Gurkha Black Puro Review

[Shaz]

First of all, let me state that I've liked most, not all, Gurkhas that I've tried. Most have been good, although unremarkable. A few have been really good and the odd one just was bad.
I purchased this one from AD720 last January and has sat in my coolador since then. (For the record Andrew, I've enjoyed most of the cigars from that purchase).
The cigar looked tasty with a dark maduro wrapper and beautiful band. A few veins in it. It felt rock hard.
After I cut the cap on this pyramid cigar, the test draw seemed very tight, so I clipped a little more. Still tight. I know it's not over humidified, so I decided to fire her up.
Well, this cigar looked a lot better than it tasted. After lighting taste seemed promising. But it took 3 puffs to one draw to get a mouthful of smoke. 1st third tasted ok. Kinda like wood, cedar with tannin like dryness. About mid point it turned harsh. This continued for an inch or so. The draw loosened up and the harshness went away. The taste now was bitter, like dark chocolate without the sweetness. I purged and clipped more off the end. Helped a bit, but taste remained bitter like. It had elements of flavor that I liked, but seemed to be missing something. Maybe because it's a puro, it lacked some of the complexity that blends have? Had an unpleasant aftertaste. I would say this is high in strength and medium to full in body. This Gurkha is the epitomy of what the Gurkha dislikers describe.
I'm not sure what these sell for, but I rated it 5.7 out of 10 on my scale and 2+ on the Legend scale (a bit better than a yard gar).
Would I buy it again. No...

[Cletus]

Originally Posted by Shaz

... But it took 3 puffs to one draw to get a mouthful of smoke....

...This Gurkha is the epitomy of what the Gurkha dislikers describe.


I'm not sure what these sell for, but I rated it 5.7 out of 10 on my scale and 2+ on the Legend scale (a bit better than a yard gar).
Would I buy it again. No...

Oddly enough I tried this cigar today as well. It was part of a Gurkha sampler I received a few months ago. I agree with your assessment about the smoke - - I just couldn't seem to get a good mouthful no matter what I tried. I ended up giving up on the cigar after only the first third because I annoyed with the lack of smoke and flavor. I fired up my go-to cigar soon after - - an MX2 mini.

Out of the 20 Gurkha sampler I've had a couple phenomenal cigars, a couple that were good, and a couple really bad ones. I'd consider the Black Puro to be one of the bad ones. I think you're spot on with this being the Gurkha that the Gurkha haters are describing.


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[Shaz]

Originally Posted by Cletus

Oddly enough I tried this cigar today as well. It was part of a Gurkha sampler I received a few months ago. I agree with your assessment about the smoke - - I just couldn't seem to get a good mouthful no matter what I tried. I ended up giving up on the cigar after only the first third because I annoyed with the lack of smoke and flavor. I fired up my go-to cigar soon after - - an MX2 mini.

Out of the 20 Gurkha sampler I've had a couple phenomenal cigars, a couple that were good, and a couple really bad ones. I'd consider the Black Puro to be one of the bad ones. I think you're spot on with this being the Gurkha that the Gurkha haters are describing.


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Funny you smoked one today as well. I'm fairly easy to please on most cigars, but this one just didn't do. Although yours seemed more plugged than mine.