DBall's Newb Blind Taste Test #5

[DBall]

Dropped in the mail today.

As a suggestion, keep the RH for these around 63 or so... many people in previous threads had issues with plugged cigars due to overhumidification.

[ApexAZ]

Originally Posted by DBall

Dropped in the mail today.

As a suggestion, keep the RH for these around 63 or so... many people in previous threads had issues with plugged cigars due to overhumidification.

I have 65 beads. Should this be okay, or should I drybox before smoking?

Originally Posted by ApexAZ

I have 65 beads. Should this be okay, or should I drybox before smoking?

65% is perfect!

[DBall]

Originally Posted by ApexAZ

I have 65 beads. Should this be okay, or should I drybox before smoking?

That should be good, though low 60's seems to work best for me. Anything over 65 and they start getting troublesome. I think I'm around 61%, in fact...

[smitty81]

Originally Posted by DBall

That should be good, though low 60's seems to work best for me. Anything over 65 and they start getting troublesome. I think I'm around 61%, in fact...

I also was wondering how I'm going to store these. I'm wondering if I put them in a big ziplock bag with a 65% travle humidifier like they give you at shops when you buy cigars, If I use that and leave the baggie open just a bit so some humidity can escape.

Wonder if that will keep them in the low 60's

[T.G]

Originally Posted by smitty81

I also was wondering how I'm going to store these. I'm wondering if I put them in a big ziplock bag with a 65% travle humidifier like they give you at shops when you buy cigars, If I use that and leave the baggie open just a bit so some humidity can escape.

Wonder if that will keep them in the low 60's

If you leave the bag open you'll have an uncontrolled environment. It could go up or down drastically depending on the ambient RH in your area.

See Dan's comment below about 65%, just get a tupperware container and put the boveda pack in there with the cigars.


PS: you did mean a boveda pack? Or do you mean a water pillow when you said "65% travel humidifier that the shops give you" If it's a water pillow, those typically aren't 65%RH, they are often closer to 70%.

Originally Posted by DBall

That should be good, though low 60's seems to work best for me. Anything over 65 and they start getting troublesome. I think I'm around 61%, in fact...

[smitty81]

Originally Posted by T.G

If you leave the bag open you'll have an uncontrolled environment. It could go up or down drastically depending on the ambient RH in your area.

See Dan's comment below about 65%, just get a tupperware container and put the boveda pack in there with the cigars.


PS: you did mean a boveda pack? Or do you mean a water pillow when you said "65% travel humidifier that the shops give you" If it's a water pillow, those typically aren't 65%RH, they are often closer to 70%.

It's the same thing as a boveda. I was just trying to think of how to keep the RH lower.

I was thinking the 65% packet would give off RH and if I left the bag open slightly then some of the RH could escape. The RH is lower than 65% in my house and it really dosn't swing.

Maby I'll put a hygrometer in the bag (slightly open) with the packet and see where it goes before I try adding cigars.

Maby I'm just thinking to hard about it........

[lilninjabuddy]

Originally Posted by smitty81

It's the same thing as a boveda. I was just trying to think of how to keep the RH lower.

I was thinking the 65% packet would give off RH and if I left the bag open slightly then some of the RH could escape. The RH is lower than 65% in my house and it really dosn't swing.

Maby I'll put a hygrometer in the bag (slightly open) with the packet and see where it goes before I try adding cigars.

Maby I'm just thinking to hard about it........

If it's a Boveda, it should be a two-way packet, meaning it'll let out humidity if it gets to dry in there, but will also absorb extra if it gets too wet. So if it is in fact a Boveda, go ahead and close the bag, the packet will regulate the rH for you.

[dwoodward]

Originally Posted by smitty81

It's the same thing as a boveda. I was just trying to think of how to keep the RH lower.

I was thinking the 65% packet would give off RH and if I left the bag open slightly then some of the RH could escape. The RH is lower than 65% in my house and it really dosn't swing.

Maby I'll put a hygrometer in the bag (slightly open) with the packet and see where it goes before I try adding cigars.

Maby I'm just thinking to hard about it........

I'd be more concerned with the Boveda losing it's RH before you get done smoking them. I like Brutus's suggestion, clip it and take a draw, if it draws well smoke it, if not dry box it. Really can't get much easier than that.

Although if you have a draw tool, you could keep it at 65 even and just poke it before smoking.

[DBall]

ApexAZ Cigar #1
**************


4/2/2012

Today I will be reviewing the first cigar from dball's 10 cigar blind test taste sampler. I am pairing it with an Americano coffee with cream made from my stove-top moka pot.



Pre-light
The blind taste test cigar #1 appears to be about 5 x 42 in size. Some google search results suggest that this would be a petit corona. The wrapper is a light natural color that is soft and velvety to the touch. Some minimal veins give it some some added texture. Interestingly, there appears to be tiny glittery copper specks all throughout the wrapper that glint in the sunlight (Insert team Edward joke here lol). It's almost as if there are mineral deposits within the leaf. I don't know that I've ever seen this in a cigar before. The construction appears to be very good and has a nicely rounded and symmetrical double cap. There is a spot about 1/3 from the head where the wrapper is slightly torn and exposing the binder. It's fairly small and I hope that it doesn't cause any issues. The cigar feels slightly spongy and there aren't any noticeable soft spots.

I wet the head and snipped the cap with my Xikar xi2. Pre-light, the flavor and aroma are a very light and sweet tobacco flavor. On the prelight draw I taste mainly sweet tobacco with some very slight hints of some flavor I can't quite place. I want to say it's similar to cinnamon, but it isn't tingly on the tongue like you would expect cinnamon to be. The draw is a little tight, but seems to be okay to smoke.



1st Third
After lighting the cigar, one of the first things I noticed is the smoothness right from the start. Most of the cigars I'm used to smoking have that in-your-face punch for the first several draws after lighting before they start to settle. That wasn't the case for this cigar as it was pretty smooth right off the bat. The draw is perfect and the body is mild to medium and very smooth. The strength seems to be pretty mild as well. Flavors I'm getting are sweet tobacco mixed with some mild charred wood-like flavors. The cinnamon-like flavor that I got from the pre-light draw is not detectable. It's a very windy day here in Phoenix, but the burn is staying pretty sharp. The ash is a salt and pepper color and seems to want to give way on it's own after only 1/3 or an inch or so. I also noticed that the aroma coming off the cigar is very pleasing.



2nd Third
About 15 minutes in I start to get into the 2nd third. The cigar is now more of a medium body, light strength and really starting to get tasty. The draw and burn both continues to be perfect with the ash dropping on it's own after about 1/3 of an inch. The wood flavors have disappeared and I get mostly a creamy sweet flavor. A muted caramel or toffee flavor is the only way I can describe it.



Final Third
I'm now about 32 minutes into the cigar and on the final 3rd. The cigar remains medium in body with the strength picking up, which is now medium as well. I'm starting to get a mix of pepper and cinnamon flavor that leaves a slight lingering tingling sensation at the back of my tongue after I exhale. The caramel/toffee flavor that I was getting before is now closer to what I would describe as being more like butter and anise. It almost tastes like a smokey, buttery pizzelle that is ever-so-slightly spiced with cinnamon. Despite the intense wind, the burn continues to be razor sharp and the ash drops after about 1/3 of an inch. With as predictable as the ash has been, you'd think I would have known better not to let it drop on my laptop, as you'll see in the photo.



Conclusion
This was a great little cigar. When I first smelled the tobacco and found very little aroma to it compared to the Nicaraguan leaf I'm so used to, I was a little skeptical as to whether or not I would enjoy it. As it turns out, the cigar happened to have loads of flavor that evolved into a somewhat complex experience over the course of the smoke. The cigar was much sweeter than I had anticipated and I ended up nubbing it down to about 1/2" before needing to call it quits. Overall it was very enjoyable and I look forward to BTT #2. Thanks, DBall!

Score: 8/10

Total smoke time: About 48 minutes