Tobacos de la Cordillera - Purisco Azul

This review is of the Tobacos de la Cordillera - Purisco Azul.  This is the second of three reviews.
 
Linkage: Torpedo Petaca 1x5 Purisco Azul - http://www.tabacordi...products_id=353
 
First and foremost, I'd like to thank the kind folks from Tobacos de la Cordillera for supplying the cigars for these reviews.  Your participation is most appreciated.
 
I participated in the earlier reviews of these same cigars done by Wilkey in 2006.  Here's a link to that thread for reference.  I had asked what changes had been made in the blends since that review and was told (in thread) that "....Actually our belnds for Cumbres de Puriscal (Gold, Green and Silver), Purisco Azul and Purisco Rojo has been improved..".  I was offered the chance to do a tasting test, which I accepted.
 
The reviewers for these cigars are faces well known to the forum members.  Between us, we have decades of cigar smoking experience and have written many reviews of all kinds of cigars.  These reviews were written with no knowledge of what the other reviewers had to say, so what you are getting here is the honest and independant impressions of the reviewers.  These reviews as posted are the unedited comments of the folks that reviewed the cigars.  
 
Reviewer: Whilieineedacigar
 
This cigar was kept at 65% humidity. It was then transferred to my dry box for 2 hours before smoking.
 
Cigar: Purisco Azul - Torpedo
 
Smoking date: 3-9-14 Smoking time: 1 hour 33 minutes
 
Country Where Made: Costa Rica
 
Pairing: Water
 
Cut: Xikar Xi1 - Guillotine
 
Construction:
 
This cigar was well packed with a smooth thick wrapper that has some small noticeable veins. It’s hard to the touch.
 
Taste: (I smoked this cigar in the morning with a clean palate)
 
Cold draw: Unpleasant cardboard like taste with some earthiness, a bit of saltiness on the lips. The draw was perfect, not too tight not too loose. 
 
First draw: I get notes of bitter coffee with hints of grassiness. The cigar is giving away a fair amount of smoke with a woody aroma.
 
First Third: The glassiness seems to be taking over this first third and the coffee has now taken a back seat. The ash is holding up pretty well and it is solid and greyish looking, I knocked it off around the 2” mark. It is burning at a decent rate and evenly. The strength of this cigar is on the low medium side.
 
Second Third: The grassiness is predominant in this third and I’m also getting hints of red pepper that come and go. The strength is picking up a bit and the burn continues to be perfect.
 
Last Third: This last third was exactly as the second minus the red pepper. 
 
Final Notes:The unpleasant cardboard like taste remained throughout most of the cigar, I do not know if perhaps this flavor comes from the way they store their cigars, but I find it to be repulsive. I did enjoy the red pepper notes but wished it was present more often. I would not buy this cigar and wished this company putted as much effort into the blending process as they do into the construction which was nearly perfect.
 
Reviewer: Brickhouse
 
Cigar:  Purisco Azul Torpedo
 
 
Notes:
 
 
Prelight:
 
I paired the Purisco Azul Torpedo with a mug of Guinness.  It was rather cold out, so I held this taste test in the garage, which actually provides ideal conditions for burning and taking in the full aroma.  I had not eaten since lunch.
 
The overall construction of this cigar was good.  It had a consistent color with no blemishes, though there was zero oily sheen to the stick.  Shape was consistent throughout, as the cigar rolled easily back and forth in the palm of my hand.  It was put together well.  Cap construction, though a bellicose, was nice.  While the band was nothing to write home about, it was placed with attention to detail.
 
Cut was easily done, and cleaning done with my Palio.  The dry draw was slightly loose.  I lit the cigar with my Vector Tri Pump, with my regular toasting routine.  It lit easily and with a nice burn.
 
1st Third:
 
The initial third of the cigar showed an easy pull, but I was disappointed in the amount of smoke it produced.  The smoke was very thin and did not "fill the room" as I would hope.  I found the overwhelming flavor to be in the nutty category and if you forced me to break it down further I would settle on dry walnuts.  It was very early on in which the burn started its problems.  The wrapper was burning about 1/4" ahead of the filler.  I didn't have to touch it up, it was uniform, but just ahead of the rest of the cigar.  Taste was very one dimensional.
 
2nd Third:
 
One dimensional is beginning to define this cigar.  For the life of me I can't find any complexity to it.  It's staying dry and nutty and getting hot already.  The wrapper has started to bust a tad, which is to be expected as it's burning at a different rate and cigar is noticeably hot.  The ash is a light grey/white, but not sturdy.  It's falling off early and dusty.  Nothing has improved at this point.
 
Final Third:
 
It's proved at this point that it's not going to vary any.  The last third of the cigar remains almost identical to the first draws, minus that now they are heated and thus a tad more harsh.  I do not care for the nuttiness in the flavor and I can't seem to find much else.  The Guinness has certainly done it a favor as a teammate, but it's just not a tasty cigar.  
 
Overall:
 
Attention was given to the construction of this cigar.  While I have no serious complaints on how it smoked, there's no denying that its drawback is that it has no depth.  This was as one dimensional of a cigar as I've had in years.  Scores are below, but all in all, I always rate my cigars by answering 2 questions.
 
1.  Would I buy any of these myself?  No.
 
2.  Would I smoke one again?  No.
 
Scores:
 
Overall Appearance and Presentation of Cigar:15 (of 20)
 
Lighting and Burning Properties: 10 (of 15)
 
Construction: 17 (of 30)
 
Taste: 22 (of 35)
 
Total points:  64 (of 100)
 
Reviewer: Tall Paul (Video Review)
 
http://youtu.be/yfh8D7EJOq4
 
Reviewer: BlindedByScience
 
[SIZE=14pt]Cigar Rating Sheet[/SIZE]
Cigar Brand: Tobacos de la Cordillera - Purisco Azul
Size / Vitola: Torpedo
Box or Single: Single
Purchase Date: Supplied by Vendor
Smoking Date: 3-13-2014
Packaging: 5-pack bundle
Price (Per Cigar / Per Box): Supplied by Vendor
Where Purchased: Shipped directly by Vendor
Country of Origin: Costa Rica
 
Meal / Beverage: Light lunch – Water to drink
 
Wrapper Color: Dull brown
Consistent Color within the Box: NA
Oily / Dry: Dry
Veiny / Smooth: Smooth
Cap Construction: Good
Packaging: Cello, 5-pack bundle
Ease of Cutting: Good
Construction: Overall, a well constructed stick.
 
Even Initial Light:  Yes
Even Burn (Initial): Yes
Even Burn (1/3): Yes
Even Burn (2/3): Yes
Even Burn (Final): Yes
Resting Smoke (light, even, smoldering): Light
Burn Rate (slow, perfect, fast): Perfect, well constructed cigar
Ash (solid, black, white, crumbly, etc.):  Mottled grey, crumbly
Relighting Required: No
 
Draw (Initial): Quite Good
Draw (1/3): Same
Draw (2/3): Same
Draw (Final): Same
Wrapper Stays Intact: Small cracks during smoking, not problematic.
 
Light, Medium, Full: Very Light
Bitter, Harsh, Smooth: Salty, Earthy, Creamy consistency that coated my mouth and tounge
Sweet / Salty: Light but unmistakable salty notes.
Bland, Vegetal, Spicy: Earthy, Mossy, Musty notes.
Comments – Pre Light:  Construction was very good.  There was little to no aroma, dry draw almost tasteless.
Comments (1/3): Very much like the Puriscal Gold I smoked before.  I did not care for the palate of flavors; very Earthy, Musty, Mossy notes.  No spice, no coffee or other notes that I could discern.  The consistency and finish of the cigar smoke was not appealing to me; the smoke seemed to coat my tongue and mouth, lingering even after drinking water.
Comments (2/3):  No changes, no development, no complexity.  What you see is what you get.
Comments (Final): Same as previous….very one dimensional, very simple, no development of flavors at all that I can discern.
 
Buy Recommendation: Not for me.
Conclusion / Final Comments:  Another disappointing cigar.  While obviously very well constructed, the blend is simply not appealing to my palate.  If these guys get their blends worked out, this could be a very nice smoke.
 
Reviewer: Iron Peddler
Cigar Brand: Purisco Azul
Size / Vitola: 5X50 Torpedo
Box or Single: Single
Purchase Date: NA
Smoking Date: NA
Packaging: NA
Price (Per Cigar / Per Box): Provided by Vendor
Where Purchased: Provided by Vendor
Country of Origin: Costa Rica
 
Meal / Beverage: Water
 
Wrapper Color: Light, like Connecticut brown
Consistent Color within the Box: NA
Oily / Dry: Dry
Veiny / Smooth: Smooth
Cap Construction: Torpedo - Good
Packaging: Cello
Ease of Cutting: Clean
Construction: Firm
 
Even Initial Light: Yes
Even Burn (Initial): Overall burn rated 9/11
Even Burn (1/3):
Even Burn (2/3):
Even Burn (Final):
Resting Smoke (light, even, smoldering): Even
Burn Rate (slow, perfect, fast): Perfect
Ash (solid, black, white, crumbly, etc.): White-ish, crumbled
Relighting Required: No
 
Draw (Initial): Good
Draw (1/3): Good
Draw (2/3): Good
Draw (Final): Good
Wrapper Stays Intact: Yes
 
Light, Medium, Full: Light
Bitter, Harsh, Smooth: Dry, chalky taste
Sweet / Salty: Chalky paper tastes
Bland, Vegetal, Spicy: Bland
Comments: Slightly bitter on the tongue, strange chalky taste from the wrapper.  Aroma is non-descript.  Little to no finish to the cigar.  Bland, light, and flavorless.  Slightly increased toward the end of the smoke, but still hardly any taste.

Two down and one to go.  :thumbs:

Well... Taking notes and waiting for the last one review