Eshaw99
Just livin' the dream
I won a fiver of these playing the Beat The Dealer app from JR Cigars, so I figured I'd do my first review on here in 9 years (Not a joke, the date of my last review post is 5/30/07. Click on it if you want to see how far camera phones have advanced in 9 years: http://www.cigarpass.com/forum/index.php?threads/la-aroma-de-cuba-marquis-tubo.31904/)
First of all, this is a cigar I likely never would have purchased for a a couple of reasons. I've never been a fan of any of the Drew Estate offerings. I know they are popular with a number of people, and to those people I say smoke what you like. That just means there are more for you. Also, I typically tend to gravitate to smaller ring gauge cigars (I'm not sure what that says about me, so fire away with your best jokes). Not many 60 gaugers find their way into my humidor.
However, these were free so I figured I'd give one a try. The first thing I noticed after removing the cigar from the cellophane was that it smelled like a smoldering campfire. It reminded me very much of an English blend pipe tobacco. After firing it up I noticed the draw was a bit firm. That surprised me a little given the large ring gauge, but the draw opened up nicely after only a few minutes.
I kept waiting for the smoke/char essence to hit me in the face, and to my pleasant surprise that never happened. Understated is never a word I thought I'd use to describe anything from Drew Estate but it's the best word I can think of to describe this smoke, especially into the latter 2/3. The smoky flavors certainly linger in the background, but they didn't overpower the taste. I found this to be a medium-bodied cigar that paired well with the summer shandy from the kegerator. Also, it provided a very consistent burn which hasn't always been my experience with cigars of this thickness. After firing it up initially, I never had to reach for the lighter to touch it up.
Overall, this was an enjoyable smoke. I know many people describe the KFC line as "you either love 'em or you hate 'em" but I find myself somewhere in the middle. I'm not sure it's something I would buy again other than the occasional single, but I definitely enjoyed it more than anything else I've ever had from Drew Estate.
Eric
First of all, this is a cigar I likely never would have purchased for a a couple of reasons. I've never been a fan of any of the Drew Estate offerings. I know they are popular with a number of people, and to those people I say smoke what you like. That just means there are more for you. Also, I typically tend to gravitate to smaller ring gauge cigars (I'm not sure what that says about me, so fire away with your best jokes). Not many 60 gaugers find their way into my humidor.
However, these were free so I figured I'd give one a try. The first thing I noticed after removing the cigar from the cellophane was that it smelled like a smoldering campfire. It reminded me very much of an English blend pipe tobacco. After firing it up I noticed the draw was a bit firm. That surprised me a little given the large ring gauge, but the draw opened up nicely after only a few minutes.
I kept waiting for the smoke/char essence to hit me in the face, and to my pleasant surprise that never happened. Understated is never a word I thought I'd use to describe anything from Drew Estate but it's the best word I can think of to describe this smoke, especially into the latter 2/3. The smoky flavors certainly linger in the background, but they didn't overpower the taste. I found this to be a medium-bodied cigar that paired well with the summer shandy from the kegerator. Also, it provided a very consistent burn which hasn't always been my experience with cigars of this thickness. After firing it up initially, I never had to reach for the lighter to touch it up.
Overall, this was an enjoyable smoke. I know many people describe the KFC line as "you either love 'em or you hate 'em" but I find myself somewhere in the middle. I'm not sure it's something I would buy again other than the occasional single, but I definitely enjoyed it more than anything else I've ever had from Drew Estate.
Eric
