www.Scratchley.org : blog

My short list, or should I say “My ‘chort list”. For the Bloggers amongst you - this will be a living blog post - being edited often over the next months…

As a new (a few years of occasional smoking of cigars and more renewed interest over the last years) fan of Cigars, I’m trying to keep a list of the cigars I try and my impressions thereof.

I’ll use the Cigar Aficionado rating system where possible - but for the most part my thoughts are subjective and based heartily on my level of experience.

C.A.’s Cigar Rating System (or rather - my interpretation of it.)

Appearance has 15 possible points - based on the quality of the wrapper, head, color, oiliness, and a number of other factors. Consistency and ‘feel’ weigh heavily, as do plume and the general appearance of quality.

Flavor has 25 possible points - Completely subjective. Tarrieness and acidity will detract from the flavour, depth and intensity are targets here.

Smoking Characteristics has 25 possible points - This includes quality of ash and burn, draw and aroma of the smoke included.

And Overall Impressions has 35 posible points. This is a rating of the ‘overall’ experience.

These possible points total up to 100. Each cigar gets a certain amount of points in each category based on the taster’s evaluation and voila, my rating. If you were me - this rating would be dead on for your tastes. Your milage may vary.

Carlos Toraño Exodus 1959 (Toro)
Wow. What a surprise. This Honduran cigar was nothing that I expected. From it’s hearty aroma (pre-light) and dark wrapper I expected an ass kicking. I got however a wonderful medium bodied exceptionally flavourful smoke. Tannins and Coffee flavour with a sweet creaminess - followed by a little peppery follow later in the cigar. The Cigar Fan write up is dead on. I’ll say no more. Buy some. ~15$ CAD.

A:14/15 F:23/25 S:22/25 O:32/35 TOTAL: 91

Romeo y Julieta en Cedro (coronita)
This was a pleasant surprise. The cigar was light - flavourful earthy - and despite being a cuban - milder than I expected. Draw was consistent and cool and the disposition of the cigar didn’t change throughout the smoke until the last inch or so where it became quite acidic and tarry. I also bumped into a short deviation in the draw / smoke halfway which appeared to be a stemmy filler leaf. While a pricy cigar for it’s size - this was a very enjoyable stick while out on the water.

A:13/15 F:21/25 S:19/25 O:29/35 TOTAL: 82

Montecristo #1 (Lonsdale 42×6.5)
The montecristo is a staple of the CC world. This was a box pressed cigar acquired from Humo this week. At 22$ CDN - this was a one time deal. A lovely cigar, attractively dressed with a firm smooth wrapper and head. Filler was consistent and smooth and the cigar drew beautifully from the first puff to the last. Flavour was moderate to strong with earthy (wood?) notes - but while consistent it was almost… one dimensional. A lovely cigar - which I would smoke again without hesitation - but not at full price. I enjoyed this one around the campfire with a glass of golden rum over ice. Nice combination. Ash was firm salt/pepper with the stacked look of a clean consistent burn.

A:14/15 F:21/25 S:21/25 O:31/35 TOTAL: 87

Guantanamera (Cristales)
Machine made, these are a consistent mild cigar. Sold in Canada, these are an acceptable Cuban at a good price. They use short cut filler for the most part (not the desired long cut) but are mild and don’t get tarry until the last 2 to 3 inches. They sell for between 7 and 8 dollars in Canada.

A:9/15 F:16/25 S:18/25 O:20/35 TOTAL: 63

Por Larrañaga
A Spaniard called Ignacio Larrañaga founded Por Larrañaga trademark in 1834. His factory always has been in the Cuban capital: first at 94 O’Reilly Street, then at the number 713 on the corner of Carlos III and Árbol Seco, and at present in La Corona factory, also in Havana. Smoked was one of their Lonsdale / mini Corona sizes.

A:12/15 F:18/25 S:18/25 O:24/35 TOTAL: 72

Helix (TUBO)
The Helix is a new honduran cigar. The natural wrapper of the cigar I purchased was soft to the touch, however over an inch cracked and fell to the ground when I attempted to cut the head. The wrapper had a mild taste, but it was heavily influenced by the exposed binder leaf. During smoking (which was mild yet flavourful) the draw was excessively light, and required frequent relighting - tunnelling deeply. At 18$ CDN / Cigar I was most disappointed.

A:13/15 F:19/25 S:12/25 O:15/35 TOTAL: 59

Santa Anna (Tubo)
An apparent counterfiet (or - replica) of the Santa Ana this was a trial because I had purchased one but given it to a friend to try. At 4$ CDN / Cigar I expected a ‘value’ cigar. I was disappointed. It was worse than a ‘value’ cigar. David Cigars of Canada sells these pieces of shit. In a cello wrapper - inside an Aluminum tube - these are well disguised. The moment you expose it to air however, it’s like visiting a pig farm. The wrapper - dull natural and wrinkled. Not only ’spicy’ to the taste - it was acidic and tarry - without even being lit.

The first draw was hot and burned greatly though the burn was consistent and ash tight. I think I made about 5 puffs into it before pitching the turd that it was.

A:7/15 F:5/25 S:5/25 O:5/35 TOTAL: 22