Macanudo 1988 No. 3

[Gavin]

Tonight, even though it was a bit chilly out, I decided to fire up a vintage 1988 Macanudo corona that I had picked up several months ago. Supposedly these are made with wrappers from the 1988 crop and the ruddy Connecticut Shade wrapper was certainly attractive with light veining all over. Like most, I've tried the Macanudo Cafe cigars, so I expected the same sort of super-mild flavors from this one. Upon lighting it, I did find it to be extremely mild, but the flavor profile was very different than the Cafe line. The reddish wrapper made it more wood-like in flavor, while the refined character of the vintage tobacco within definitely showed through. The construction was first-rate, with a white ash that held on for several inches before I decided to tap it off. If you go in for mild cigars, this is a decent smoke, and was a pleasant change of pace though at around a nine dollar price tag, it's not something that I'd buy again.