Macanudo Cigars Gold Label 2025 Torpedo in Review

BRAND: Macanudo
BLEND: Gold Label 2025

WRAPPER: Connecticut Shade
BINDER: Mexican San Andres
FILLER: Dominican, Mexican

FORMAT: 6.5x52 Torpedo
ORIGIN: Dominican Republic
INTENSITY: Mild/Mild-medium
SPICE: 3/5*

NOTES:
Sand | Lemon/white pepper | Suede

I do not remember my first cigar; premium or otherwise. It was a long time ago, and I suppose I lacked the forethought to make note. Somewhere, there exists a photo of me as a young child, in my playpen, wearing my grandfather's fedora and sucking on his unlit cigar. That was a different time. Now, it would have been a flat-brimmed snapback hat. What happened to men? Oh, that's right... perpetual adolescence.

I remember my first kiss. Also, my first trip to each base thereafter. But I won't divulge that information; you're here, after all, for my thoughts on this smoke. Macanudo is my stock response to the question of 'what should my first cigar be?' That said, this ain't my first, and likely yours is well in your rearview, as well. If for some reason you're reading this prior to your first, Macanudo Cafe... but also why?

Stick a Lemonhead candy in your gullet. Then a few more. Then lean over a bucket of beach sand and breathe it in, mouth agape. White pepper. Suede like clothing, not boot weight. A vest, maybe. Buttery but not 'nuff-so. A bit sharp particularly via retro-hale. I don't recall my first retro-hale but I do know I didn't call it that, or anything. Traces of macadamia nut. Mostly skewed toward sour. Consistent, very.

Daisies and daffodils come to mind. Draws a bit empty. Burns evenly but the top-leaf nearby puckers and at times crackles not cracks. Perhaps I really do taste Rice Krispies. Ash grows quite well. Seams hold. Smoke out-put is plentiful, although room-note is substantially less-than. Golden hay on the nose and back-end of palate. Pace is a bit quick. This paired with builder's tea would be nice.

*bearing in mind this is measured by how much of the profile is that of spice, not how spicy it is on some sort of Scoville scale. Hence why Intensity is noted separately in all my reviews.

TASTE: B
DRAW: B+
BURN: B
BUILD: B+

FINAL GRADE: B
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79

::: very ::: 

Rm101 Cigars 15th Anniversary ANNV Toro LE in Review

BRAND: Rm101
BLEND: 15th Anniversary

WRAPPER: Nicaraguan
BINDER: Nicaraguan
FILLER: Nicaraguan

FORMAT: Toro (652)
ORIGIN: Nicaragua (AJF)
INTENSITY: Medium-full
SPICE: 3.5/5

NOTES:
Cayenne | Cocoa | Minerality

Warm-sweet cayenne, black pepper front/top; dense-rich manure, cocoa back/bottom. A pronounced flintiness appears in the in-between, stretches to the shorter-than-expected molasses finish. Cinnamon swirls. Draw is quite-open, can lend to being over-smoked. Well-balanced, harmonious, sating.

TASTE: A-
DRAW: B+
BURN: A
BUILD: A-

FINAL GRADE: A-
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79

::: very ::: 

Thurston Wolfe Winery 2021 Petite Sirah in Review

Thurston Wolfe
2021 Petite Sirah
Horse Heaven Hills
Zephyr Ridge Vineyard

Blueberry | Pepper | Cedar

Chewy Tension. Slow-mo lively. Tick back-end jammy. Burly nigh surly up-front. 'baccy nose; speaking of which, one to sip with a San Andres smoke.

TASTE: B+
AROMA: A-
APPEARANCE: A-
FEEL/FINISH: B+

FINAL GRADE: B+

::: very ::: 

Cohiba Cigars Serie M Reserva Azul 2025 in Review

BRAND: Cohiba
BLEND: Serie M Reserva Azul

WRAPPER: Dominican Corojo
BINDER: Nicaraguan
FILLER: Nicaraguan, Dominican

FORMAT: Toro (652) closed-foot
ORIGIN: USA (El Titan de Bronze)
INTENSITY: Medium
SPICE: 2/5

NOTES:
White pepper | Cocoa butter | Lemon twist

Quite plush and darn nigh lush. Cushy delivery to palate, with a slight white pepper kick to keep me honest, awake. Cocoa butter, blonde coffee, white chocolate, twist of lemon. Table sugar. Not greatly delineated but not lumped together in a blob. Soft raw wood delineates sans policing.

Consistent, but each aspect does get a spotlight in turn. Nicely nuanced if not complex, per se. Silty earthiness forms a deeper base via progression. Wild flowers tighten-up an evolving salted caramel. Burn-line lags in self-correcting bits here and there. Ash is a bit moist, dark. Assemblage holds. Caps feels somewhat soft, but on-par with the overall experience. Draws easily.

Aroma is a springtime vibe. Hanging floral sundresses on the clothesline in preparation of warmer days. Or maybe I'm sitting on a long porch, wearing a pale seersucker suit and straw hat. Either way, I'm set up to be there a spell, as the burn is slow and soothing. The mind wanders about, a sweet taste in the mouth.

TASTE: A-
DRAW: A-
BURN: B+
BUILD: A-

FINAL GRADE: A-
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79

::: very :::