JC Newman
Diamond Crown
Maximus
WRAPPER: Ecuadorian Sungrown
BINDER: Dominican
FILLER: Dominican
FORMAT: Toro
ORIGIN: Tabacalera A. Fuente, Dominican Rebublic
INTENSITY: Medium-Full
NOTES:
Roasted Orange | White peppercorn | Salted caramel
Sounds lovely there, no? OK, there are issues. A dry tangy attachment to roasted oranges that hits the palate as dish detergent, say. Alas, the salted car-a-mel has its woes, as well. Namely in a mineral lilt to its over-taking saltiness. White dirt. Kaolin. +Side? I'm handsome. That & white peppercorn is nice & has its own fruity nethers similar to a decent Riesling. Most problematic is the finish, a long cloying thing that highlights those lowlights (overly bright, minerally).
Undertones are a taut suede that provides some nice structure; which the white peppercorn fails at. A bit of a buttery cedar, some whipped chocolate, vanilla bean, thin honey. This is all laid (scattered) out on a rather simple golden dirt earthiness w/ a flitting & fleeting terra cotta addition. Aroma-wise, the tanginess leads sharply-so, as dull natural tobacco brings up the rear. Underwhelming & not even entirely pleasant. There are complexities but they are seldom kind. Nuances, depths -- are non-existent.
Visually, we begin with uneven seams & lumpy barrel, pre-light. This doesn't worsen, tho (yippee). Cap & shoulders degrade a bit via progression. Draw is quite nice, smooth, and open, evenly-so. Ash builds well but off an at times jagged burn-line. Pacing is speedy. All told, a profile neither old-school nor new, & that's just one way this blend swings, misses, falls between the cracks -- carrying w/ it there an intent which remains increasingly unclear.
FINAL GRADE: B-
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79 D 60-69 F 0-59
FINAL GRADE: B-
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79 D 60-69 F 0-59
::: very :::