Don Lino Africa Robusto Review

[CigarMonkel]

Well, let me start out by saying if your a newb and looking to get your pallet some new flavors, this is a good cigar. However if you are OCD about burn, ash and purging every 5 or 6 puffs... stay away! But in defense of this cigar, i may have just had a bad one of the litter.


Once again the cigarmonkel light, an uneven start to most cigars this man attempts to light!
The draw was perfect and the smoke was average and the tastes were new to me. I was picking up what i thought at the time was a coffee flavor... probably the coffee i had been drinking right before i fired her up though.

As you can see, the burn was quite uneven and it needed to be fixed. By now i was getting a flavor of toasted nuts.. maybe toast and nuts? Not a big toast fan so it would be hard for me to recognize the toast flavors, but i was definitely picking some sort of toast/toasted flavor along with what seemed to be nuts. The draw was perfect throughout the whole cigar.

The ash was the most ugly ash i've ever seen in a cigar and disgusted me. I was tempted to pitch it right then and there but the wonderful toasty flavor kept me in the game. Sadly the flavor as a whole seemed to dip in and out and at times i swear i was smoking a very mild stick as the flavors just weren't there. Some quick purges (when i say purgeS i mean maybe 10 throughout the whole smoke) seemed to always fix this though.

As ugly as the ash was it held up quite well. Another purge at about this point brought the flavor back. Maybe it didn't like me?

After it ashed itself i found myself purging this cigar every 5 puffs just to bring the flavor back and by now i had to fix the burn 3times with my lighter. When i realized i had to purge it for about what seemed like the 30th time i threw it away. I want a cigar that i don't have to fix every second to enjoy it . I want a cigar i can kick back with, relax and enjoy without having to worry about the purging and fixing burn problems. In my book, 2 purges is acceptable. Maybe 1 in the middle and 1 towards the finish... but 10 purges in a little more then half the stick? thats terrible.

Taste: 8.5/10 not including the fact i had to purge it so much
Burn: 3/10
Smoke: 7/10
construction: 8/10 minus the fact of how ugly the ash was... it held up pretty nicely and the stick felt fine with very little veins and a nice dark oily wrapper
appearance: 9/10

save your money

[pbrennan10]

most linos i've had have some burn issues, but are still tolerable.

The one that didn't have burn issues was the punda milia, a 44 ring gauge.

[JGIORD]

Nice review,

Thanks

I also agree that a cigar shouldn't make you work that hard. Too much work, lowers the enjoyment.

[BamBam]

I've been curious about these.

[CigarMonkel]

depending on how much you can get these for (my B&M charges 8 for a robusto)... save your money (assuming my stick wasn't a bad one of the bunch). if you can snag em for 5bucks and under a stick i'd say give it a go.

[AD720]

The 10 pack sampler with five of these and five of the smaller can routinely be picked up on the devil site for around $20. At that price they are a great buy.

I have never had a burn problem with the Don Linos though, that would certainly have an effect on my opinion of them.

[massphatness]

Originally Posted by CigarMonkel

depending on how much you can get these for (my B&M charges 8 for a robusto)... save your money (assuming my stick wasn't a bad one of the bunch). if you can snag em for 5bucks and under a stick i'd say give it a go.

The Africa can routinely be had on cbid for short money. I haven't had nearly the burn issues Ryan experienced, and I really like the flavor. This one is definitely worth trying, and I often include one in PIFs & bombs.

[dalerobk]

Originally Posted by massphatness

The Africa can routinely be had on cbid for short money. I haven't had nearly the burn issues Ryan experienced, and I really like the flavor. This one is definitely worth trying, and I often include one in PIFs & bombs.

I agree. Everyone should try at least one of these. It has a unique and rich flavor that I really enjoy from time to time. I also have had burn issues which is frustrating. I got a box about 6 months ago and it seems like many of the burn issues are now resolved. It's also a good idea to dry box these for 48 hours before smoking. But like I said, this unique Africa flavor should be tried by everyone at least once.

[Blowin' Smoke]

Good review, thank you. I agree that a bad burn can def. affect the overall enjoyment.

[ky toker]

Originally Posted by CigarMonkel

save your money

First let me say that you put some work into doing your reviews and that goes a long way and makes them enjoyable.

I really couldn't disagree more with your sentiments shown toward the DL Africa. These are some tasty cigars with solid construction and a decent price tag (though I like to pay less). I've put down a number of them and enjoyed each with issue. Hell, I once smoked one while playing softball and that whole experience was great.

Now I'm not defending the cigar saying you have to like it, NO, what I looking at is how you've gigged a cigar so harsh after only smoking one. And for a burn for that matter. The burn can be affected by the cigar itself, handling/storage, and light. What could have been the cause here? And while a good burn is nice to have don't fixate on it so much, but more on the taste of the cigar. I've had my fair share of bad burns and I do agree it can be annoying, but a correction here or there will not deter from my relaxing moment.

Put a few more in your humi to let sit and adjust and then take them out 1 per week and see if there is any consistency. Because it isn't only about if you'll try your second DLA, but more at will one of these readers never try what could have been their new favorite cigar.

This isn't to discourage you at all from posting your reviews; please keep at it. So sacrifice a few more to the God's of the Ash and come back and give us an update. Take this action and you'll be rewarded!

[CigarMonkel]

Originally Posted by ky toker

First let me say that you put some work into doing your reviews and that goes a long way and makes them enjoyable.

I really couldn't disagree more with your sentiments shown toward the DL Africa. These are some tasty cigars with solid construction and a decent price tag (though I like to pay less). I've put down a number of them and enjoyed each with issue. Hell, I once smoked one while playing softball and that whole experience was great.

Now I'm not defending the cigar saying you have to like it, NO, what I looking at is how you've gigged a cigar so harsh after only smoking one. And for a burn for that matter. The burn can be affected by the cigar itself, handling/storage, and light. What could have been the cause here? And while a good burn is nice to have don't fixate on it so much, but more on the taste of the cigar. I've had my fair share of bad burns and I do agree it can be annoying, but a correction here or there will not deter from my relaxing moment.

Put a few more in your humi to let sit and adjust and then take them out 1 per week and see if there is any consistency. Because it isn't only about if you'll try your second DLA, but more at will one of these readers never try what could have been their new favorite cigar.

This isn't to discourage you at all from posting your reviews; please keep at it. So sacrifice a few more to the God's of the Ash and come back and give us an update. Take this action and you'll be rewarded!

Thanks for your suggestions and comments. This one had been sitting in my humi that stays right around 65% and 65-70temp wise for at least a good month. I also mentioned how many times i was having to purge it to bring the taste back and not just the burn. I wrote this review based on this single stick and i try to not hold true and firm grudges against sticks without trying more then 2. So as you said i will be picking up another couple of these in the future to give another shot...if i can find them for a good steal (sounds like the devil site has them for good prices).

[ky toker]

Originally Posted by CigarMonkel

I also mentioned how many times i was having to purge it to bring the taste back and not just the burn.

Ah yes, I didn't address that did I. No need. Hope you try a few more and find them more pleasing.

[CigarMonkel]

Originally Posted by ky toker

Ah yes, I didn't address that did I. No need. Hope you try a few more and find them more pleasing.

[Greenwit]

Ha! That's an uneven burn to you? That's pretty much par for the course for me these days (or worse). No cheapies either...Perdomo, Camacho, Tatuaje, DPG.......

But I also had combustion issues with these. It seems to be hit or miss. Nice review.

[Major Captain Silly]

I just finished a DLA Duma. I really, really liked it. Strong earthy flavors and no burn issues at all. Mine have been kept at 62% for a couple months. This cigar fit my flavor profile perfectly.

MCS