Kaplowitz Media. Hiatus 2021

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Kaplowitz Media. will resume posting new content on March 1, 2021. This is a yearly & scheduled hiatus. During which it is recommended Gentlepersons catch up on what they may have missed. Perhaps re-catch what was previously caught. Please CLICK HERE to begin that binge. 

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Bongani Cigars 458 Short Premium Selection in Review

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Bongani Cigars 458 Short

Premium Selection in Review

WRAPPER: Cameroon
BINDER: Undisclosed
FILLER: Undisclosed

FORMAT: "458 Short" Gordito
ORIGIN: Mozambique
INTENSITY: Medium-full/Full

NOTES:

Chocolate | Beefy | Black pepper 

Imagine a porterhouse, charred & served under a chocolate espresso sauce. Imagine now, a heavyweight. A short stocky bruiser whose fights happened in black&white television sets.  Smooth. Powerful. Deliberate, not plodding. Inornate. Cracked black peppercorn. Heavy black licorice on the back-end.

Mid-palate is herbs & grain. Melanges steered by fresh thyme & roasted barley, respectively. Bolstered by a sweetly-spiced cedar. Balanced by thick sweating leather. Boxing gloves. Via progression, the steak dinner is undone in a lovely delineated manner. Umami, Cuban coffee, dark chocolate fudge. Peanuts.

Character-driven w/ the proverbial skills to pay the hypothetical bills. Delivered in a manner of consequence. Slow, even burn. Heavy olfactory. Heavy just heavy. With a wry half-smile, to boot.  Thick solid ash.  Seams hold-fast. Cap/shoulder assemblage like a tank. Easy draw. Even burn smoldering on-down. 

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

FINAL GRADE: A
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79 D 60-69 F 0-59

Other Bongani Reviews:

Bongani Robusto

Bongani Robusto (audio)

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Bongani Cigars Robusto in Review

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Bongani Cigars Robusto in Review

WRAPPER: Cameroon
BINDER: Undisclosed
FILLER: Undisclosed

FORMAT: Robusto
ORIGIN: Mozambique
INTENSITY: Medium/Med. full

NOTES:

Red spices | Milk chocolate | Cedar

Determined but nimbly-so. Spicy, gently & then-some. Balanced. Neatly complex. Layers of nuances untether a tick. As usual, I'm on-ahead of myself. Minimal veins, tight seams. Views a tick crimson in its under-hues. Oily shaft oils more-so via progression. Olfactory of savory spices braced with leathery woods. This transfers to the palate with a forward steering pepper-spice. 

Red pepper flakes, cayenne dash. Paprika. Quite sumac, a rare thing, that -- it carries some of its tart sour lemon tendencies, cleanly. Smoothly. Mid-palate is milk chocolate, a soft-sweet juxtaposition to the immediate. A bit creamy w/ some citrus seeping-in. Back-end is all cedar, deftly. There, the sweet & sour notes mix in nifty equal footing.

Superb bracing. Delineations last on long-legs into an oily but crisp finish. I see red poppies. Earthen core is mineral-laced red soil. Less fortunate is its split, flaky ash growth. A wobbly burn-line which requires several re-touches. Both still leaving a worthwhile experience to partake in. Unique flavors, consistent not linear & in decent harmony. 

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

FINAL GRADE: A-
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79 D 60-69 F 0-59

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Kaplowitz Media. SPECIAL REPORT: Recently Reviewed Maduro Cigars RANKED

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Kaplowitz Media. SPECIAL REPORT: 

Recently Reviewed Maduro Cigars RANKED

[namings are links to full reviews]

GOLD MEDAL

Valacari Cigars Nobility 2019

SILVER MEDAL

Indian Motorcycle Cigars Maduro

BRONZE MEDAL

Leaning House Fine Cigars Maduro

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NOTE that these occasional GOLD | SILVER | BRONZE (GSB) listicles live independently of the big end of the year list & even monthly best-ofs. Please don't hold me accountable for this. Consider these the lore, not canon, of the Kaplowitz Media. Universe (#KMU)

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Cohiba Cigars Blue Robusto in Review

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Cohiba Cigars Blue Robusto in Review

WRAPPER: Honduran Habano
BINDER: Honduran Habano
FILLER: Dominican, Honduran, Nicaraguan

FORMAT: Robusto (5.5x50)
ORIGIN: Dominican Republic
INTENSITY: Medium

NOTES:

White peppercorn | Sugary citrus | Cocoa butter

Spikes the tongue a tick. White peppercorn/citrus-ade front. Suede [balanced]mid-palate, hazelnut. Front finds [lingering]finish. Fusty-dusty, interestingly-so. [spring-time]sugary-simply. [sunny]Malty-some. [back-end]Evolutions[complexities]: cocoa butter, orange grove, pinewood. (25wds.)

+(50wds.): delivered like a short-simple speech or essay. 1) tells you what it will tell you, 2) tells you, & 3) tells you what it told you. Evolutions as reiterations, say. Complexities are layerings of repetitive nuances. Cyclical, then. Finished if not complete... a snake, mundanely eating its tail, dying hungry?

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

FINAL GRADE: B+
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79 D 60-69 F 0-59

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Indian Motorcycle Cigars Maduro in Review

“Have you Kaplowitz’d to-day?”

Indian Motorcycle 1901 Premium Cigars Maduro Toro in Review

WRAPPER: Connecticut Broadleaf
BINDER: Dominican
FILLER: Central American

FORMAT: Toro
ORIGIN: Dominican Republic
INTENSITY: Medium-Full

NOTES:

Earth | Leather | Spice

Savory fruity-earth. Leather & oils. Densely nuanced. Sweet via mid-palate molasses, brown sugar retro-hale. Black bread. Spices evolve front-end: paprika, cumin. Cinnamon raisin toast finish.

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

FINAL GRADE: B+
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79 D 60-69 F 0-59

Other Indian reviews:

Indian Motorcycle Connecticut
Indian Motorcycle Connecticut (Canadian)
Indian Motorcycle Habano
Indian Motorcyle Maduro

PLEASE NOTE: there are three occasions I revisit blends: 1. the passage of time, 2. different vitola, & 3. a different review style or medium. thx

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Kaplowitz Media. Cigars SPECIAL REPORT: Dominican | Honduran | Nicaraguan Gold Medals (Recent Reviews) RANKED

"Have you Kaplowitz'd to-day"

Kaplowitz Media. Cigars SPECIAL REPORT: Dominican | Honduran | Nicaraguan Gold Medals (Recent Reviews) RANKED

Remember those not all that long ago GOLD | SILVER | BRONZE recently reviewed lists? For a refresher, they were (links ahead) of DOMINICAN REPUBLIC, HONDURAN, and NICARAGUAN offerings & they were ranked. Now, I'm ranking the GOLD MEDALISTS. wow. 

(Each offering's mention is a link to my full review.)

GOLD MEDAL

ADVentura The Conqueror Emperor's Edition

(Dominican)

SILVER MEDAL

Cavalier-Geneve White Series

(Honduran)

BRONZE MEDAL

My Father La Promesa

(Nicaraguan)

NOTE: that these occasional GOLD | SILVER | BRONZE (GSB) listicles live independently of the big end of the year list & even monthly best-ofs. Please don't hold me accountable for this. Consider these the lore, not canon, of the Kaplowitz Media. Universe (#KMU)

NOTE II: look for me to potentially discuss this list in further detail on Kaplowitz Radio. Podcast EP213 (upcoming). thx

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Debonaire Cigars Habano Robusto in Review

“Have you Kaplowitz’d to-day?”

Debonaire House 

Habano Robusto 

WRAPPER: Nicaraguan
BINDER: Dominican
FILLER: Nicaraguan, Dominican

FORMAT: Robusto (5.25x50)
ORIGIN: Dominican Republic
INTENSITY: Medium

NOTES:

Lemon cream | Mulling spices | Milk chocolate

Supremely-balanced, gently-athletic complexities. Sleek-clean notes, silky-smooth. Lemon-cream, stiffly. Excellent structure. Mulling spices w/ on-ahead citrusy cloves. Suede-buttery mids. Finishes clay(adobe) earthen, lingering lemony-spices(white/red pepper).

TASTE: A-

DRAW:  A

BURN: B+

BUILD: A-

FINAL GRADE: A-
A 90-100 B 80-89 C 70-79 D 60-69 F 0-59

Other Debonaire reviews:

Debonaire Daybreak
Debonaire Habano (petite lancero)
Debonaire Maduro

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