Ashton VSG Belicoso No1 review

[moki]

I've long heard good things about the Ashton VSG's, and today was my day to find out what all of the buzz was about. The Ashton VSG Belicoso No1 is a gorgeous looking cigar, with an oily wrapper that has a very interesting "mottled" look to it that reminded me of fine suede. Alas, I was stuck without a proper cutter, and my punch wouldn't work too terribly well on a cigar of this shape, so I resorted to a sharp Swiss Army blade to make my cut.

As a tribute to the both the knife and the construction of the cigar, it all came off cleanly. Sniffing the end of the Ashton VSG reminded me a bit of the smell of the Opus. Enough foreplay, let's get down to business and spark this bad boy up.

The first few puffs made it fairly clear that although it smells a bit like an Opus, the taste is quite different. Instead of a "kick you in the teeth" punch (which isn't a bad thing, necessarily), my first draws tasted earthy/leathery, and yet surprisingly mellow and smooth.

Both the smell of the smoke, and the aftertaste left in your mouth is quite pleasant; leaves you smacking your lips waiting for the next draw. The cigar burned evenly, and maintained a nice greyish ash throughout, and as with many cigars, started to earn is keep about halfway through.

That's when the more interesting flavors started coming out, continuing to be earthy and slightly nutty, though I did find this cigar a bit on the bitter side; perhaps it needs a bit of aging. The strange thing is that although the draw is a bit bitter, the aftertaste isn't -- it's slightly sweet., and rather pleasant.

At present, I can't say I'm a convert to the VSG enthusiast category. Though I found it a tasty cigar that is well-constructed in every way, it's just a bit too much on the bitter side of things for me. I'm certainly going to revisit this position in half a year or so, after they've been given a chance to age a bit, and mellow out/develop.

I can tell there's a great cigar in here; I just think it needs a little more time to come out. Caveat: this is the first "virgin sun grown" cigar I've ever had, so perhaps I'm just not acclimatized to that particular taste.

[hogg]

Nice reading, all of them. looking forward to more posts!

[mrs bi-polar]

nICE review, nice cigar..

[cashcow]

Originally posted by mrs bi-polar
nICE review, nice cigar..

ditto