So I got my big box of "cheapies" from Famous yesterday pursuant to my attempt to find good budget smokes. I smoked a Sancho Panza double maduro ROTT. You were all correct.
This morning, it was La Fontana Vintage Galileo. A $2 "mild" stick that I wasn't expecting much from but decided to throw in anyway.
THE BAD:
The cigar seems somewhat underfilled. The cap is sweetened which I expected to annoy me to no end, however, after I punched it and took a few dry draws, the entire cap fell off exposing binder. That problem solved! The ash is flaky and does not want to give itself up when tapped.
THE GOOD:
So, given the above, this was a horrible experience, right? Hold on just a bit. I fired it up and thought to myself, "did someone play a joke and play tricks on a DPG cigar!? Pepper, and lots of it, both black and red forced a quick smile to appear on my unsuspecting face. This pepper mingled with a nice woody quality. The taste was one note. The whole stick was a melange of pepper and wood, but it was one helluva good note!
To sum it up, if you are a heavy chomper, I could see this stick self-destructing before your eyes, but if you take a kinder, gentler approach to a cigar, I don't forsee any problems. This is a mild-bodied, full-flavored smoke if that makes any sense. And talk about value! For two dollars, I know I've found a go-to morning cigar. This isn't one to sit down with after a big meal, but for a morning, kick around and read the paper kind of beauty, this stick delivers and how.