Ladies and gentlemen! On today's battlefield: The Epicure Especial VS. Hippie the toaster:)
Brand: Hoyo de Monterrey
Type: Epicure Especial
Vitola: Robusto extra
Size: 5,6"/141x50
Origin. Cuba
Box code: AGO 12 (cab of 10)
Appearance/construction (4.5 points)
Beautiful cigar indeed I say. Slightly longer than Epicure two but exactly the same ring gauge which make it look like a bit more temptating than the 2. The wrapper is cocoa coloured with a very rich and sweet bouquet, sugar cake and cocoa. Construction wise this Hoyo is solid and very well made.
Flavor (2.5 points)
1/3: The Especial starts with a hint of pepper, dry earth and wood and tobacco. No sweetness at all which surprises me somehow 'cause the last two especials I've smoked have been very sweet and delicious but now this roll has got maybe a little harsh character. The spice fades away... I really hope this improves.
2/3: Okay the sweetness is there but not as much as I expected. Toasted tobacco flavors and mild coffee but that is it. This is totally a different cigar than the other especials. Very one dimensional second third.
3/3: The tiny harshness crawls back. This isn't showing what it actually is. There is no flavor but toastiness and tobacco. I'm becoming to conclusion that this is maybe slightly on the dry side.
Smoking experience (3 points)
The cigar burned well and had a beautiful construction. I simply love cigars that leave solid ash junks without being flaky but the major problem was the lack of flavor and progression which was a huge disappointment. I know these cigars do have a sweet and flavorful profile and for that I had to give 0.5 points extra for the flavor part. This was just an exception but for now, in this battle, I prefer the Epicure No. 1 and 2.
Quality-price ratio (3.5 points)
Regarding to the Epicure 2, the Especial is little longer cigar and it costs little more. Excluding this particular sample I would say the ratio is simply good but not mind blowing.
Hippie's judgement
Appearance/construction: 4.5
Flavor: 2.5
Smoking experience: 3
Q-P ratio:3.5
The average: 3.375
The final grade is 3.5!
Hippie's flavor profile: 4
No comments:
Post a Comment