Noob Contest blind review
 

As some of you may have noticed I had a "Noob name where my avatar came from contest". Well the winners (which was everyone that responded with a correct answer), was given 1 blind stick and they will post the review here.

Let the fun begin :)

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

My cold is about subsided, going to give it a few days after I feel that I have my full sense of taste back and give it a go :)

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Same with me I caught this sinus infection. Not sure if it is from me starting to smoke cigars, or maybe its a coincidence. I'm on day two of the sickness, so should only be for another few days. I'm going to get some meds from the doc today.

Can we get maybe some clues on what the mystery stick is?

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Clues?
http://www.gotriadscene.com/images/e.../Blueslogo.jpg

How much does that tell you? :r

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

I doubt its a coincidence, I have been talking to people all over the continental US and people are coming down with this pretty wicked bug all over the place. I have been getting better, then one day I will feel worse and then get better again. This is the first night I have been able to sleep all the way through without coughing myself awake so I think that's a good sign. Hope you feel better brother :)

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Pepin Blue?

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Thanks man. My Girlfriend just now started with it :td deff my fault. Ohwell haha. Give some and take some. ANyways, I today too started to cough and that means its packing its bags and its outta here.

http://i37.tinypic.com/fwpukz.jpg

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Then it wouldn't be a blind review then, would it? haha

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Make sure when taking mucinex to increase your water intake by well a **** ton... try to drink over 2 gallons a day if you can swing it. The water will thin the mucus and you can expectorate it that much quicker with the guaifenacin aka the active ingredient in mucinex.

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

A very wise man. ;)

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Blind Cigar
http://i569.photobucket.com/albums/s...veen/Intro.jpg

Impression;
Construction is a little iffy on this one, there are a few blemishes on the wrapper that could prove to be trouble, even though the major flaw was due to the band being removed prematurely. It is a very dark oily slightly vein y box press cigar.

Pre-Lite;
Initial pre-lite smell is quite rich with leather and chocolate, and slightly sweet on the lips. Test draw is slightly tight but shouldnt affect the enjoyability of the cigar.
http://i569.photobucket.com/albums/s...veen/Light.jpg
1st third;
Slightly peppery on the start with under notes of cedar and something I cant quite put my thumb on. Smoke is thin and tough to come by, but the ash is tight and with little flaking. The burn is quite uneven, easy enough to touch up. About ½" into the smoke the flavors remained the same but mellowed out quite a bit. It reminds me alot of a CAO MX2.
http://i569.photobucket.com/albums/s...een/1st3rd.jpg
2nd third;
The draw is getting better and the burn evened out, but the smoke is still hard to come by. Peppery leather and cedar are still constant with hints of cocoa. The unidentified flavor from before is almost nutty but not quite. Strength toned down to what I would consider a medium-full smoke.
http://i569.photobucket.com/albums/s.../enjoyment.jpg
Final 3rd;
The blemish on the bottom 3rd of the smoke is now beginning to be an issue... Draw is flawless now and smoke is plentiful, but the wrapper is burning itself off the binder. It has moved to a more fuller body with a great deal of pepper and tobacco flavors. The wrapper burst into flames during a slight correction of the burn and I was forced to put it to sleep.
http://i569.photobucket.com/albums/s...en/Blemish.jpg
Conclusion;
From my experience I would give this a 7.5 due to construction issues and draw problems. The flavors were complex, full, and complimented each other quite well. This was right up my alley for a fuller body smoke. I would definitely revisit this cigar.

Thank you very much Christos for the opportunity to participate in your contest even though I overestimated my post whorishness, and to show my input with this blind review.

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Couple more images that wouldn't fit in the post.
http://i569.photobucket.com/albums/s...veen/notes.jpg
http://i569.photobucket.com/albums/s...veen/flaw1.jpg

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Nice review Jesse!! :tu

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I think I know what it is, just by looking at it!!! The review pretty much confirmed it! :tu

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

:tpd:

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If it's what I'm thinking it is, I've never had one that had the wrapper crack and come apart.

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Great review :tu I definitely like the camera work too... Sorry about the wrapper, I would imagine it is due to me taking off the bands.

2 more reviews before we reveal the mystery stick :D

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

is that a girls drink i see in your pic ?

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Nah mate I don't do reviews with a flavored drink so I drink water with a bit of citrus to cleanse the pallet. LOL it almost sounded like I know what I am doing right there....

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Alright Jesse blew mine out the water haha. Nice walk thru.

Pre-light: The draw was tight slightly too but VERY nice chocolate flavors and something else...
1st 3rd: I too experienced tight draw. The flavors were something that I couldn't not distinguish. I did not favor the first part. The ash would not hold at all neither.
2nd 3rd: This is where the chocolate flavors come into play too,maybe nutty too? Very nice smoke clean draw and the ash was starting to hold on better here too. I did experience burn issues. My wrapper was cracking a bit but not as bad as Poronico's wrapper.
Last 3rd: Flavors were more prominent and tasted again of something I could not tell. I'm very very new to the cigar world and this was a test IMO. The nicotine was starting to kick in nicely and was smooth all the way to the nub. I did have to relight it twice at the end.

Conclusion: I thought this cigar was nasty at first, but then cleaned up towards the middle and to the nub. As Poronico said I would take another one of these to smoke again. I smoked mine while I smoked some beef on the grill. So no rushing here, about one hour to an hour and a half of smoke on this cigar. I also had some plume on my wrapper which I like to see, again not seeing it much since I'm a new smoker. I'm wondering actually what this cigar is, well what it was haha. Very interesting smoke to say the least.

Thanks Greek for the run on this one, it is going to be one to log in the books.

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Did you get some pictures?

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No I did not snap any pictures, I guess next time I review I have to take some. I'm not used to taking pictures when others send me stuff and review cigars.

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Its all good, just helps explain your experience :)

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I did haha. But I did like the pictures. Good job on that.

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Thanks :) I have been smoking cigars for a few years now, and I consider myself a minor league foodie so it all helps with pulling flavors out of a mix and enjoying them. When I am smoking on a day to day basis I don't try to dissect the experience... I just sit back and enjoy :ss

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Are spectators allowed to make guesses?

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Its good to hear that :) I like to think I dont have the pallet of a goat... but sometimes you never know :tf

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Hang on for one more review. Then I'll let the flood gates to open with guesses before I reveal the cigar:)

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Nice contest, Christos! Ima steal this idea, just like how you stealed my avatar idea.:tu:D

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The final contestant does know there was a blind review right...

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He should... Tim has the link :tu

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Poronico, maybe he has that bug going around too? Seems as if more and more people are coming down with this bug. Kinda scary. Hopefully it doesnt evolve into something bigger.

[Back to last contestant's review]

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Yea if it turns into another super bug it will be pretty horrible, especially with the H1N1 running around. People are going to be on lockdown if it comes to that.

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Here's my review of the blind stick that Christos sent in his contest winnings. The stick is a box-pressed torpedo with a dark brown wrapper. Slightly dry to the touch with a nice sheen to it. The pre-light aroma on this is heavy barnyard with more potency at the foot.

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...eview/GGX1.jpg

Unfortunately I had some issues with the wrapper on the cigar, a piece of the wrapper came off in the middle of the cigar and then when I cut it the cap began to unravel. The pre-light draw on this one was good, but I had to work to keep it together due to the wrapper problems.

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...eview/GGX2.jpg

1st Third: It was hard to get a proper draw on the cigar but I did manage to keep it going. With a little work the cigar burnt very well and the flavors were quite nice. I tasted coffee and leather on the 1st third and I also had a taste that I couldn't quite put my finger on. Through the first third the wrapper issues didn't cause much trouble, but it did take away from my focus on the cigar as I fought to keep it together.

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...eview/GGX3.jpg

2nd Third: Going into the 2nd third of the cigar I hit the hole in the wrapper. The ash flared out and was quite crumbly. I have to say that even with the issues the cigar pushed through the trouble spot and I only had to do some minor touch ups. Coffee and leather remained and so did the mystery flavor - possibly toasted nuts?

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...eview/GGX4.jpg

Final Third: This is where the troublesome cap started to give me issues and I had to hold the cigar together. I noticed cream in the last third and really enjoyed that mingling with the other flavors. I got this one close to the nub.

http://i200.photobucket.com/albums/a...eview/GGX6.jpg

Conclusion: I enjoyed the flavors in this cigar quite a bit and imagine it has a lot of potential. Unfortunately, I was distracted from focusing on the cigar fully due to the issues I ran into. I'd definitely try this one again based on the flavors it produced.

Thanks again for the contest and the cigars!

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Time for the unveiling!

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Good review. Interesting how we all had wrapper issues, but mine was not near as bad as neither of yours.

Interested to hear what it is.

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Anybody want to make some predictions?

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I am still leaning towards COA but not the MX2 anylonger. Maybe Brazilia

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Hmmmm... no real guess based on flavor profile. Based on the vitola I'd guess a Padron Anny or maybe Nica Libre 1990???

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

:tt :D

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

:tpd:

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Bump... I NEED TO KNOW!!

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Well you all smoked a Gurkha Regent Torpedo.

Don't know how you guys feel about Gurkha's but I wanted to do a little experiment to see how much the band really effects taste :D

I haven't smoked one of these in forever and they have over a year of age on them. Haven't picked them up since I started smoking but I remember really liking them when I first started. Now I just have plenty of other sticks that I'd much rather have and have had enough bad Gurkhas to let these sit there.

Thanks guys for doing the reviews! Enjoy the other sticks I sent ya.

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

Hmm, very interesting. I would have never guessed that one! Thanks for the blind review, I suck at them but they are always fun. :D

I'll have to pick up another of these and try it again.

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Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

I'm utterly disturbed :td

Re: Noob Contest blind review
 

I have a few of the gurkha smokes I enjoy, especially the G5 and the Black Dragons. Thanks for the experience Chrtistos! Awesome times :)