- Joined
- Jan 31, 2005
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- 9,890
Ever have a cigar that isn’t a go to or a “favorite”, that sits in your humi for a while, then completely catches you by surprise when you smoke it? I had that happen to me last night.
While I’m a big fan of the Padron 1964 Anniversary smokes, I smoke the maduro versions almost exclusively. So, it’s after work, I change into something comfortable, got about an hour until the wife gets home, and I wanted to smoke something good. I’m digging through the Padron section of my smoking humidor, and about three smokes deep, here’s this PAN 64 Torpedo. Hmm…my brain tries to recall where it came from; must have been gifted to me by some generous BOTL as I can’t recall ever buying any of these. Sure smells….good. Maybe better than good. Looks fantastic. OK – PAN torp it is. It was a reasonably warm afternoon, so a big glass of ice water was the beverage of choice.
The bands come off and reveal a fantastic smoke. No kidding, the Padron premiums just have to be among the best constructed smokes there are. The wrapper is smooth, slightly oily, and it looks and feels fantastic between my fingers. The aroma of the wrapper is amazing; rich, straight forward tobacco smells. Enough – let’s get this baby started. I always give torps a bit of a “chop” to open them up; this one was no exception. I use my Xikar and snip the end such that about 3/8” of flat surface is showing. The pre-light draw is….perfect. I’m not kidding; I like my draw perhaps a little more open than most guys, but this one had just the right amount of resistance. Very open, but very controlled. And the taste…wow. The pre-light taste of this one was just blowing me away with rich, cultured tobacco taste.
Out came the butane and this luscious smoke sprang to life, just like every Padron Anniversary I’ve smoked. Tons of dense, rich smoke filled the area under the roof on my deck. Like most, it took half an inch or so of burn to really start to deliver, but deliver it did. Burn was a little uneven (maybe off by a quarter of an inch or so), but a little judicious rolling of the smoke between my fingers took care of the problem completely. It smoked cool and wonderfully, right down to the point where my fingers were getting too hot to hold onto it any longer. Yes, it was that good.
Taste is always a very subjective area, so indulge me with my observations. This one didn’t give up any complex coffee or chocolate or nuts or berries or any other wild flavors or tastes, but what it did give up was tobacco taste. Good, solid, maybe even leathery tobacco tastes. And smooth....wow. Not spicy or tangy on my tounge, but intense and smooth and just wonderful. Make no mistake about it; rich, well cultured, properly aged, just absolutely intense tobacco taste. I’m smoking this and trying to remember a cigar that did what this one was doing, as well as this one was doing, and couldn’t. While it may not have had the complexity of some of the maduro or Anejo smokes I’ve had in the past, what it did do, it did without peer. Wow…this monster was just blowing me away. About 2/3 of the way into it, the taste almost completely changed, and the change surprised me. Much “sweeter” all of a sudden, but the same no nonsense rich tobacco taste profile continued. Very different than the good ISOM’s I’ve been enjoying lately, and very distinctive. It tasted, well, like a Padron Anniversary Natural. It’s hard to express how much I enjoyed this cigar; it’s simple but powerful taste profile was one of the most satisfying smokes I think I’ve had in a long time.
Long and short of this is that this cigar completely surprised me with the absolute quality of the simple taste profile it offered up. To be sure, I’ll not wait nearly long for the next time to enjoy another of these fantastic cigars.
Best Regards – B.B.S.
While I’m a big fan of the Padron 1964 Anniversary smokes, I smoke the maduro versions almost exclusively. So, it’s after work, I change into something comfortable, got about an hour until the wife gets home, and I wanted to smoke something good. I’m digging through the Padron section of my smoking humidor, and about three smokes deep, here’s this PAN 64 Torpedo. Hmm…my brain tries to recall where it came from; must have been gifted to me by some generous BOTL as I can’t recall ever buying any of these. Sure smells….good. Maybe better than good. Looks fantastic. OK – PAN torp it is. It was a reasonably warm afternoon, so a big glass of ice water was the beverage of choice.
The bands come off and reveal a fantastic smoke. No kidding, the Padron premiums just have to be among the best constructed smokes there are. The wrapper is smooth, slightly oily, and it looks and feels fantastic between my fingers. The aroma of the wrapper is amazing; rich, straight forward tobacco smells. Enough – let’s get this baby started. I always give torps a bit of a “chop” to open them up; this one was no exception. I use my Xikar and snip the end such that about 3/8” of flat surface is showing. The pre-light draw is….perfect. I’m not kidding; I like my draw perhaps a little more open than most guys, but this one had just the right amount of resistance. Very open, but very controlled. And the taste…wow. The pre-light taste of this one was just blowing me away with rich, cultured tobacco taste.
Out came the butane and this luscious smoke sprang to life, just like every Padron Anniversary I’ve smoked. Tons of dense, rich smoke filled the area under the roof on my deck. Like most, it took half an inch or so of burn to really start to deliver, but deliver it did. Burn was a little uneven (maybe off by a quarter of an inch or so), but a little judicious rolling of the smoke between my fingers took care of the problem completely. It smoked cool and wonderfully, right down to the point where my fingers were getting too hot to hold onto it any longer. Yes, it was that good.
Taste is always a very subjective area, so indulge me with my observations. This one didn’t give up any complex coffee or chocolate or nuts or berries or any other wild flavors or tastes, but what it did give up was tobacco taste. Good, solid, maybe even leathery tobacco tastes. And smooth....wow. Not spicy or tangy on my tounge, but intense and smooth and just wonderful. Make no mistake about it; rich, well cultured, properly aged, just absolutely intense tobacco taste. I’m smoking this and trying to remember a cigar that did what this one was doing, as well as this one was doing, and couldn’t. While it may not have had the complexity of some of the maduro or Anejo smokes I’ve had in the past, what it did do, it did without peer. Wow…this monster was just blowing me away. About 2/3 of the way into it, the taste almost completely changed, and the change surprised me. Much “sweeter” all of a sudden, but the same no nonsense rich tobacco taste profile continued. Very different than the good ISOM’s I’ve been enjoying lately, and very distinctive. It tasted, well, like a Padron Anniversary Natural. It’s hard to express how much I enjoyed this cigar; it’s simple but powerful taste profile was one of the most satisfying smokes I think I’ve had in a long time.
Long and short of this is that this cigar completely surprised me with the absolute quality of the simple taste profile it offered up. To be sure, I’ll not wait nearly long for the next time to enjoy another of these fantastic cigars.
Best Regards – B.B.S.
