Wednesday, January 23, 2008

Herf #9 - 7th Best

January 20th, 2008 - Shoreline, WA
In attendance were Fernand, John, Robert, John, and Tom.
As usual, we gathered to enjoy a good cigar and give our opinion on it by holding a 'group tasting' following dinner.
The five of us dined at nearby Thai Bistro in Shoreline, where the Panang was fabulous and the beers were tall, before heading over to John’s place to begin the tasting session and enjoy some much needed relaxation and camaraderie.
Our selection for this Herf was the Illusione ~cg:4~. A beautiful corona measuring 5 5/8 inches long with a ring guage of 46. The ~cg:4~ was recently awarded 7th best Cigar of the Year for 2007, which received a 93 from Cigar Aficionado's expert tasting panel.
Following CA's 4-part rating system (Appearance & Construction, Flavor, Smoking Characteristics, and Overall Impression) we began the tasting. This proved to be a very well-liked cigar among our group of ‘tasters’.
After averaging our scores, The Cohiba Club's official rating for the Illusione ~cg:4~ is 91. An outstanding cigar.
Here's the points breakdown:
I. Appearance & Construction: 15 pts (100% of the points possible)
II. Flavor: 22 pts (88% of the points possible)
III. Smoking Characteristics: 23 pts (92% of the points possible)
IV. Overall Impression: 31 pts (89% of the points possible)
The Appearance, Construction, and Smoking Characteristics of this Nicaraguan puro are where it really stood out. The flavor scoring was also pretty high as well. There was an initial spice which mellowed into a smooth, consistent, and pleasant flavor profile over the remainder of the cigar.
A good example of a balanced smoke. We were very pleased to have made this selection and would not hesitate to recommend it.
Photo credit to Cigar Aficionado

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

A herf with a ~cg4~ tasting. Sounds like a winner to me. I would have been a little higher on the overall score but certainly agree it is a fine smoke! My review is here!

Unknown said...

Also not a cigar with an empty stomach.

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