PLEASE NOTE: This blogger and blog has moved to his new home: http://covetry.netWrapper: Connecticut
Binder: Mexican
Filler: Dominican
Cigar Stars Rating: 8.0
This cigar has a long and sometimes troubled history. The vintage line was started back in 1993 and was hailed as one of the greatest cigars from the R & J line until around 2000. Since then, for some reason the quality and consistency of this cigar has been routinely called into question. Perhaps it is due to the fact that around that time the factory, which was located in the Pisano Free Zone of Santiago, was relocated to La Romana on the eastern end of the island. Some believe this is when the quality and consistency began to decline. These, of course, are rumors and are to be taken as such.
The wrapper on this cigar is a skin tone color, very light brown, with no imperfections whatsoever. The tobacco used in these cigars are usually aged between 2-3 years before production. I should say before I start that my box has a consistency problem, the wrapper colors vary slightly as does the flavors the sticks produce. That might make this review a little less useful, but hopefully not. The construction on this cigar was really fantastic, the head is nice and long and even with a guillotine cut there were no unravelling issues. Pre-light draw tasted of nuts and licorice. Once toasted this cigar drew well and burned perfectly even the whole way through. The first inch was heavy on the nuts and licorice taste with a hint of sweetness, but by halfway that sweet turned sour and a tad bitter. After the middle point, the nuts were accompanied by heavy doses of cedar and this underlying bitterness that I honestly was not expecting. The finish is long and a tad metallic. I was a bit disappointed by this cigar and wish I could have given it a higher rating as I am a long-time fan of R & J's (my first cigar was one) but this one was a little bit of a disappointment.
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