Cigar Geeks Geek Critique
87
Cigar Geeks Rating
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Welcome to another Member sponsored Geek Critique generously sponsored by our member junglepete (Pete). This was done as a blind review so there were no pre-concieved notions about what anyone was smoking. The cigar provided for this round is the http://www.cigargeeks.com/cigardb/default.asp?action=showcig&cigar_id=190285">Crowned Heads Juarez OBS.
Crowned Heads teamed up with a little-known factory called Tabacalera Pichardo out of Nicaragua. [Tabacalera Pichardo was founded by Eradio Pichardo, a Cuban agronomist back in 2005.] They were tasked with producing a value-conscious alternative line to Crowned Head's Jericho Hill brand line of cigars, originally as an exclusive for Thompson Cigar Co. but later rolled out nationally.
As for the name, it is inspired by Johnny Cash's "Cocaine Blues." The Juárez part comes from, "...made a good run, but I run too slow; they overtook me down in Juárez, Mexico." OBS is a reference to Orange Blossom Special, which was another song on the album at Folsom Prison.
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This cigar was enjoyed with Henry McKenna 10 Year Single Barrel Bottled n Bond
Pre-Light: 9 Points of 10 Possible
This is a good looking dark and smooth cigar with a mostly dry appearance to it. Cold draw gives a little bit of sweetness like raisins while the aroma has a bit of pepper. The cap cut clean with my (cigar vault) guillotine cutter and the body is firmer at the shoulder than the foot.
Lighting and Burn: 14 Points of 15 Possible
I lit this with a split piece of cedar from a random box from who knows when. The ash is the palest of grey with a little bit of flaking. This one does put out a very nice amount of smoke, even while resting. The burn line was sharp and fairly straight. The ash fell about 1"- 1 1/4". This burned well throughout and had no problems.
Construction: 25 Points of 30 Possible
The draw on this cigar was almost flawless. The smooth cap cut well and held together throughout the smoke. The shoulder to halfway down the cigar felt quite a bit tighter than the foot, but it didn't seem to affect the performance of the cigar at all. I did not find any imperfections on the wrapper.
Flavor and Aroma: 39 Points of 45 Possible
First Third - A very smooth cigar that I would call a medium strength. The main profile I'm getting to start is wood with a little bit of sweetness. The retrohale gives you a small amount of pepper and a heavier wood profile.
Second Third - The flavors and strength stay about the same and it's still smoking/burning really smooth.
Final Third - The only change I'm experiencing is some pepper comes in with the wood profile. The retro pepper gets a little stronger and brings in a bit more of an earthy tone.
Summary
Thanks to Pete for letting me in on this one, I love doing blind reviews. This cigar was very enjoyable, it smoked well and had almost no issues. The flavor profile was good but could've used a bit more complexity (IMO). If I was looking for a bunch of transitions in flavor I would pass it up, but if I was looking for a steady cigar I could smoke while not giving it 100% of my attention, then I would definitely have some of these on hand.
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(4 Review(s))