Puro, i couldnt have landed any harder on my face, as these leaves all hail from the Dominican! Thanks for the stick @Tyler86 !

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[fisherclive]

@Dran
@gurgalunas
I don't get much pepper from the laranja either. But they are a favorite of mine, I enjoy it as a morning/ early afternoon cigar.

 

[Tyler86]

I also don’t get pepper from it at all.


Stupid Tapatalk

 

[Sweemzander]

Started with this one. Corona size so easy choice. My first thought was its appearance & aroma reminded me of a CH Las Calaveras 2015.
Plenty of leather & pepper spice.. some cocoa & almond/walnut here & there. An interesting floral flavor after the 1st 2 inches that quickly develops into earth & I swear to God, peanut butter.. at least a creamy nutti ess of some kind. Some dried cherry as it got to the last inch or two.
Definitely not a Cuban, but has at least Dominican & Nicaraguan leaf methinks.

I'll be damned.. never heard let alone seen this brand before so a pleasant surprise. Did not disappoint. The Indoisian binder is what threw me off from recognizing this but then again it's a NHIE let alone even knowing if its existence - fun stuff!

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[Tyler86]

First attempt at embarrassing myself thanks to @Sweemzander.
Let me start off by saying, I have the palette of a goat. I also smoke a lot of pipe so I don’t pick out pepper very often, I believe due to tongue bite. But I know what I like so suck it. Figured I’d start with numero uno.

Toro 6.5/7” 50ish RG?
Pre lite: pretty toothy leather color wrapper. Smells like barn/hay/sweaty balls (seriously). Lame cold draw, faint hay. Not cuban at all.

First post lite impressions. Dry hay cold draw. Great draw. Faint pepper on the retrohale.

1/3: Shit, just bumped the pretty ash off on accident. Pretty mild. Hay still prevalent, faint cedar, cereal, great burn line.

2/3: Just as I was getting bored and assuming Dominican, it changed. Is this even the same cigar? Strong Nicaraguan, burn got a little wonky. Baking spices took over. Cedar retrohale. Needed a touch up.

3/3: Crisp burnt line till the end. Intermittent bunt sugar and raisin/plum fruitiness. Nuttiness. Doughiness? Cedar still lingering.


Overall: 1/3 was super lame. Rest of it was very enjoyable. Construction was perfect except for one touch up. I feel like I’ve had this before. Worth a fiver at a good price. Mostly Nicaraguan for sure. Would smoke again. I have been thinking La Palina the whole time........

HAHAHAHA. I suck. Thanks @Sweemzander ! Favorite JDN to date. Good smoke.









Stupid Tapatalk

 

[Tyler86]

Oh and it was a NHIE.


Stupid Tapatalk

 

[Sweemzander]

Oh and it was a NHIE.


Stupid Tapatalk

A good 5+ yrs of age on that bad boy

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[admartinct]

#4

First look: oily milk chocolate wrapper, toothy with some veins. Looks like it may have some age to it. Firm construction, OK looking triple cap.



Smell: baking chocolate, hay

Cold draw: earth, light coffee

1st third:

Starts off with cedar, baking chocolate, dark roast coffee and another fain sweetness ALMOST like raisins, but I can’t be 100% positive.
Retro has me stumped. Cayenne? Just straight heat, not your typical spice.

Burn line is b-e-a-utiful. Ash is a roll of quarters.

Thoroughly enjoying this cigar, I wish I had enough experience to make a good guess as to what it is.



A little faint black pepper joins the group.

Into the 2nd third:

Ash is holding on like a champ, burn line has not wavered. The construction of this stick is killer.



Fuck it, not going to tap the ash. - I put the cigar down and the ash drops.

Profile: milk chocolate, another light sweetness I can’t put my finger on, and a little cedar.

Retro: cedar, faint chocolate (who would have guessed)

45 minutes in.

Grilled Steak. Where did that come from. Must be a fluke.

Drinking a coke while the bourbon Ashley poured for me is staring me in the face. Must. Resist.

Grilled steak is now at the forefront. How the hell.

Ash falls again when I put it down, taste has gone to montreal steak seasoning and minerals.



Nicotine picks up, I know I didn’t drink any bourbon yet.

Last third:
Grilled steak, minerals, charred wood, very, very distant baking chocolate on the after taste. So far this has gone from one of my favorite dark-wrappered cigars of 2019 to “what the hell is going on”. Not going to bother retrohaling this right now if I want to be able to breath from my nose later.

Tart sweetness on my lips like chewing a coated Advil (Don’t do it).

Burn line is solid, wrapper has split.

One hour in, I’m calling it.



I have no idea what this is, honestly. It was fun smoking it through the transitions, I don’t know if I’ve ever smoked a cigar that changed this much from start to finish; even if it ended unfavorable to my palate.

Results:



Something completely new to me! I’ve actually never heard of it before. I’m not too partial to Dominicans, but this made for an interesting smoke for sure.
Thanks @gurgalunas !

 

[Tyler86]

@admartinct
Some cigars are like chameleons more so than others. You may find that more cigars change profiles than you think, if you were actually smoking it from a review stand point.... hence the “thirds” in almost every review out there.


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