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Kauai Cigar Flight Sampler Review

oke&coke

oke&coke

Shut up baby I know it!
Joined
Sep 25, 2014
Messages
3,666
As a noob, not much I can do to add new info to the conversations, so figure this would be a good place to start.  Did a search and found a few reviews of a couple of their cigars from a few years past so decided to do the whole lineup and put it all in one place.  Yesterday I picked up four cigars and will let them rest in the humi until my four day weekend next week.  The four cigars are the Island Prince light, Island Prince dark, Vintage Series and the Makaleha.  All four are the Momona, 5.75x50 size.  I have had a couple of them in the past and remember them as being fairly good but don't have notes for them.  Will post pics when I can with the reviews to follow next weekend.  More info can be found on their website kauaicigar.com.
 
I've actually heard some very positive comments on this manufacturer. Especially the Island Prince "Iki" for a delicious quick smoke.
Pricey, but I suspect I'll bite the bullet at one point and get some sort of sampler.
 
I do remember thinking back a few years ago that the $12 price tag was a bit steep.  Well the price is still $12 in the b&m's which isn't much worse then other quality sticks in the store though buying online gives better pricing.
 
Got done working seven graves this morning and slept most of the day.  Woke up and had pizza with the wife and daughter.  We then went for a walk with the dog.  Now I get to start my four day weekend.  To kick it off going to start with part one of the series.  The website is light on some of the cigar technicals so some of these are guesses on my part.  If anyone has any other opinions please chime in.  Also have not figured out how to put photos in my posts but will add them to my gallery.
 
Cigar:
Kauai Cigar Vintage Series Momona 5.75x50
 
Price:
About $13 at a B&M
 
Strength:
Medium
 
Smoke Time:
75-80 minutes
 
Tobacco:
Wrapper:Corojo?
Filler:Kauai, other?
 
Construction:
Firm to the touch, heavy for the size, no blemishes, cracks or soft spot to be found
 
Prelight:
Nice tobacco smell with some hints of leather. Wrapper is reddish brown. Cap lipped nicely with no cracking or peeling.  Draw was easy with a faint tobacco flavor.
 
Light:
Foot lit quickly with a heavy scent of tobacco and toast.
 
1/3:
Flavor starts with a mild tobacco flavor with something I couldn't figure out behind it.  Then finally it built up enough about 1/2" in to see it was coffee. Quite nice actually.  Smoke output is good and cool. Burn is a little wavy but no touch ups needed.  Strength does build to a solid medium profile. Ash is fairly firm and held through the first third.
 
2/3:
Same as before. Ash fell half way through. Smoke does warm a bit.
 
3/3:
More of the same. Burn did develop a run and start to heat up but not unbearable.  A bitterness and heat came in when I tried to touch it up so ended the cigar at that point. A nice hint of tobacco and coffee did linger on the palate afterwards.
 
Conclusion:
I like this cigar. It has good flavors, a nice medium profile and no harshness or bitterness going on.  I would buy this again.
 
Slight delay but here is part two.
 
Cigar:
Island Prince Momona Light 5.75x50
 
Price:
About $13 at B&M
 
Strength:
Medium-Full
 
Smoke Time:
80 minutes
 
Tobacco:
Wrapper: Ecuador Conn. shade leaf
Filler: Kauai, Nicaragua?
 
Construction:
Somewhat soft to the touch but springy
 
Prelight:
Had a hit of straight tobacco. Nice easy draw.
 
Light:
I think I scorched the foot a little it had a burning smell to it but otherwise nice smell of tobacco.
 
1/3:
Not much too this but tobacco.  It was smooth, with no noticeable bitterness or harshness.
 
2/3:
More of the same tobacco
 
3/3:
More of the same tobacco. Smoke got a little warm less then an inch from the head so stopped it there.
 
Conclusion:
Good cigar.  A little pricey considering comparable cigars but would buy it again if the mood struck me.  Should be a cigar for the bucket list.
 
And now for part 3
 
Cigar:
Island Prince Momona Dark 5.75x50
 
Price:
About $13 at B&M
 
Strength:
Website says Full but I would say a solid Medium.
 
Smoke Time:
60 minutes
 
Tobacco:
Wrapper:Nicaraguan Habano
Filler: Kauai, Nicaragua
 
Construction:
Firm yet springy to the touch with no visible flaws
 
Prelight:
Nice tobacco aroma with a hint of what I can only describe as toasted nuts. Prelight draw is perfect for me, not too hard or soft.
 
Light:
Toasted the foot and it gave off an earthy tobacco aroma.  First couple of draws gave that same earthy tobacco flavors that mellowed quickly.
 
1/3:
More of the same earthy tobacco that starts to build again.  It does have another flavor that I can't identify yet that is slowly creeping in.
 
2/3:
More of same earth and tobacco. Still can't identify that third flavor. Coffee or nuts maybe?
 
3/3:
More of the same. Cut this one short as it was not for me.
 
Conclusion:
While not a bad cigar there is just something about this one that I just did not care for and I don't know what it is.  I would smoke it again if it were given to me but probably won't be buying one soon. Overall it was smooth and I believe someone would enjoy it.
 
Finally, part 4 of 4. Enjoy.
 
Cigar:
Kauai Cigar Makaleha Momona 5.75x50
 
Price:
$13 at B&M
 
Strength:
Mild-Med.
 
Smoke Time:
80 minutes
 
Tobacco:
Wrapper:?
Filler:Kauai, other?
 
Construction:
Firm to the touch and some good weight to it.  The wrapper appears to be a thinner leaf and pulled nice and tight on the cigar as you can feel the bumps from the filler tobacco. Overall very pleasing to look at.
 
Prelight:
Aroma is heavy on the cedar with some tobacco notes and a little bit of grass or hay. Draw is good with some wood notes to it.
 
Light:
Smoke has a scent of toast and wood.  First draw gives a burst of pepper that tingles the lips.
 
1/3:
After the first few puff this starts to open up with aromatics.  Wood, tobacco, grass and even some floral notes.  Taste wise it is very much on the mild side. Same wood, tobacco and grass with maybe a touch of (soap?).  It is noticeable but not a distraction(yet?).
 
2/3:
More of the same but the soap taste is gone.
 
3/3:
More of the same but the flavors are melding together better
 
Conclusion:
While I usually don't care for wood heavy cigars due to them being dry tasting for me I did enjoy this one.  Not a regular purchase but would get one if the mood struck me.
 
Final thoughts:
All of these cigars are good quality if not good tasting.  The best one of the bunch was the Vintage followed closely by the Makaleha.  They both had nice flavors that makes them distinctive from other cigars.  May try to pick up a few of the Vintage to age a while and see how they come out.  The Makaleha and the Island Prince Light I would buy again if I am in the mood.  The Island Prince Dark was my least favorite and most likely won't be buying again.
 
As a side note I also read that they were planning on a Kauai Puro but that news is several years old so not sure what is going on with that.  If it ever does come out I will post a review.
 
Thanks for the reviews, I enjoyed going through them.  I like how you keep it short and to the point.  I like descriptive reviews, but sometimes it can just be too much to go through.  I think you hit the high points of what needs to be covered.
 
The only suggestion I would make is to try and add a pic if at all possible.  Doesn't have to be a bunch per review, one would be fine.  I think it just adds some more to it and provides a frame of reference for the reader.
 
Thanks again.
 
Agree about the pics. I did these when I first started and had trouble posting pics.
 
As requested a pic of the cigars used for the reviews.
med_gallery_19975_1922_674001.jpg

Left to right:
Island Prince Light
Island Prince Dark
Vintage Series
Makaleha
 
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