Newbie's First Review- SLR

[FredAhhh10]

My first review so be gentle, haha.

I finally got moved into my new place and decided to celebrate with a stogie. Before now I’ve only ever smoked while consuming copious amounts of alcohol at the bar or on the golf course. I’ve never really sat down with a cigar by myself and tried to pick out the flavors. I’ll start by saying that was very difficult for me. I found it hard to put a name to a particular flavor rather then just saying good, great, or bad.

I fired up the laptop, set up my chair outside and cut the baby open. My cigar was a SLR Reserva Especial and I believe it was a Churchill size.

The cigar looked delicious. A few vanes but the wrapper looked oily and delicious. It seemed fairly soft when I squeezed it, almost like it was too moist. I purchased the cigar the day before at a local B&M and it had been stored in a walk-in humidor. I took a prelight pull (something I had never though to do before, but will continue in the future) and it tasted a bit like hay. The draw seemed easy.

After I lit it I immediately tasted a somewhat sweet flavor. It wasn’t overly sweet and it went away quickly. I had no problem getting healthy amounts of thin smoke from the gar.

About ¼ the way into the cigar I got a slight scent of something, almost chlorine like (for lack of a better word) that didn’t last very long.

The ash seemed to mushroom out at times and fell off very quickly. Only one time was I able to build up more than about ¾ of an inch. It burned somewhat evenly despite me having to relight it because I messed up the first time around.

I smoked much of the cigar without really picking up any specific flavors. It was somewhat woody or nutty but mostly it just taste like tobacco. I attempted to add a glass of zinfandel into the equation (it was all I had) but that didn’t help anything. I will admit it changed the taste of the wine drastically, evening it out and making it better in my opinion.

As I neared the halfway point I noticed lightning rolling in across the lake. The storm blew up from nowhere and before I knew it the rain was pouring down. Being a true Minnesotan who cares not for the weather, I braved the elements and finished my smoke hunched under the small awning above my doorway. Down to the end the cigar just tasted bland to me and was not overly impressive. The flavor never really changed, except for a bitterness when it was close to a nub.

Overall I would give this cigar a 4.5/10. That may be harsh to some but I just didn’t enjoy it. I could have gotten a bad one or maybe it just doesn’t fit my tastes. I’m not sure.

Any feedback would be appreciated because this is my first review ever.