Review - Fonseca Habana Selección Black Prince

[nozero]

Cigar: Fonseca Habana Selección Black Prince


Size: A lengthy 8.7" X 48 by far the longest cigar I've ever had to date.

Appearance/Construction: To me this is a beautifully crafted cigar, a Nicaraguan-grown, Habana Criollo ’98 leaf, richly colored chocolate brown wrapper that's smooth and slightly shiny, the binder is a Cuban-seed Nicaraguan leaf, and the filler is Cuban-seed Dominican ligero and seco tobaccos. It has a very tight firm feel to it which is consistent from head to foot.

Where: Out on the patio 68° and 65% humidity with winds from the SW at 9 mph.

Drink: Strong coffee with creamer and raw sugar.

Prelight Aroma: Slightly sweet, spicy and mild yet robust tobacco aroma.

Prelight Draw/Taste: The cap clipped cleanly with my Palio and test draws revealed a very mild spice and leather taste and the draw was a little tight, but this may be related to the length. With the first one I smoked, the draw got better and better.

Light: Ronson Jetlite with Ronson fuel.

First Impressions: Actually, these are second impressions as this is the second time I've had this pleasure. I had my first Friday evening with some Makers Mark, but the impression then was grand. The initial draws produce adequate amounts of rich white smoke with a medium bodied taste. Very smooth flavors consisting of wood and leather, a prominent more than strong spicyness that's cinamon like and there are some earthy notes as well. I just keep thinking how much I'm going to enjoy this cigar and my expectations are rather high because the first one was so enjoyable.

First third: Let's see, that would be the first 2.9 inches. The smoke to draw ratio for the first half inch is rather limited, but picks up from then on becomming far more generous. So far this is a grand smoke. Smooth, so very smooth rich and flavorful. The flavors are in combination or a mixture rather than alternating but are still discernable and for me the spice is the most noted of them all.


Second third: The flavor builds slowly in intensity, yet remains smooth and I love the aftertaste or "finish". With some sticks I find myself reaching for the coffee to settle my stomach or cleanse my palate, instead I keep reaching back for more and more. Could be "just my imagination -- once again -- running away with me", but it seems as though the more I smoke the more attractive she becomes. The oily sheen of her wrapper glows more and more.


A small crack started here, but didn't spread and didn't have any impact on smoking her.


Final third: One of our sons called during the last third and the stick self extinguished while I spoke to him for about seven minutes. After relighting it had a bit of a nasty taste for a few minute but cleared up and I smoke it down to the last inch before setting it to final rest. The flavors during the second half were pretty much the same as the others, but more intense and some of the smoothness was lost.

Ash/Burn: Fairly tight very light gray ash at first, that held well up to an inch and three quarters when the wind whipped it onto my shirt right before I was going to get another picture. After that, I decided not to see how long it could get and began tapping it off at and inch or so or whenever it looked as though it may drop. The ash became less tight and more flaky during the second third and unlike the first which burned with perfection, this one required a little rotation in the ash tray to even it up now and then.

http://nozero.org/Cigar/FHSBP4r.jpg

Final Comments: I'd recommend this stick to anybody with enough time to enjoy it fully. Very nice overall and I'd rate it an 8 out of 10. I really enjoyed the sweet spicyness.

Price: I picked up a box of ten up from CBid for $34.00 and would buy them again and again at that bargan price. Cigar.com sells the same box of ten for $79.95 and singles for $9.20, but I doubt I'd be willing to pay that much for them. At either price though, you are getting a lot of cigar for your money.

Burn Time: 9:35 AM to 12:14 PM 11/4/2007. A long one!

[Scud]

Great review, but I don't think I'll ever have 2+ hours to devote to one smoke. That thing's too big to fit in most of my humidors!!

[Irons]

Thanks for the review. I know it would fit somewhere in my cooler. =) That is interesting flaking on the ash.

[AriesOpusX]

Nice review, good ash pr0n too.

[Marlboro Cigars]

Thanks for the great shots and the awesome review.

[nozero]

Originally Posted by Scud

Great review, but I don't think I'll ever have 2+ hours to devote to one smoke. That thing's too big to fit in most of my humidors!!

Thanks, I had to clear the top tray and put these in horizontally.

[BigFrankMD]

Awesome review, thanks a ton. Been looking to get a 5-pack of the smaller sizes to try.

[gary106334]

Thanks for the review.